Comments on: Sport handling the alcohol sponsorship issue poorly — already

By: Craig Mills

Craig Mills — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

Yep and…? Jeff you seem to be saying that without alcohol sponsorship sport and life may be out there Captain… but no longer as we know it. The tobacco issue turned out to be a no brainer and I cannot recall how this impacted negatively on the fortunes of the large franchises such as the Benson and Hedges World Cup or the Winfield Cup. As a member of your “health lobby” that treats over 500 new people per year every year in rural NSW for the consequences primarily of alcohol abuse we may be forgiven sometimes for feeling that the pointy end of the wedge is being shoved up our collective fundaments when there is this ongoing defence of our community’s ambivalent relationship with alcohol. We in the treatment industry are pragmatic about the role of alcohol in everyday life but feel uncomfortable about this multi billion dollar industry being given carte blanche under the guise of so called self regulation and leaving it up to them to determine where to draw the line. You are aware no doubt that Drinkwise, the ‘independent’ body that advises the government on alcohol policy issues, has 50% membership from the industry and will tell us all with a straight face that they ‘care’ and possibly even believe it. In response to the issue of alcohol and sporting sponsorship I guess that the industry may feel slightly wounded at a tilt at the sacred cash cow, but must also feel the swell of public and government sentiment and would want to align themselves more positively and closely with your ‘health lobby’ through programs for instance like the Australian Drug Foundation’s Good Sports Program (as endorsed by our PM and seen on TV). I have a sneaking suspicion sport will survive another ‘attack’ on their sponsorship dollars and no doubt whatsoever the alcohol industry will morph into whatever is needed to maintain their veneer of social respectability. We just continue to pick up and try to reassemble the pieces of the broken, cast aside units. Nobody’s fault really.

By: Steve

Steve — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

So who is going to sponsor sport? CA got belted around the head for taking money from the makers of the dirty bird, now alcohol and next month gambling will probably get a kick.

Actually the media have already been into cricket's punter.

The difference between the above and ciggies is there is no such thing as a safe ciggy.

But one can occasionally have fast food, a few beers and and a small flutter without either addiction or wanting to glass the neighbour's neck after losing all the fast food funds on a slow Dapto dishlicker.

By: Kevin Charles Herbert

Kevin Charles Herbert — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

Craig Mills & Mary Anne: spot on, folks.

By: Mary Anne

Mary Anne — Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000

How sick are we? The alcohol industry is greedy, manipulative, rich and dangerous. It is high time that all alcohol advertising was banned, sponsorship was shunned and sales outlets savagely reduced. Domestic violence and alchol sales outlets go hand in hand, likewis road trauma.
No alcohol is safe for pregnant women.
Young people do foolish things under the influence of alcohol, old men become disgusting, young men become a danger to themselves and to those around them.
Our government is frightened to clamp down on the industry though the health cost to the nation is enormous because the industry is so powerful and it makes large contributions to politcal parties. The liquor industry and the political parties make money out of alcohol, the rest of us pay the price in broken health, broken homes and broken bones. We are very sick indeed.
If professional sport cannot survive without this mind altering and addictive drug then we should consider going back to real sport played by people who play sport because they enjoy the challenge of the game itself. Sport used to draw great crowds before players were paid fabulous dollars.