The Red and Black

Issue date: 3/6/08 Section: Opinions

MELISSA WEINMAN

Maybe the prohibition of Sunday alcohol sales is unimportant, an asinine peculiarity of the law I shouldn't worry about. Just a quirky vestige of days past when the good people of Georgia wanted to ensure no one drank on the Lord's day.

But I do worry about it. In fact, I'm angered by it.

It's not that I'm mad I can't go to a liquor store on the Sabbath - it's that I'm told by the government I can't.

I am angered by the way the governor, lieutenant governor and other higher ups of the Georgian Republicans pander to the religious right, those moral meddlers, who have such a tight grip on the politicians of my state.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported last week more than 30,000 Georgians signed an online petition to end the state's ban on Sunday sales in hopes it might be considered in the state House and Senate with other alcohol legislation - to allow Sunday sales for limousines and a Gwinnett stadium.

Governor Sonny Perdue, a conservative Christian, has said he will veto any legislation to legalize Sunday sales, and Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle stalled the measure to end the Sunday prohibition last year before it made it out of the Senate.

I cannot understand why these politicians are at such odds with the reality of what many of their constituents want. They are reluctant to change this law that has caused so much unrest.

I understand what a substantial portion of the Republican electorate evangelical Christians comprise, but the rest of the party and others in the state should not be ignored. Opposition to this law is apparent. Groups were formed, petitions signed and Web sites created to demonstrate people want this to change.

This duality of the Republican Party is glaring here.

In fact, Perdue's vehement opposition to change this law isn't even logical to me.

Perdue, the first Republican governor since Reconstruction, proudly asserts his status as a conservative. Yet by upholding this law, he is going against the very political ideology he's aligned with.

One of the most basic principles of conservative thought is that government should have as little influence over people's lives as possible.

Telling me what I can and can't buy on certain days of the week is intrusive. That's the strong hand of the government at work right there.

This certainly is not the first time this law has come under scrutiny.

It's like a bionic mosquito that no one can squash.

I think the best thing for these politicians to do is reach a compromise. The most promising proposal I've heard so far is to allow individual communities to decide whether or not to allow Sunday sales.

That way, big cities such as Atlanta and Savannah will be able to cater to the demand for Sunday sales while small towns who favor the ban will be able to maintain it. To me, it's a win-win situation.

There you go Sonny - you can have your cake and eat it too.

- Melissa Weinman is a news writer for The Red & Black.

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