In the Name of Public Safety
How many ways can our rights be trashed in the name of public safety? The latest one, which might seem minor to some of you, is a regulation from the Boston police that would require all liquor stores to notify police anytime a keg is sold. The notification must include who bought it and where it is going. That way the police can pro-actively monitor the location where the keg ends up in order to prevent parties from “getting out of hand”. Obviously, some city councillors have too much time on their hands:
“If it’s from a known problem area, chances are they’re going to get multiple looks from the police department,” said at-large City Councilor Stephen J. Murphy, who helped push for the regulations…
Any liquor store in Boston that doesn’t call, fax or e-mail its local police captain with the name, address and date of birth of the keg purchaser would face sanctions from the Boston Licensing Board.
“Any time we can monitor and help the police know exactly where these kegs are going – especially in Boston, which is a college town – I think is beneficial to everyone,” said Licensing Board Chairman Daniel Pokaski.”
Why is this happening? Because Boston is a college town and college kids have a partying habit. The police believe this will help them break up parties before they get loud and disturb the neighbors. While this is a benign enough goal, doesn’t anyone find the fact that a private, legal transaction is being reported to the police so that they can monitor how one uses one’s legally purchased goods? Doesn’t anyone find this threatening and disturbing? Doesn’t anyone recognize the “slippery slope” we’re on here? Anytime anyone in Boston hosts a BBQ and snags a keg for their friends and family, the police will know and may potentially cruise your house. Anytime anyone in Boston hosts a football party and supply a keg for the faithful, the police will know and will be watching. Anytime anyone organizes a block party in one of the many, tight-knit neighborhoods in Boston, the police will know and will be keeping a close eye on the festivities. This is a prime example of city lawmakers and the police overstepping their authority and putting Boston citizens under surveillance to prevent “potential” problems.
College kids obviously hate this new regulation, and they’re hardly the group I’d want standing up against this policy (after all, their lack of respect for their neighbors was probably the impetus for the creation of this regulation). However, one only needs to scratch the surface a bit to see how damaging this regulation is to the rights of every citizen.
