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Editorial
Drinking at lakes, parks should be a non-event
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
If the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission's decision Friday to allow drinking in state parks and recreation areas is anything like beer at the McCook Speedway or alcohol at special events on city property, it will be a non-event.
True, there haven't been that many races since beer began being allowed at the races, but we haven't noticed any serious incidents associated with the beverage.
Alcohol at the parks isn't a sure thing; the governor and attorney general still have to sign off on the plan, and it won't become law until New Year's Day if they do.
But like all alcohol use, it's a privilege that can only be preserved by responsible use.
Authorities say they'll be monitoring the situation closely, and won't hesitate to ban drinking at any park where it becomes a problem.
You can bet they'll be watching at Lake McConaughy, where beach parties in the early 1990s turned into riots that saw one man killed when a drunk drove over his tent. Those conditions helped lead to the alcohol ban 15 years ago.
It's probably no coincidence that the alcohol ban is being lifted just as the state is planning an $85,000 campaign to promote "Big Mac" to Colorado anglers. The promotion, called the "Year of the Walleye," uses Internet advertisements, postcards, e-mails and radio ads in Denver to lure Colorado fishermen to Nebraska, where they already make up about half of the nonresident anglers in the state.
The campaign stars Brad Cochran of Imperial, who caught a 16-pound walleye April 6 at McConaughy, only 2 ounces under the state record. Game and Parks officials hope the advertising will generate $241,000 in additional revenue.
Proponents also contend that Nebraska's tourism is at a disadvantage with adjoining states because of the alcohol ban, but opponents -- most of them from the Lake McConaughy area -- argued unsuccessfully that the ban made the state more family friendly.
So it seems likely that next summer, you'll be able to enjoy a beer on the bank or a glass of wine with the steak on the grill in your campground, without needing to hide the evidence when a game warden comes by.
But we'll only be able to do so as long as everyone drinks responsibly. Like so many things, it's a privilege all of us could lose again because of the irresponsibility of a few.