Purdue, IU students lobby for alcohol amnesty law

Student leaders on three college campuses are urging Indiana lawmakers to enact a law that shields underage drinkers from disciplinary action if they report that someone is intoxicated and at serious health risk.

The legislation envisioned would be modeled on a "medical amnesty" policy that took effect in September at Purdue University. Under the PurdueCARES plan, students cannot face school discipline for illegally drinking alcohol if they seek medical attention while they or someone they help is drunk.

University officials said the policy is aimed at making sure those who are hurt while intoxicated or suffer from alcohol poisoning don't hesitate to get help.

Brad Highley, president of Purdue Student Government, said a statewide policy that would reduce or eliminate fines, arrests or other legal ramifications for underage drinkers who seek help for someone facing an alcohol-related emergency could help everyone under age 21.
 

To view the full story, click on this link: http://www.ibj.com/article?articleId=31007 

Source: IBJ

WASHINGTON, D.C. - With the holiday entertaining season just around the corner, the Distilled Spirits Council is offering adult consumers an attractive, free brochure featuring tips on how to host responsible cocktail parties.

"As family and friends gather to celebrate the holidays or mark special occasions, the Distilled Spirits Council encourages everyone to make responsible decisions to ensure safe and happy celebrations," said Peter Cressy, Distilled Spirits Council President.

The Council offers the following tips and recipes for hosting responsible cocktail parties: The free brochure can be viewed or ordered at the Distilled Spirits Council website at http://www.discus.org/media/cocktail.asp 

1. Designate a bartender who can serve your guests and keep an eye on how much everyone is drinking. The Federal Dietary Guidelines define moderate drinking as up to two drinks per day for men and up to one drink per day for women. (http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines)

2. Remember - alcohol is alcohol. It is important to understand that a standard drink of regular beer (12 fluid ounces), wine (five fluid ounces), and spirits (a cocktail with 1.5 fluid ounces of 80-proof spirits) each contains the same amount of alcohol, 0.6 fluid ounces of alcohol. (www.standarddrinks.com)

3. Make sure that you provide food to complement your cocktails. Consider food pairings to enhance the flavor of your chosen cocktails: fresh seafood and breads accentuate vodka cocktails, spiced and smoked meats and cheeses complement Bourbon and Scotch whiskies, and fruit enhances Rum and Tequila flavors.

For more tips and to view the full story, click on this link: http://www.healthnewsdigest.com/news/consumer%20issues0/5_Tips_for_Responsible_Holiday_Entertaining2.shtml 

Source: HealthNewsDigest.com

With a history dating back to at least the 6th millennium BC, we know that beer has been enjoyed, and even revered, by many of the earliest civilizations. And most people, who drink beer today, do so responsibly. We all want to prevent the harmful use of alcohol, not only for the benefit of our company, but for the benefit of society as a whole.

At Anheuser-Busch InBev, a core focus of our dream to be the Best Beer Company in a Better World is doing everything we can to ensure our products are enjoyed responsibly. As the leading global brewer and one of the world's top five consumer products companies, we are passionate about brewing the highest quality beers for our consumers of legal drinking age. We don't want or need business that comes from underage or irresponsible drinking.

As our markets have grown, so too has the opportunity to reach even more people with our efforts to promote responsible drinking. But effecting lasting change on a global basis is a significant challenge. Because people and cultures differ, behaviors are as diverse. Research has shown -- and we know from all we've learned over the past three decades -- that there is no "one-size-fits-all" approach to reducing harmful use of alcohol. Efforts need to address the issue from all sides and must account for the different cultural contexts for alcohol consumption. It's a problem that's too complex to go at alone, but it can be tackled in partnership with consumers -- especially parents -- as well as with public, private and community groups. Encouraging responsible drinking requires supporting a variety of mutually reinforcing efforts. That is why our company is establishing a holistic set of industry-leading targets that we will work to achieve by the end of 2014. We believe that together they will help shape attitudes toward responsible drinking in the markets where we operate.

Research has shown that parents are the No. 1 influence on their children's drinking decisions, and that parents welcome help in talking with their young people about this issue. To that end, we have set a goal to reach at least 100 million adults with programs like our "Family Talk About Drinking" initiative that are developed by subject matter experts. We will also be reaching out to at least half a million bars, restaurants and grocery stores where we sell our beers to provide ID-checking and educational materials to help them prevent sales to minors.

