BRENDAN SMITH,
A chara, - Your Editorial of May 29th rightly prioritises the issue of alcohol consumption in Ireland. Our nation has long been famous for its love of the pint, but the reality that the Irish are the second highest consumers of alcohol in the world is staggering.
I welcome Minister Micheál Martin's concern but the recommendations arising from the task force report into this problem do not go far enough. Mr Martin says that "market forces versus public health issues have to be confronted once and for all". Much will be revealed about this Government after we see who wins this contest.
I, for one, am pessimistic. The Minister's proposal to ban smoking from pubs is a radical move that deserves much credit. However, the task force's proposal to "restrict" the advertising and promotion of alcohol is simply not enough. Let us be reminded that:
1. Ireland's per-capita consumption of alcohol increased by 41 per cent in the 10 years to 1999, while ten EU countries reported a drop.
2. One in four visits to accident and emergency departments in hospital were alcohol-related.
3. Public order offences almost doubled between 1996 and 2000.
4. One in three marriage failures were due mainly to alcohol abuse.
I could go on about suicides, road deaths, and so on. The time has come for an outright ban on alcohol advertising as one way to prevent this slide into chaos. That there is nothing to prohibit the most deadly drug in Ireland being advertised is astonishing. Millions are spent yearly on this and these advertisements are as dangerous as they are absurd. Can someone tell me the relationship between drinking Bulmers and "standing on the shoulders of giants"? What has Guinness got to do with scoring the winning point in a hurling final? Linking alcohol with sporting prowess, in particular, is preposterous.
Banning advertising will not solve the problem, but it will certainly help to buck the trend, and ultimately save lives. Surely this is more important to those who run the country than "market forces"? - Is mise, JOHNNY WARD, Gort An Iomaire, Béal Átha Na Slua, Co Na Gaillimhe.
Sir, - The Minister for Health, Mr Martin, and the task-force report advise of the horrendous increase in the consumption of alcohol with the resultant rise in binge drinking, hospital treatments, public order offences, marriage break-ups and sexually transmitted diseases.
The only solutions presented by Dr Joe Barry and the task force seem to be increased taxes and the curtailment of advertising.
Such measures may have a slight preventive effect, if only for a time. But surely the more lasting solution is increased awareness of the health and social implications of alcohol abuse. The pub culture, the round system, the drinks reception, the sports connection, the ( increased numbers of women and teenagers drinking.
Perhaps such education should be focused on the middle-aged, middle-class male drinker. Boozing businessmen, politicians, lawyers, doctors and bankers probably cause more health and economic problems that any other sector. Recognition, then admission, followed by responsible consumption in this sector would set the example.
- Yours, etc.,
BRENDAN SMITH, Elwood, Melbourne, Australia.
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Sir, - Alcohol is the drug of choice in this country. The place swims in it. Bright educated young people numb themselves in it. University students work to earn enough for the weekend's drinking, thereby damaging their brains and their academic ability. The young who live in grinding poverty must have alcohol. Street violence and vile conduct are the norm. It is the greatest single issue facing the new Government.
But does anyone care? Our lovely country is now a bleak landscape. No money we can possibly amass will heal the casualties of alcoholism. This is not mere prophecy. It is fact. The Roy Keane affair is a blip. Alcoholism is a calamity. - Yours, etc.,
ALICE JOHNSON, Merrion Village, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.