With the holiday feast season upon us, excess seems for many a rationalized behavior. And while excess could nearly be a morphed synonym of the words enjoyment and excuse, this holiday season could be as much about pleasure as it
With the holiday feast season upon us, excess seems for many a rationalized behavior. And while excess could nearly be a morphed synonym of the words enjoyment and excuse, this holiday season could be as much about pleasure as it is appreciating those we love and acknowledging that love by finding ways to protect them.
Though some might assume a troubled economy means residents would have less money to spend on alcohol, Nielsen reports for 2009 that consumer trends demonstrate alcohol is more recession-resistant than other product categories. And while there is evidence of consumers reducing on-premise alcohol consumption, as well as “trading down” to less expensive drink preferences, they’re reluctant to cut back on their habits, especially for consumption and entertaining at home — where minors are more likely to be found.
Alcohol remains the drug of choice among Americans but more specifically, Kaua‘i youths and residents. Some data to support this: Kaua‘i County fares worst compared with the rest of the state when it comes to underage drinking, burdened with the lowest average age of first-use of alcohol for male youths: 11. Perhaps equally alarming is Kaua‘i 6th graders find it nearly twice as easy as the rest of the state’s 6th graders to access alcohol; and 32.4 percent of the island’s 17-year-olds find it easier than the rest of the state (29 percent) when it comes to successfully acquiring alcohol. Contributing to the problem of easy access to alcohol by youths is liquor vendor compliance rates, which, according to recent data from the Kaua‘i Police Department and Liquor Control, showed more than 100 percent increase in failure rate since April 2006.
But it’s not just cashiers and lenient parents to blame here — the liquor cabinet at home, and general attitudes about drinking — also contribute to the reason Kaua‘i County has the highest number of alcohol-dependant and alcohol-abusing 8th graders in the state.
So, where’s the good news in all of this? Access and availability to alcohol are under the control of Kaua‘i parents and adults in general; a greater consciousness of alcohol-related behaviors and attitudes while youths are present can help quash drinking-related consequences. Reward good behavior — celebrate success. Though Kaua‘i fares worse than other counties when it comes to underage drinking, the majority of Kaua‘i youths choose positive risk over antisocial behaviors, and there is much to be lauded in the youth culture: athleticism, academic achievement and community service activities which, if “spread” to antisocial-behaving youths, could reduce the likelihood of alcohol and drug use by youths by 20 percent.
What else can parents and adults do this holiday season to help protect our youth? Implement simple preventative measures at home: Measures as simple as monitoring a child’s online presence is a good place to start.
At this year’s Kaua‘i Drug Summit, even some within the fields of prevention, enforcement and treatment seemed surprised by a simple slideshow DVD compiled by the Drug Court and liquor control showing child after child, teen after teen, posing for the camera, holding up “handles” of gin, vodka or rum, punching each other in the face, laying passed out in the middle of a yard or beach, yielding guns and even feeding sips of alcohol to an infant. The images — posted mostly by Kaua‘i teens for public view on their MySpace pages — offered alarming insight into part of Kaua‘i’s youth culture.
While we all know even the most caring, attentive parents aren’t immune to rebelling teens, comments made in passing about fearing seeing one’s own child or grandchild in the slideshow revealed an underlying consensus: Many parents accept — whether consciously or subconsciously — teen alcohol abuse. Some accept that they are out of the proverbial loop when it comes to their own child’s actions. On the other hand, the social norm in some households is to allow teens to drink at home, with the belief that the lesser of two evils is minors drinking at home as youths are safer if drinking while “supervised.”
If either scenario sounds familiar, please consider the legal responsibility under the social host law in the following hypothetical situations:
Parents aren’t aware alcohol is being consumed by underage drinkers:
— The legal drinking age in every state is 21. Parents who supply alcohol in their home to underage drinkers break the law and are liable. This is regardless of whether the adult in the home is awake, aware of the drinking, or the alcohol was provided by another minor to a fellow minor in the house without the adult’s consent.
Parents aren’t home when alcohol is consumed by underage drinkers:
— Parents who aren’t home can still be liable if minors drink alcohol in their home.
Civil and Criminal Liability:
— If parents supply alcohol to someone under the age of 21, they’re subject to criminal prosecution, which could include prison time for involuntary manslaughter should there be a fatal, alcohol-related accident. Civil or criminal liability imposed on parents is in addition to any liability imposed on the underage drinker. Along with criminal charges, parents can be civilly liable, meaning that damages can be awarded in a civil lawsuit, if parents allow someone under 21 to drink alcohol in their home and that person gets sick, dies or injures someone else. Financial responsibility in such instances could include medical bills, property damage and pain and suffering.
Though the word “responsibility” around this time of year has become so overused it has lost much of its meaning — especially as the lucrative alcohol industry — which sells a higher percentage of alcohol on average this time of year than the rest of the year — has usurped the very terms “drink responsibly” as part of its own speak, perhaps try and think of this season as the best time to be responsible by protecting your loved ones.
To be sure, responsibility around this time of year is a greater burden with all the celebrating and corresponding drinking — and that burden can be quite the killjoy. However, to be responsible for anything means you’re blessed, whether with children, family, friends, or, if you’re lucky in addition to being blessed, all of the above.
So revel in the pleasure of appreciating this time as one to protect those you love, and thereby prolong the season of enjoyment.
• Amanda C. Gregg, Strategic Prevention Framework/State Incentive Grant Specialist, works to help reduce underage drinking in Kaua‘i County through the Mayor’s Anti-Drug Office.
