Drinking alcohol will slowly eat away at life

The police and the government have made the right decision to cancel the ‘Better Beer Festival 2017’ that was scheduled to be held at Publika Mall in Solaris Dutamas next month.

It was to feature 250 craft beers produced by 43 breweries worldwide.

Last year the festival attracted 3,500 craft beer lovers and this year the organisers had expected a turnout of 6,000.

According to the police the beer fest was axed due to security concerns. The people’s safety is of utmost priority but there has been a mixed reaction over the cancellation.

Some have questioned the breach of one’s right to consume whatever they wish while others are harping on religious and racial perspectives.

The decision is only to cancel the beer festival and not to ban beer consumption in the country.

Beer is an alcoholic beverage. Beer drinking is a social scourge and an addiction that has become the bane of some communities.

Many young professionals and executives have a drinking habit. It is the trend of these yuppies to drink bottled beer and draught with their colleagues at their favourite watering holes.

There have also been incidents of secondary school students (both boys and girls) being caught for drinking beer while in their school uniform.

The Duty Free shopping complex in Johor Baru is a favourite haunt for drinkers who buy beer and drink it on the premises to avoid paying tax.

Drinking beer can lead to addiction, as with drinking wine, brandy and whiskey.

Alcoholism can lead to poverty, divorce, lifestyle diseases, failed relationships, fights and brawls, road accidents and dysfunctional families.

Regular liquor and beer consumption poses health risks and can cause cirrhosis of the liver and kidney malfunction. In the light of all these possible physical and social impairments from beer drinking, the beer festival should be cancelled.

We cannot be celebrating ‘beer drinking’ which has caused much hardship and health risks to people. We cannot be preaching against drinking and then celebrate drinking in a beer fest.

What message are we giving to the young?

Such festivals will only encourage and influence more young people to be addicted to drinking beer.

We need to implement a ruling that will make it more difficult and expensive to buy liquor.

The government needs to raise the age limit to buy alcoholic beverages from 18 to 21 and increase taxes on hard liquor.

Liquor is an addiction that slowly eats away your life and the life of your loved ones.

So why risk a lifetime of misery for a few hours of short-lived joy drinking alcohol?