How to put bootleggers out of business

By NUNATSIAQ NEWS

Commissioner Stuart Hodgson in 1975 said “it’s my liquor store and I am closing it.”

A group in Iqaluit had requested the action due to a huge number of alcohol-related problems at that time.

What they didn’t realize then was that people would seek other means of getting high. Drugs began to trickle into the community. A school teacher was charged with selling drugs to the kids, but evaded prosecution.

Bootlegging became a flourishing business. Fortunes were made and still are. Grocery stores in the South were doing a thriving business. Folks would order a few groceries and end the order by saying, “oh yes, and could you throw in a few bottles of vodka, some beer and a bottle of gin?” The illegal booze trade grew like crazy, depriving the government of tax dollars.

We are all aware of the huge costs involved with importing a bottle of wine. The cost of the freight can be higher than the value of the wine, and airlines have become the beneficiaries of that system.

Much has happened since the closing. Consumption of booze has gone up. Alcohol-related crime has risen exponentially. The bars and hotels have had a field day — just check out the lines at the Storehouse. People will stand in line at 40-below to get a drink. Check out the court docket. Closing the local store made no difference.

Over the past several decades, we have seen incredible changes in the lifestyle of the Baffin region. We have witnessed a growth in population and we have seen a complete change in the lifestyle of most people.

We have Inuit who own their own homes, who pay taxes, who hold senior, high-paying jobs. The changes, for the most part, have been very positive.

Still, there are those who continue to abuse the stuff. Yet, with all these changes, the puritanical Victorian attitude prevails, such as being unable to buy a bottle of wine for dinner.

In 1957, I proposed to my boss, Bob Green at the Apex Rehab Centre, that all the communities should have a pub, a local place where those interested could buy a beer, sit and meet their friends, buy a sandwich, play darts, and so on.

If such a plan had been implemented, it would have gone a long way towards introducing the people to the proper use of alcohol. It might have prevented some of the tragedies we have seen over these many years. Well, that didn’t happen. So here we are in the future.

Open the Iqaluit liquor store to over-the-counter sales. It won’t make any difference to the drunks — they’ll still be around. The system will not require more staff, but the facility certainly needs an upgrade because it’s a dump.

Train the staff to become more knowledgeable about the goods they sell, a wine course for example, and one for the public wouldn’t hurt either. The profits from the sale of alcohol are incredible.

Open the facility gradually, and impose a drinking licence. If you screw up, you lose your licence to drink, just like driving. Limit the amount one person can buy to ensure that outsiders don’t abuse the system and put the bootleggers out of business.

Bryan Pearson
Iqaluit

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