Hopelessness

Binge-drinking is a major canker on NZ society's skin. All manner of reasons have been put forward to explain its rise in the last decade. In an opinion piece in the Otago Daily Times, David Seymour, a policy analyst in Saskatchewan, Canada, and an expatriate New Zealander, focuses on a word which is implied rather than use in his article: hopelessness.

"The result is thousands of youth in education devoid of real meaning."

"[youth] come to believe that our way of life is unsustainable, even immoral, and any success they have in it will be nullified by environmental costs"

"The only real long-term solution to youth alcohol abuse is to attack its root cause; the diminishing ability of youth to make a difference in their own lives."

You can read the complete article here.

Drinking in NZ

The Maxim Institute notes:
The Law Commission has released further detail of its review of alcohol laws and the associated controls. Looking at issues like "the minimum drinking and purchase ages," "drinking hours," "advertising" and "the number and/or type of liquor outlets," the review plans to report by 2010. "The central issue for the ... project is whether the pendulum has swung too far in the direction of liberality and the availability of alcoholic drinks, and if so, what measures can be adopted to ... limit the harm that it causes." A process of public consultation is also planned, aimed at involving the public and community groups in a sensible and prudent approach to the alcohol law.

See more on this from the NZ Herald.