The Liquor License

I’ve been thinking a bit about the liquor consumption here in Utah, and I had two thoughts.

The first is the vilifying of people who smoke and drink in Utah. I know quite a few Mormons who do this. Not cool. Mormons such as myself of course are instructed by our church leaders to refrain from coffee, tea, alcohol, tobacco and harmful drugs. We call it the “Word of Wisdom”. But sometimes we Mormons forget that while we believe it is an inspired teaching, it also is only given to the members of the LDS church. The world at large, while it would certainly greatly benefit from restraining from those things, is under no religious obligation to follow this health code. I feel we Mormons shouldn’t view someone who isn’t of our faith as a ‘vile sinner’ just because they don’t adhere to the same teachings we follow. My Jewish friends don’t get on my case if I have a BLT around them. They know that the kosher standard doesn’t apply to me because I am not Jewish.

My second thought is that I think the whole legal system controlling the sale of alcohol in the US is backwards. If the government wants to keep alcohol as a controlled substance, then it should make extra safeguards on its purchase. Restaurants and stores are required by the government to carry Liquor Licenses to be able to sell the stuff. This is fine, but I feel that those who need to have the liquor license are the consumer. If the consumer wishes to purchase and consume an alcoholic beverage, then they would need a special license to do it. This would be shown at the time of purchase, whether it be at an Appleby’s or a Circle-K. If the consumer hasn’t applied for a license, then no sale. The minimum age for such a license would be 18 years old. If a minor is caught drinking before this, a hold of 6 months could be placed on their acquiring their own license. It should also be part of the program for law enforcement officers to check for the license of those they feel might be in violation of the program, in a similar fashion to a game warden has the right to check fishing and hunting licenses and impose fines if necessary.

The license could also be tied to driving privileges. If the consumer is caught driving while under the influence, their liquor license would be suspended for 6 months or an appropriate time. Further DWI’s could bring more severe penalties. If a serious crime is committed while under the influence of alcohol, then the license could be revoked permanently.

Call your local congressman. If our states and country want to make alcohol a controlled substance, then they need to be serious about and do it right. This is one idea.

Pun of the post: "So we blew all of our money on the limousine rental and now, what do we have to chauffer it?"