17 May 2004

Lift Drinking Age Urgently Says Mark

New Zealand First is to make yet another attempt to raise the drinking age because of the serious effects of teen drinking on the whole community.

Law and order spokesperson Ron Mark has campaigned to lift the drinking age back to 20 since it was lowered by “foolish MPs” in 1999.

“It is no comfort to anyone to say ‘I told you so’ but for the past five years we have seen the mayhem caused by teenagers on drinking sprees,” said Mr Mark.

“The latest is shown on the roads where drinking and driving is causing carnage among the younger members of our population.

“The time has come to end this foolish experiment, which has benefited only the booze barons.

“It is time for MPs to show some political courage over this issue and vote to restore the drinking age to 20. Everything that we warned would happen as a result of lowering the drinking age has happened.

“We would support any urgent legislation to restore the age,” said Mr Mark.

ENDS

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>