I made this letter short and pithy to ensure it got published (although the most obvious hook got edited out?!). I’d like to take this opportunity to add a few things:

The role of alcohol in our society is problematic, but I’m not suggesting that council should try to overhaul culture. Following the letter of the law, my table of overdressed, relaxed yuppies should have been cut off just as much as the middle-aged mothers. That section of the Liquor Control and Licensing Act doesn’t need to be all-or-nothing enforced.

The spirit of the law is that licensed establishments have some responsibility to keep their patrons from getting overly drunk. The next section says “A licensee or the licensee’s employee must not permit…an intoxicated person to remain in that part of a licensed establishment where liquor is sold”. If people were sent home as they got cut off, downtown wouldn’t hit critical mass.

Obviously bars can’t keep everyone sober, but it should be their responsibility to selectively cull the herd. Conveniently, most bars tag patrons with stamps, so when the police detain someone they can figure out who should have cut them off. I think transit, closing times and food services should be examined, but none of them are going to have as much effect as reducing drunkenness.

The mandate of the Late Night Task Force shouldn’t be to reduce problems, it should be to maximize the fun of everyone who plays, works and lives downtown.

I am writing to commend the staff of Veneto Lounge. On Saturday night they cut off a table of middle-aged mothers whose night on the town had come to slurred speech and lewd gestures.

The women weren’t causing trouble and I can’t imagine anyone was worried that another round of cocktails would end in a brawl. Rather, the staff were merely fulfilling their obligations under the Liquor Control and Licensing Act: “A person must not sell or give liquor to an intoxicated person or a person apparently under the influence of liquor.”

This is why there’s no need for a Late Night Task Force to study hot dog stands and pedicabs. The solution for downtown rowdiness is simply to enforce the Act. Establishments that won’t do their part for public order should have their liquor licenses revoked.