The law won

It would seem that nothing generates more ire around here than the police and court system trying to enforce laws that have to do with drinking.

First there was Billy White and all those people commenting on the Daily News online about how he made a "mistake" by running down two teenagers while driving drunk, and killing one of them (Trista Zinck). Well, it was a mistake - it's also called reckless endangerment, or manslaughter in some states.

Didn't any of these people watch "Oz" on HBO? One of the characters was in the maximum security facility for doing just the same - killing a youngster while driving drunk. I know, that's fiction. But it resonates.

Anyway, now people are incensed because some high school seniors were having a 'harmless' drinking party on private property in West Newbury and some of them got busted for underage drinking. Read about it here and here.

Every year it's the same damn thing. But I am surprised by the reaction to all these incidents. It's against the law, people! You get busted, you take the responsibility. Whether anyone intended, or even was able, to drive is beside the point.

Now I'm the first to agree that the West Newbury police are ... ummm ... ultra vigilant. As in, watch your ass while driving through West Newbury. And I'll also admit that there was a certain amount of drinking at the time of my graduation from high school. (Not much, though. I think I recall one bottle of schnapps being passed around. Put me right off drinking.)

But still, the police got a report of underage drinking and they HAD to respond. Too bad the law had to interfere with the fun times these kids were having. Evil, naughty law.

For more on this topic, check out Ari Herzog's blog, which I only realized has a post on this same issue. Oh, well.