If you pay attention to the comings and goings of lawmakers on any level, eventually something will come along that will make you slap your head in wonder. When Senate Bill 76 — a carefully-crafted piece of legislation that amended Alaska’s alcohol laws for the first time in decades — died last week, it was one of those moments for many.
Alaska has a drinking problem. So far, no one seems to be able to do anything to make it better. We drink more than the rest of the nation, and as a result, a lot of horrible stuff happens to people. Drunk people make bad choices, get into fights, beat their children, spouses or roommates. Drunk people commit crimes, break into homes, steal cars and destroy public property. It gets even worse, as one Alaska town knows all too well, where a mother was recently run over and killed by a drunk driver. Read more here.