117 replies to this topic

[apeman45]

Stepford?

If this law was enforced equally the police would waste a lot of time harrasing Folsom Citizens. Let's hope they have better things to do. Discretionary enforcement is a dangerous tool because not all can be guaranteed equal application of the law. The average Folsom resident won't be affected or notice this law but I fear some people will much more likely face "discretionary enforcement". I feel for the police always being put on the hot seat by small town politicians.

I'm not much of a drinker but I'm going to test this new law in the public parks. I'll guarantee I will not be harrased because I am not on the profile list. If they do actually enforce it I guess I'll have to start concealing it in other containers.

Seriously this will not change the habits of anyone I know. We will continue the block parties on our court and defend our rights to get drunk in our front yards and walk home. On summer nights the police would have to write at least 10 tickets a night on my my street alone. Let's hope they have something better to do. I guess it's now against the law to socialize with my neighbors. Like people are going to get permits. Is the city going to hire new employees to issue permits and new officers to enforce it?

Maybe we should start a thread on how to conceal alchohol. I'm sure many can remember the creative things we did in college. Maybe we'll see a lot more watermelon at picnics in the park.

[Steve Heard]

Two words: Bota bag!

[mattyx]

here's my two cents....

if this encourages people to sneak alcohol in bota bags, jamba juice cups etc., then you are definitely sending the wrong message to kids and young adults by driving it underground...and don't think they don't know what you are doing....

i would like to say that the Folsom PD is one of the most intelligent police forces when it comes to making the right decision and determining intent and when to apply laws and when not to. i've seen many occasions where people were warned when they could easily have been arrested or ticketed, but escalating the situation was not necessary. i would say that if you respect the folsom pd, they will show you an equal amount of respect.

last comment...i still think the folsom lake law is ridiculous....by not allowing beer in the parks but allowing alcohol on the water in your boat? still can't figure that out. everyone just puts their booze in a jamba juice cup......

wait....I have the solution...BAN JAMBA JUICE!!! just kidding......

[Terry]

Sure sounds like there is a lot of candidates for AA out there!

Come on! Do you really have to drink everywhere you go?

[Robert Giacometti]

This is a poor ordinance!

This ordinance probably will have very little direct effect on me.

The problems that are going to arise enforcing this ordinance will be greater than the current situation we have now.

Lets say that the police respond to a complaint that the homeless are drinking in the park. What are they going to do, issue a citation? Unfortunately, homeless people drinking in a park probably really don't care about citations. What address are the Police going to use to send the paperwork too? This is just going to create a bureacratic nightmare and a tremendous drain of resources from the police department probably resulting in not much of a difference from what we currently are experiencing.

Here is a bigger problem that I see. If the advocates ( They are out there and they are watching this) for the homeless get involved we are going to be facing similiar legal issues like Affordable Housing, that cost us dearly. They, the advocates, will get involved because it will be politically correct to protect the homeless and their rights against affluent communities like Folsom who are trying to use this ordinance to keep the homeless out. The city of Folsom will be a cash cow for their cause!

The fee or permit required to drink in Parks will be the part of the ordinance that gets us in trouble. This will be viewed as being discriminatory against homeless. We don't charge a fee to eat in parks, walk in parks or sit in parks, only to drink in parks. This will be looked at as being to "onnerous" for the homeless to enjoy the same benefits as the rest of the community who can pay the fee to drink.

Another form of discrimination could be if Joe Smith calls the police to report that
his neighbor is drinking on the street, that call will need to be handled the same as the call about the homeless in the park. That is not discretion, that is discrimination!

I would suggest that we rescind this ordinance before it comes back to haunt us or become an alcohol free community and ban it from all public property. If the city is so concerned about drinking in the parks why do they allow their conscionaire sell it at Lembi and collect a percentage of the of the proceeds? What kind of message are we really sending to kids when we say drinking is bad, don't do it, but yet sell it in parks or allow it in Parks for a fee?

Enforce the existing laws about curfews in parks, weapons and public drunkeness, don't create new ones that only restrict the the freedoms of law abiding citizens.

[john]

Sure sounds like there is a lot of candidates for AA out there!

Come on!  Do you really have to drink everywhere you go?

No, but I do enjoy an occasional beverage. I am an adult, I can make decisions for myself. I don't appreciate people saying that those who don't support the new law as "AA candidates"... just because we'd like to have a drink every now and then doesn't mean we're alcoholics.

