To the editor:

Re: "Booze works," 12th and Cambie, Aug. 1.

"...drinking booze in public still seems to be a Vancouver pastime." That statement by Mike Howell might lead one who's never travelled to believe Vancouver is unique in this; as if people don't drink booze in public anywhere else in the world.

In Europe, an event like the Celebration of Light might come with temporary bars lining the beaches so people wouldn't have to go through the bother of packing their own. And no, they wouldn't force their patrons to sit in monkey cages as they usually do here on the few occasions where, gasp,

alcohol is permitted under jail-like conditions. There you can take your fresh cold one and hang out where you want.

Here the police pour out your booze with a nasty lecture. In Europe, your glass is filled with a smile. What are we aiming for?

Here it comes, the same old story: "But they're different."

No, they're not. Genetically, we're all the same. The difference is, here the police pour out your booze with a nasty lecture. There your glass is filled with a smile.

Ron van der Eerden, Vancouver