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OPINION & EDITORIAL

Public intoxication law futile

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Also by Robert Phansalkar:

'Think, Respect' does neither, preempts rational action (November 14, 2007)
'Taser this' editorial tame compared to past (October 2, 2007)
Lawmakers' plan bigger problem than baggy pants (September 18, 2007)
Right-wing judicial activism fault of liberal tactics (August 31, 2007)

by Robert Phansalkar

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

In response to eight drowning deaths in a span of nearly 10 years, the city of La Crosse passed a public intoxication ordinance in hopes of ending the alleged damaging effects that alcohol has brought upon this college town.

However well-intentioned the legislation might be, the act fails to live up to its billing and will be a nuisance for students to tolerate and deal with, rather than the cultural change the city desires to see.

La Crosse Mayor Mark Johnsrud believes this ordinance will be a "turning point in the history of La Crosse," as reported in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Hopes are certainly and understandably high for this legislation, as the city has become an unfortunate hotspot for unexplained and mysterious drowning deaths of students in the Mississippi River. The deaths have been strongly linked to alcohol consumption, despite rumors of more devious elements at play.

The latest death involved a former high school classmate of mine, Luke Homan, who was a great athlete and an even better person. However, the unfortunate consequences of this past fall's Oktoberfest force me to use past tense, when I would much rather use present, when talking about him.

Luke's death was mysterious, given both his good character and the bizarre incidents surrounding other, similar, deaths in La Crosse. Many students, puzzled by the events, spoke of serial killers, among other things, and were frustrated by the La Crosse Police Department's repeated dismissals of calls for further investigations into the matter.

The one factor that the city could agree on in all the deaths was alcohol, which seemed to be the cause and was an easy scapegoat for the problem as all of the students involved shared high blood alcohol contents, some as high as 30 percent.

Although students rejected the idea that the students' deaths were solely a result of alcohol and continued speculation of other elements, the truth is that alcohol may not have been the deciding factor, but it was certainly a factor in the equation. Coming off what has been a turbulent decade for the city, La Crosse wanted action; they wanted a solution, and they started with that common denominator, instituting an ordinance this past Friday to curb public intoxication.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that penalties start with a warning and an alcohol education program and after that, a steep $400 penalty for following offenses. The ordinance seeks to end binge-drinking and even to save lives in the process, but the real change must occur with the students, the university and the city rather than with the law.

Binge-drinking certainly shares a common bond with college life, and I would venture to say most students partake in their own variety of it. Pop culture popularizes the practice as well, glorifying it in movies, television and music. Our society has gone so far as to even celebrate cultures that supposedly drink more than others — just wait until this Saturday's St. Patrick's Day.

This inexplicable acceptance of drinking and the embrace of destructive elements associated with it means the culture is responsible for changing and not necessarily the law.

As it stands, laws already exist in La Crosse to combat public intoxication and the actions linked with it, which makes this ordinance as unnecessary as it is a misguided attempt to curb the problem. While other ordinances fail to require that individuals partake in alcohol education programs, classes such as these should become a greater part of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse's mission and other schools as well.

While many universities, including La Crosse, already have some form of alcohol education for students, these efforts must be stepped up and emphasize that intoxication has the potential to lead to danger for not just women — as many men believe — but for men as well.

Legislation that will cause students to avoid police and other situations where they could benefit from the presence of law enforcement simply does not make sense. An ordinance like this will contribute to students avoiding police and very public, populated places after drinking, which is precisely the kind of mentality that the city should be discouraging.

Elusiveness is the last thing we need in a place where mysterious deaths are unsatisfactorily explained. Making students fear the police rather than pursue them could be contributing to the problem, especially in the awful scenario that the rumors are true.

Robert Phansalkar (rphansalkar@badgerherald.com) is a senior majoring in languages and cultures of Asia and political science.

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Anonymous (March 13, 2007 @ 7:24am):

"students involved shared high blood alcohol contents, some as high as 30 percent"

What? That's impossible. Do you mean 0.3?

Do some research on BAC before writing about it. A 0.3 means that they had 3 grams of alcohol per liter of blood, or 3%.

Anonymous (March 13, 2007 @ 10:49am):

Let the drunks kill themselves.

Anonymous (March 13, 2007 @ 11:07am):

Still, death from alcohol poisoning occurs in half the population with a BAC of .4 or higher.

Anonymous (March 13, 2007 @ 11:15am):

This ord won't save anybody - the LaX PD are saying that after they have ticketed a violator they cannot offer a safe ride home - that that is the job of the cities dreadfully underfunded saferide program - so now the kids will fall in the river with a ticket in their pocket instead, way to go LaX

Anonymous (March 13, 2007 @ 3:04pm):

So, why are we referring to 18 year-olds as "kids"? Shouldn't adults be the masters of their own destiny?

Thanks, government, I want to be a child forever.

Anonymous (March 13, 2007 @ 6:19pm):

Just think of it as evolution in action.

These days there are entirely too few ways for idoits to die before they breed.

Anonymous (March 13, 2007 @ 6:25pm):

Good try Robert, but your belief in personal responsibility and a limited government sicken me. Can't we just allow the government to make choices for us at least they'll be the best choices. By the way I think a new law of 2,100 calories a day should be passed. After all heart disease is the number one killer in America and over consumption of food can lead to it. We could have a loophole of buying anorexics surplus calories for people who like to eat more.
- Germain E. Stemme

Anonymous (August 14, 2007 @ 4:09pm):

Come on! Let the government make more choices for us? You might as well be in the "Old Mother Russia" As a free human being with a free will let me decide what's good for me and what is not. 2,100 calories ruled by the government, Think of the robberies with that one.

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