It is inevitable, I suppose, that folks get all whipped up and excited when the big event comes to their town but this is getting a little weird:
A B.C. government MLA is facing drunk-driving charges after an evening of Olympic-related events. In statement issued Tuesday afternoon, North Vancouver-Seymour MLA Jane Thornthwaite apologized for her behaviour... The B.C. Liberal MLA, who has three children, was driving home at about 1 a.m. on Tuesday when she was stopped at a North Vancouver RCMP road check. A spokesman for the RCMP said a 51-year-old female driver came to their attention – he would not confirm it was Ms. Thorthwaite – and the driver provided a breath sample that indicated her blood alcohol level was over the legal limit of .08 per cent.
I am not so much interested in the gotcha of the story so much as how, when combined with the instantly beloved beer drinking gold medal winner and the crowded streets out of control, it does paint a picture of what a pervasive and intimate - yet hazardous - role drinking has within Canadian culture. It's hard to place. We are comfortable pushing the pounding back, don't navel gaze too much about it. We even make it a point of pride in any number of contexts. What must it look like to others?
Comments
Stephen Beaumont - February 24, 2010 11:40 AM
You don't have to watch the television for long to realize that for non-competing Canadians, the Olympics is a great party, a celebration, and when Canadians celebrate, they do so with beer. That's the story, Alan, not the few who take the celebration a bit too far (as happens at many parties, even ones with responsible hosts).
Alan - February 24, 2010 1:47 PM
You don't require the shutting of all booze sales through private shops as a response to a "few who take the celebration a bit too far." That's the actual story, Stephen, as you will know from the news.
Stephen Beaumont - February 24, 2010 3:08 PM
Every report I've seen about the shutting of downtown beverage alcohol retailers has cited police concern about drinking in the streets, not property damage, assault or any other more obviously criminal behavior. And IMO, drinking a can of beer in public is about as stupid a "crime" as exists in this fair country.
Alan - February 24, 2010 4:09 PM
Well, I don't disagree on the open container law thing but I think the police make these decisions based on professional standards and risk assessment and not just to be jerks. The old 1980s Halifax Mardi Gras was a mass open liquor law defying event that went well. By comparison, our local fall mass drunken event here in Kingston does not generally fare so well. Much more than just Canadians celebrating with beer. I assume police can tell the difference and here they shut it down.
Alan - March 1, 2010 8:59 AM
An observation from the NYT on Monday 1 March:
"Unlike some crowds that poured into the city during the first week of the Games, the crowd on Sunday remained peaceful and festive as the evening went on. Const. Jana McGuinness, a spokeswoman for the Vancouver Police Department, said there were relatively few incidents and a small number of minor injuries. Liquor stores were closed at 2 p.m. local time in an attempt to quell the widespread drunkenness that had become a late-night feature of the celebrations."