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Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Letters
Police Presence On Stroll Was Too Much
Thanks, Dan Mayfield of the Journal for an accurate depiction of the overly aggressive police presence on Canyon Road this Christmas Eve.
Our family prefers to take the farolito walk later in the evening to avoid the large crowds. This year, our walk was punctuated by the garish flashing lights and unholy racket blaring from police vehicles. Rather than having a pleasant walk on the road as usual, we were forced to take to the gutter to keep from being bumped by the parade of police cars.
So why the absurd and unnecessary show of force at the farolito walk this year? My hunch is that the answer, in part, can be found in an earlier story in the Journal, which quoted complaints of some Canyon Road merchants. I assume these gallery owners made their concerns about the alleged “spring break mentality” and “drunken carousing” they witnessed the previous year well known to the police. We all know what talks in Santa Fe, so what walks — on Canyon Road, on Christmas Eve — paid the price.
Let's fix it for next year! First, let's dismiss all the charges against those arrested on Canyon Road for what amounted to “public standing.” The ordeal of being dragged to jail on Christmas Eve is punishment enough for this egregious offense. Second, let those paranoid gallery owners who fear the “mob” hire their own security to protect their precious property. And finally, give the police a break. Let them resume the necessary but low profile policing of this event that they have done so effectively in the past.
Jack McCoy
Santa Fe
Thanks for Getting 'Alcopop' Off Shelf
The Santa Fe Underage Drinking Prevention Alliance congratulates New Mexico Attorney General Gary King for his leadership and involvement in protecting New Mexico communities from alcohol energy drinks, the newest form of alcopop, by working with other attorney generals in convincing the MillerCoors Company to join Anheuser-Busch in pulling these drinks off the market. These alcohol beverages appeal to youth and the producers' aggressively market, and promote binge drinking by falsely promising endless nights of fun and enhanced energy. In fact, alcohol and caffeine is a dangerous mix because the caffeine masks but does not counteract alcohol's effects, resulting in a “wide awake drunk.”
The combination increases the likelihood of drinking and driving, unsafe sex, assaults and other alcohol problems. Young people in particular are at risk, since they are more likely to binge drink, are targeted by the marketing and are less likely to recognize the synergistic effects of the two drugs. These products are extremely attractive to underage youth, with whom energy drinks are enormously popular. Underage youth are also at the highest risk for catastrophic alcohol-related harm, and they are particularly susceptible to products that offer a false promise of increased tolerance to the effects of alcohol. High-alcohol beverages and energy drinks are a very dangerous mix.
These concerns prompted an ongoing investigation from eleven state attorneys general including New Mexico and a threatened lawsuit from the Center for Science in the Public Interest. In response to this pressure, MillerCoors Company joined Anheuser-Busch and did the right thing by voluntarily discontinuing the production and marketing of pre-packaged caffeinated alcoholic beverages. Both companies have agreed to stop making dangerous, deceptive alcoholic beverages laced with stimulants. They avoid litigation from the attorneys general and CSPI, and they will do the right thing for America's youth.
Cynthia Delgado
Communications Liaison
Santa Fe Underage Drinking Prevention Alliance
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