Despite the jovial tone set by Chair Tim Bruer, the Alcohol License Review Committee approved the bleak Comprehensive Alcohol Issues Report last night, and in doing so, largely ignored the quality student input in opposition to the plan.
It is unfortunate that real and tangible student and bar-owner dissent is only beginning to materialize now, when the outcome seems to be predetermined. Although the report, sponsored primarily by Ald. Kent Palmer, District 15, carries some good points, the focus is clearly a hollow ban on drink specials.
Palmer did provide students with some good news Thursday night, however. He said publicly that he does not seek for his subcommittee's report to be passed as a piece of large, \omnibus"" legislation. He also said he would not act upon proposals contained within the report while students are away from Madison over the summer.
What is perhaps most striking is when a man like Palmer'whose respect for public input seems genuine'acts in such a unilateral fashion. It is difficult for us to fathom why a man acts in such a self-assured manner when dealing with the drink-special legislation that has not even a smattering of a public mandate. Downtown business owners recognize the harm of a government butting its head into their affairs. The Madison Police Department has no idea how it will go about patrolling the gaggle of house parties that will materialize when the exodus from the bar scene occurs. And most importantly, many students detest the plan.
We can only assume that Palmer will continue to espouse the virtues of democracy by referring to ill-attended public meetings, while taking his cues from university administrators and his new conservative friends on the council.
We hope that the sense of dissent to this misguided proposal continues to grow. And we hope that the university, members of the Madison City Council and teetotalers everywhere take heed of our response to Chancellor John Wiley's challenge to come up with viable alternatives to binge drinking.