[bishmasterb]

Sure sounds like there is a lot of candidates for AA out there!

Come on!  Do you really have to drink everywhere you go?

I don't think I've ever consumed an alcoholic beverage in a public area, and I think this law is stupid.

My name is Bishmasterb, and I am not an alcoholic.

[Chad Vander Veen]

I like beer and I don't like homeless people.

[nhardy]

I'm not much of a drinker but I'm going to test this new law in the public parks.  I'll guarantee I will not be harrased because I am not on the profile list.

What is this list you speak of?

[mylo]

I like beer and I don't like homeless people.

Go to the park, and take the homeless guy's beer. The city is happy because they've solved the drunken homeless problem, and you're happy because you got a free beer.

Win/Win situation!

[valdossjoyce]

Go to the park, and take the homeless guy's beer.  The city is happy because they've solved the drunken homeless problem, and you're happy because you got a free beer.

Win/Win situation!

[apeman45]

The list I speak of I'm not on. You've heard of profiling? Well often times it leads to harrasment of law abiding citizens. For example I drive a truck with 200k miles and a very rusty paint job. It's very unsightly and not the norm for my neighborhood. Well recently I had to have some smog work done on this heap and I went to DMV and got my extension and posted the correct paperwork on my window. Well I was pulled over twice in a week by the Folsom PD to "verify" things. Not a big deal but a minor inconvenience and nothing compared to what some have to go through all the time. So now on weekends if I have a picnic in the park I'll have to shave and not have my weekend homeless look while cracking a beer in the park. Not something I'm inclined to do anyway. My concern is not for myself but for the "inconvenience" of those that fit the profile. Too much grey area. I actually would be OK if the law was enforced equally to all but obviously it won't be and who wants our police wasting time ticketing neighborhood barbeques. Justice and Liberty for all. I think there is a beer called Liberty.

I'm not fired up about this ordinance. Just stating my opinion. It's pretty amusing actually. Well I'm off to my softball game at Lembi where I'll be enjoying a city served beer afterwards. Cheers!

[fantomu]

re-legalize alchohol in parks!

[Steve Heard]

The list I speak of I'm not on.  You've heard of profiling?  Well often times it leads to harrasment of law abiding citizens.  For example I drive a truck with 200k miles and a very rusty paint job.  It's very unsightly and not the norm for my neighborhood.  Well recently I had to have some smog work done on this heap and  I went to DMV and got my extension and posted the correct paperwork on my window.  Well I was pulled over twice in a week by the Folsom PD to "verify" things.  Not a big deal but a minor inconvenience and nothing compared to what some have to go through all the time.  So now on weekends if I have a picnic in the park I'll have to shave and not have my weekend homeless look while cracking a beer in the park.  Not something I'm inclined to do anyway.  My concern is not for myself but for the "inconvenience" of those that fit the profile.  Too much grey area.  I actually would be OK if the law was enforced equally to all but obviously it won't be and who wants our police wasting time ticketing neighborhood barbeques.  Justice and Liberty for all.  I think there is a beer called Liberty. 

I'm not fired up about this ordinance.  Just stating my opinion.  It's pretty amusing actually.  Well I'm off to my softball game at Lembi where I'll be enjoying a city served beer afterwards.  Cheers!

That reminds me of my experiences in Foster City. It is a fairly upscale community, in many ways similar to Folsom, except with no old section.

I remember a buddy of mine getting pulled over one afternoon by the cops. He was a black man driving a beat up old car. He was pulled over for having some sort of decoration, dice or something like that, hanging from his rear-view mirror. Did you know that's illegal? It can obstruct your view. It's one of those laws that's rarely enforced, sort of a tool for the cops.

When the city conducted a citizen's survey on how we felt about the police, I called the person in charge and told her that story. She said, "Well, you have to admit, there aren't many black men in our city, especially driving old beat up cars."

I suspect that the majority of our citizens, won't care if the no-drinking law is used inappropriately at times, since it won't affect them.

It won't affect me because I've never had a drink in any of our parks.

[apeman45]

Most of us don't care about things that don't directly impact us or maybe we don't always take the time to think what happens outside our little world. Well maybe we should care. Just a thought.

Well gotta go down a sixer and hit the sack.