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CITY: Enacting new Prohibition

| June 20, 2010 10:00 PM

The National Prohibition Act (The Volstead Act) was enacted into law in 1920 by the 18th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, and later repealed in 1933 with the 21st Constitutional Amendment. Americans danced (and drank) in the streets cheering the end of such ill-conceived legislation . . . until now.

On June 1 the Coeur d’Alene City Cuncil enacted Council Bill No. 10-1008 in support of new City Ordinance No. 3382. Section 2 Item B states:

“. . . furthermore, no personal shall possess any container, whether open or not, of or containing any beer, wine or other alcoholic beverage on public property.”

Anyone can see through City Council’s thinly veiled but uniquely different approach to enacting Prhibition this time around (and one that didn’t occur to Congress in 1920). Under City Council Bill 10-1008, you are free to PURCHASE unlimited amounts of beer, wine or liquor at your grocery or state liquor store but YOU CAN’T BRING IT HOME . . . you guessed it, because “public property” under Bill 10-1008 includs your city streets and sidewalks! Watch soon for Idaho State Liquor Stores’ new TV ad campaign, “YOU BUY IT, YOU DRINK IT . . . HERE.”

As an interesting sidebar, Councilman Ron Edinger cast City Council’s only vote against Prohibition.

“I don’t make jokes . . . I just watch government and report the facts.” - Will Rogers

ROBERT B. CLIFF

Coeur d’Alene