> I would also like to see a decline in Alcohol consumption, much as we saw with smoking..
Exactly and one way to do that is to ban advertising. And that's totally in the power of policy makers I'd say.
Alcoholics love to normalize their behavior and there are a lot of them in the media making subtle decisions that promote their lifestyle.
This!!
I personally don't drink, nor do i advocate those i meet not to drink because that isn't my job. Flip side when i go out with a group, they often advocate that i drink?
I've had a few people tell me i am odd for not drinking, getting drunk is "fun" and i should try it sometime, etc.
If you lived in a teetotaler culture, you would experience exactly the opposite (strange looks/comments for drinking a beer), or possibly worse (since many teetotaler cultures see drinking as a punishable offense).
This "cultural norms at work" drinking has followed me across 5 companies and two countries.
I grew up in a small northern town, so had early first-hand exposure to the devastating effects that rampant alcohol abuse can have on families and communities.
I think your focus is misplaced. It is not policy issue, it is the general public itself that is the problem.
Policymakers tried, via prohibition, would you mark this as a success?
I dont drink, and never have so i am on the outside looking in. It is astonishing how "alcohol" is front and center in many things.
Hard day at work and you want to go out with coworkers.. Where do you almost always end up?
Want to celebrate something? Head over to the bar?
The root issues with alcohol are the same with other drugs, smoking, etc. Peer pressure, societal norms, etc.
Policymakers hands are basically tied.
On one hand they LOVE the revenue. Here (Canada) we have "sin taxes" and alcohol is heavily taxed. No government will want to forfeit this revenue.
Manufacturing alcohol provides jobs, inspecting it provides jobs...
If it is not legal, bootlegging will return.
I would also like to see a decline in Alcohol consumption, much as we saw with smoking.. but you need to take the successful aspects of the "quit smoking" program and apply them to alcohol.