Recreational Whinge: I’ve just read in the online news that in the state of Queensland in Australia that there is a call to remove pool cues and glass ashtrays from pubs because the end up being used as weapons, particularly against paramedics and ambulance crews when that have to show up to the pub to provide medical assistance.  Some places have already banned glasses to prevent “glassing” attacks.  I am astounding at the lengths we have to go, or the directions we have to consider, just to try to reduce the harm caused by violence and in particular alcohol-fueled violence.

Here’s the article if you’d like to read it for yourself.  Highly recommended and check out the different views on this.

I was particularly shocked to learn that 94% of ambulance workers were assaulted on the job in the past five years!

I am also shocked that we have to keep trying to remove the weapons, when it doesn’t seem like we’re addressing the real problems here.

As one of the critics of the ban points out, might it not be more effective to increase fines by tenfold, maybe more?  Would that be a better deterrent?

Why is alcohol still being served to people who shouldn’t have more served to them?  What about the “responsible service of alcohol” legislation?

Maybe we need more security at our pubs?

Maybe we require people to go to anger management classes?

Maybe we do more in schools to address this?

Maybe more TV and media campaigns?

I don’t know the answer…but I do feel the need to have this recreational whinge because I just don’t get why we have to be so flippin’ violent as a society!

And worse yet, other people’s violent behaviour is now going to potentially negatively impact my ability to go the pub and play some pool on a weekend afternoon with my mates.  If you ban pool cues, then that’s the end of pool tables in pubs.

Yes, that’s a selfish way to end this section…but remember, sometimes a recreational whinge is all about the selfish.  Get it out so you can move on and think bigger and broader than that.

The Positive Spin: As much of a shame as such a ban would be, the very fact that so many people are talking about this issue, we might just come up with some more innovative and relevant solutions to the core problem as well as the symptoms.

And I suspect that people might just pay a bit more attention if they realise how many ambulance workers are being hurt by the people they’re trying to help.  That might just spark enough public outrage to make a real difference.