We never felt much like slingin’ the booze

We know, it's a terrible pun. Our apologies to the shade of Guy Mitchell.

Early voting has ended, so Tuesday – regular Election Day – will be the last opportunity for you to vote, if you haven’t already.

If you live in the Mount Pleasant city limits, you have a proposition on the ballot to allow the sale of beer and wine in stores (there’s also a county proposition regarding the precinct road system – County Prop 1 as opposed to City Prop 1.)

Last year the same bunch behind this year’s effort backed the proposition with hundreds of thousands of dollars. It was very satisfying to see them waste all that money and lose to a grassroots coalition of concerned Mount Pleasant citizens.

Apparently, this motley crew believes that because they lost by a small margin last year, they stand a chance the second time around. However, if they weren’t simply delusional with greed they would realize they will lose by a much larger margin this year.

Last year was an off-year; there were no races on the ballot, just State Constitutional amendments. The turnout was relatively low. The committed “pro” voters – mostly the owners and employees who would benefit from booze peddling – all turned out, and they still lost.

This year we have a hot and heavy Presidential race, and the voter turnout will be much higher. The “pro” voters will be swamped by a bigger turnout, which will be more reflective of citizen sentiment in general.

Another reason they will probably fare worse this time around is, quite frankly, their repeat offending has ticked off a lot of people. There seems to be a general realization that it may be necessary to stomp these booze hounds in the ground, or they will keep coming back year after year.

The citizens group Mount Pleasant Cares has done a great job of getting the word out to the voter of the real implications for Mount Pleasant if the proposition passes. There also seems to be more overall support for the “No” vote in the public this year.

The “pro” supporters simply reprinted the same old propaganda from last year. Last year it was misguided. This year it is irritating. Like the old Russian saying goes, “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.”

If you haven’t already voted, please be sure to get on Tuesday and finish the job. The environment, roads, schools and law enforcement all benefit when a concerted effort is made to discourage the scourge of drinking.

Let’s send the booze hounds a message, and maybe they won’t come back NEXT year!