The Irish can be considered one of the toughest people in the world and also one of the heaviest drinkers per capita. Yet they still have a country of hard working people who despite their intense political and religious differences, make it work. It is my opinion that the Mututho Law though well intentioned is missing the point.
Naturally, when you restrict peoples' sense of choice they tend to revolt and do the wrong thing anyway. Instead the law should present the drinking population with an action-reaction. What do i mean? Firstly, people can and will drink at any time but before allowing this the Government should arm and equip the police well, which should be covered in the new order of things. With that in place then people should be allowed to drink however they want whenever but with this choice comes the consequences. This is where i counter the Mututho Law.
The consequences will be such a deterrent that they will induce a natural control to drinking. The emphasis should be on inconvenience to the culprit as opposed to jail time or other legal consequences. For example if found drink-driving then the consequence should be a one week lock up, 3 month license suspension and a mandatory AA meetings and a retake of a comprehensive driving test. For repeat offenders, an indefinite suspension of license which can be reversed based on assessment by Nacada and a judge. With the police with their breathalyser gadgets on the roads, the next time someone will think of driving while drunk they will remember the consequences.
Basically, the long and short of it all is that the law should be designed to present the drinking public with a choice and to present a clear understanding that for whatever action there will inevitably be a reaction a.k.a a consequence.
