Re: MLA backs booze in B.C. grocery stores (vicnews.com)
I am not an alcoholic, nor do I know what it is like to love someone who is. I can only imagine how this decision to put alcohol in grocery stores will cause unnecessary temptation and additional stress.
Is it not challenging enough for those who suffer from alcohol addiction to avoid the many private and government-run liquor stores? There seems to be a liquor outlet of some description in every mall and neighbourhood. It is not difficult for the general public to walk from the grocery store, two doors down, to pick up the wine for dinner.
Imagine what it would be like for an alcoholic to shop at the grocery store when a bottle of alcohol sits next to the bread and milk. Has convenience taken precedent over compassion for people struggling “one day at a time” to keep their addiction at bay?
I believe this decision is business-driven and all about the money. Where will the money come from to pay for more rehab centres or drinking and driving CounterAttack patrols? Is there enough money to be made to compensate for the fatalities that could result and the families destroyed? Convenience and money are not the right motivation to move forward with putting alcohol on our grocery shelves, when weighed against our obligation to our society as a whole.
Gail Atkins
Saanich