The " Grog " Issue !

This past weekend a hundred thousand people rallied through the heart of Sydney, noisily protesting for the repeal of the " Lockout " laws that apply to the serving of alcohol.  They were well equipped with signs and banners and it was clear that this was well organized to draw maximum media attention.  It would be interesting to learn who paid for those professionally crafted messages and who were it's main sponsors ?

The liquor industry is a vast conglomerate of companies which gather together various interests which make their profits in association with the sale of alcohol.  The owners of nightclubs put a form of entertainment at the top of their reason for attracting patrons and usually this includes the employment of musicians.  Each venue employs a lot of support staff, including bar people and security guards.  Basic economics apply.   The more liquor the customers can be induced to buy - the greater the profits !

There is no doubt that Sydney's Kings Cross reached crisis point in 2014 with drunken crowds roaming the streets and the night life running on a virtual twenty-four hour basis. Street brawls were common as drinkers moved from one venue to another - seeking to find the source of the " action " !  A number of unprovoked street deaths caused then premier Barry O'Farrell to call an emergency meeting of state parliament and impose draconian Lockout laws.

These were simply - and effective.  At 1-30 am patrons could remain and drink at any licensed venue, but should they leave they could not reenter. People arriving at Kings Cross after 1-30 am found all entertainment venues closed to new arrivals - and those in the streets had no other option than to go home.

It was amazingly effective.  The huge crowds on Friday and Saturday nights dwindled and soon many of the glitzy pleasure palaces closed their doors. Kings Cross became " civilized " and because these lockout laws selectively targetted only Kings Cross patrons drifted to other venues scattered across the city. Behaviour improved because Sydney nightlife was no longer concentrated in a few streets in one suburb, but scattered widely - and closer to home for many people.

There was another huge dividend.  The emergency department at St Vincents hospital, the hospital nearest Kings Cross - reported a vast decrease in patrons suffering injuries from brawls and collision with cars - and street deaths from what became known as the " Coward punch " - ceased !   In response to the Lockout rally, the medical profession closed ranks and appealed for the laws to be retained as a safety measure.

There is no doubt the powerful liquor industry wants these laws overturned and it is prepared to fund crowd sourced protests to get it's way. There are insinuations that NSW is becoming a " Nanny " state and will lose it's tourist allure, but reality reveals that the only real difference is that the night scene is now well dispersed and crowd numbers are more civilized.

These lockout laws tamed Kings Cross.  They were deliberately enacted on a flexible basis.  Should another suburb attract a concentration of night life that becomes a risk problem these laws can be instantly extended to curb crowd numbers.

It seems evident that in this instance the politicians made a wise decision !