To view the full story, click on this link:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/carlos-brito/responsible-drinking_b_1111182.html 

Source: Huffington Post

It's unanimous: Canada's first national low-risk alcohol drinking guidelines have been given the green light by Health Canada, as well as all provincial and territorial ministers at a meeting in Halifax. "Alcohol is a health hazard," says Deb Matthews, Ontario minister of health and long-term care. "It's really important that we now have national guidelines."

More than two years in the shaping, the guidelines - approved on Friday - had already received the blessing of the Canadian Public Health Association, the Canadian Medical Association, the liquor industry and more.

According to the new guidelines, women should consume no more than two drinks most days, up to 10 a week, and men should consume no more than three drinks most days, up to 15 a week.

All should plan for non-drinking days, ensuring that they aren't developing a habit.

Beyond the weekly limits, the guidelines also make reference to special occasion drinking: "Reduce your risk of injury by drinking no more than three drinks (for women) or four drinks (for men) on any single occasion."

"That we have all agreed on what the guidelines should look like - government, the alcohol industry and public health - is unique to Canada," says Michel Perron, CEO of the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse (CCSA), which oversaw the shaping of the guidelines. "You will not find another country that has this level of congruence."

The guidelines are long overdue. Like most G8 countries, Canada has witnessed an uptick in risky drinking. Canadians consume 8.2 litres of pure alcohol on an annual basis - more than 50 per cent above the world average. "It's not that we drink," says Rob Strang, chief medical officer of Nova Scotia, "but how we drink."

To view the full story, click on this link: http://www.thestar.com/atkinsonseries/atkinson2011/article/1092547--canada-approves-first-low-risk-alcohol-drinking-guidelines?bn=1 

Source: thestar.com

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism says alcohol is the drug of choice among young adults. By the time teens graduate high school, half say they drink alcohol regularly, with the greatest usage occurring between grades six and 12. Even though alcohol is classified as a drug, many parents, because they might imbibe themselves, do not think of alcohol as being a drug. However, because alcohol can become addictive or incite mood changes, it is just as dangerous as any other illicit drug.

Individuals under the legal age to buy alcoholic beverages have to realize the consequences of purchases and drinking. Liquor stores, restaurants and bars have to be committed to responsible service. Parents, friends, neighbors or relatives should also play an active role. If they purchase any alcoholic beverage for an underage person, they commit an unlawful act and could be liable for the actions of the underage person. When 10- to 18-year-olds were asked the question, "How do you and your friends get the alcohol you drink," a majority (65 percent) of those who have consumed alcohol in the past year cited family and friends as the leading source for getting alcohol. If you learn of underage drinking or someone leaving a place that is intoxicated, call 911; an underage drinker or a drunken driver is an emergency requiring swift action.

Working to restrict access to alcohol by those under the legal drinking age should be a priority in every household. People have to realize that, no matter how an underage drinking party ends up, children lose by facing the danger of serious car crashes, alcohol poisoning and a lifetime of lost employment opportunities. New Jersey has zero tolerance for underage alcohol possession or consumption.

To view the full story, click on this link: http://www.mycentraljersey.com/article/20111122/NJOPINION03/311220001/Treat-underage-drinking-like-drug-abuse?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|Opinion|p 

Source: MyCentralJersey.com

A sale of liquor licenses that's advertised as the largest in state history sounds like great news, from the point of view that all commerce is good and more is better.

When it comes to the most lethal drug in American society, that point of view needs honing.

Friday's auction of roughly 300 permits included more than 100 new ones for Marion County, boosting the total to nearly 1,900, a 6 percent hike for a municipality that already is arguably over its limit.

By the quirk of Uni-Gov, with its blend of city and county government, Indy has been able to far exceed the statutory quota for both three-way (beer, wine and liquor) permits and beer and wine permits in proportion to population.

And now comes more, notwithstanding grim and growing numbers of arrests, accidents and crimes linked to alcohol and rising neighborhood concern about the negative impact of this aggressive industry on quality of life.

Free-market proclamations to the contrary, all business is subject to regulation and limitation in balance with public health and safety. None is more appropriately subject to control than the dispensing of intoxicants. If few would disagree that a customer can be too young and a location can be too crowded or too close to a school, then consensus ought to be reachable that permits and outlets can be too many.

To view the full story, click on this link: http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011111190313 

Source: Indianapolis Star