CEI Director of Insurance Studies Michelle Minton analyzes proposals to privatize Virginia’s liquor stores. Virginia is one of 18 states where the government holds a legal monopoly on the sale of spirits.
Ryan Young
Senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute. All opinions here are my own, and not necessarily CEI’s.
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How sad that the desire for financial gain by a few outweighs the public health of the many. In the case of Virginia, where alcohol privatization seems to be a shoo-in, if adopted, alcohol-related problems will snowball.
Studies show that the more alcohol outlets, the greater the problems encountered. For instance, on October 1, a report from the University of Otago in New Zealand reported that for every take-home alcohol outlet within 1 kilometer, a person’s risk for binge drinking increased by about 4 percent. Binge drinking is but one alcohol-related problem. MADD points to drunk driving but that too is but one of the problems.
I urge Virginians to stand in the gap and defy the privatization campaign being funded by big alcohol. Think of your children. Do you want them raised in an alcohol-soaked atmosphere? For every dollar taken into the state treasury from alcohol sales, it is found that it takes four dollars to mitigate the problems arising from its use. And that can never take in the human suffering and pain.
Alcohol is a toxin, a poison. Remember that it is an “intoxicating” drink. For those wanting optimum life and unlimited opportunities here and hereafter, alcohol consumption cannot be an option. For those who feel it is a valid option and who manage to lead productive lives in spite of its poisonous effects, please consider those whose lives are a complete shipwreck and don’t introduce more alcohol outlets into your communities.