www.alkoholpolitik.ch

Want to enjoy a mimosa with Sunday morning brunch at a chic restaurant on Las Olas Boulevard?
Sorry. You have to stick with the orange juice only. That champagne bottle can’t be uncorked.
Unlike many other cities in South Florida from Miami Beach to Wilton Manors, Fort Lauderdale prohibits alcohol from being sold before noon on Sundays. Restaurateurs and bar owners are mounting an effort to change that longstanding ordinance. (Source: Google Alcohol News, 01/01/11) weblogs.sun-sentinel.com, 01/01/11 with our Online-Comments: When this law was decided, the lawmakers had the intention to prevent alcohol problems. The best measure is to rise prices, the second best to limit availability of the product. At the end the restriction on Sunday was left. From a christian point of view there are several reasons to prevent alcohol problems. Today alcohol marketing has troubled our clear view on what is necessary for our society, so every group which has a profit from alcohol sales opposes any restriction. But the people in general would have more social costs to pay and less quality of life. (an other one pending)

Alcohol is the most damaging drug to the drinker and others overall, heroin and crack are the second and third most harmful, Professor David Nutt and colleagues wrote in the medical journal The Lancet today. When all factors related to self harm and harm to others are considered, alcohol comes out top. The authors explain that drugs, including tobacco products and alcohol are major contributors to damage to individuals as well as society as a whole.
The harms that are caused by drugs need to be comprehensively assessed so that policy makers can be properly advised regarding health, social care and policing, the authors write; not an easy undertaking because drugs can cause damage in so many different ways. (Source: Medical News Today, 11/1/10) our online-comment: For many decades alcohol has been called the socio-medical problem No.1. This study is just an additional piece of proof. But a very valuable one, as it comes in a time when governments are not willing to implement the new alcohol strategy of the World Health Organization (May 2010), even if they signed it, because they are under permanent pressure of the global alcohol industry. This sort of corruption costs human tragedies and lives every day and the people is not able to protest as it is not informed.
(see press release by Active, 11/03/10)

Practicing What they Preach. A family history of alcoholism and religious teachings were among the reasons cited by the 60 percent of U.S. evangelical leaders who said they don’t drink alcohol socially, CNN reported June 24. About two out of three Americans drink, but the Evangelical Leaders Survey found that even those religious leaders who do drink typically say they do so in moderation or rarely. (Source: Join Together, 6/25/10) with interesting comments.

Rep. David Obey (D-Wis.) and several of his colleagues want wealthier Americans to “share the sacrifice” and contribute higher taxes to support the expansion of America’s war effort in Afghanistan.
There’s another way, a better way, for Congress to engage the American people in funding the war — and, as a bonus, reducing healthcare costs. What patriot would oppose higher taxes on alcoholic beverages and a new tax on sugary beverages to support our troops? We could even test the patriotism of the large foreign corporations that sell almost all of the beer and much of the liquor and wine consumed in this country, because the alcohol surtax would be imposed on them. They could then choose whether to pass the tax on to their hard-working American customers. By George A. Hacker – 12/08/09 07:36 PM ET THE HILL, WASHINGTON Online-comment: Good idea! It is a fact that higher prices reduce alcohol consumption and alcohol related harm which costs our society many billions a year. The same would be the effect with higher prices on sugary beverages which are to blame for part of obesity. It is difficult to rise prices by taxation. But as a little sacrifice to help in funding the war it could work. And everybody would have a personal profit in lower health costs as we all are passive drinkers.

Forget about kicking back and enjoying an American beer; a massive wave of consolidation is transforming the industry. According to a recent report by the Marin Institute, a California-based alcohol industry watchdog, a rush of buyouts and mergers in the last years of the Bush Administration has left two overseas giants in control of 80 percent of American beer consumption. Source:smirkingchimp.com 11/26/09) Comment: A big story on the history of the beer monopolies in the USA with many sarcastic comments, including ours: Many of the commentators do not understand that they are misused by the alcohol industry, that we all are passiv drinkers, forced by the alcohol industry to pay a life long the alcohol related harm in our society, regardless how much we drink. If we can reduce the total consumption of alcoholic beverages, we all have the profit in quality of life and financially with lower taxes and insurance premiums.

Telegraph View: Plans to review permitted alcohol levels for drivers would have no impact on criminally irresponsible individuals who routinely drive while well over the limit.
Driving while over the alcohol limit has become taboo for the overwhelming majority in this country. The fact that the limit is sensibly pitched at 80mg of alcohol to 100 millilitres of blood has helped contribute to that. In allowing people to have a drink or two, the law is seen as fair and measured and, as a result, it is widely observed. This is particularly important in rural areas, where many do not have the option of using public transport for an evening out. (Quelle: Google Alkohol Alert, 12/5/09) telegraph.co.uk, 12/3/09 Online-Comment pending: It is interesting and amusing reading British comments on this matter, but fact is that in other countries the change from 0.8 to 0.5 Permille has reduced the numbers of alcohol related accidents and mortality by more than 10 Percent. (e.g. Austria, Germany, Switzerland) That’s the only thing that counts.

Abstaining from alcohol consumption is associated with an increased risk of depression according to a new study published in Addiction journal. (Source: Medical News Today, 9/1/09) Online-Comment: (pending) Why people with possible physical or psychical diseases were not excluded like former alcoholics? This problem is known since those many false studies on heart diseases. Isn’t it just a study to get a sensational headline again for alcohol marketing? The German press already brought an article without mentioning the restrictions. Of course we could also argue, abstainers are depressed because of a society which didn’t learn anything about alcohol in 100 years and still allows the alcohol industry to terrorize it with disease, death, poverty and harm.

Online Comment on „Moderate Drinkers Less Likely To Develop Dementia“ on Medical News Today, 8/30/09:
Now we have the same epidemic news as we have had it with heart disease. And here researchers declare openly they did not explore the characteristics of individuals. That means, it is not clear who the abstainers are: Former alcoholics, people with diabetes, abstainers for one month, a year or lifelong. I know many lifelong abstainers, many of them lived 90 and more years, but not one of them showed abnormal signs or died of dementia.

Online Comment on Join Together: Moderate Drinking Helps Healthy Older Patients:

It looks as if the alcohol industry starts a new alcohol=health campaign. I hope that serious scientists make an analysis of this unbelievable and lousy job. The best is the title to make alcohol marketing. Only those who read the full article may see perhaps the point. Deutsche Webseite: Leserbriefe See our comment on Join Together Deutsche Webseite: Leserbriefe