Feds approve powdered alcohol, Chicago moves to ban it
Chicago’s political priority list shouldn’t include addressing a new way to drink.
Less than a week after federal regulators approved “Palcohol”– a powdered form of alcohol that can be mixed with water and consumed – for sale in the U.S., a powerful Chicago alderman has introduced an ordinance that would ban the product within city limits.
The Alcohol and Tobacco Trade and Tax Bureau approved powdered alcohol for sale in the U.S. on March 10. On March 16, 14th Ward Alderman Ed Burke introduced an ordinance banning its sale in Chicago, with a $2,000-$5,000 fine attached to each offense.
“The possibilities for abuse concerning this product are seemingly endless,” Burke said.
“This product is so light and transportable that it could be slipped into a child’s pocket and brought to school. It could also be easily put in someone’s food or beverage without their knowledge.”
This is only the latest in a long series of efforts from Burke to legislate his food and drink preferences.
In 2013 he introduced an ordinance banning energy drinks. In 2010 he moved to outlaw caffeinated alcohol. In 2006 it was trans fats and food labeling that got Burke riled up.
The Palcohol ban proposal, like all the others, is offered with examples of potential dangers of the substance in question. Too often left out of the discussion is the cost or effectiveness of enforcing its prohibition.
Chicago’s problems have little to do with what adults are choosing to consume in their free time. In fact, one could argue that the city’s violence problem is a direct result of the banning of certain substances.
City leaders like Burke, who has held his office for an astonishing 46 years, should be spending more time coming up with realistic solutions to Chicago’s Detroit-ian budget crisis and less time searching for the next big ban.