Oooh, Snap!

I am a parent and manager of an underage band. A bomb got dropped in our laps when Mayor Chavez made it clear that he wanted to shut down the all-age shows at venues like the Launchpad and the Sunshine. Now it has even gone as far as changing the liquor laws so the city and state governments can obtain this goal.

My whole take on this is that it’s not fair! They want to change the laws so that venues with a seating capacity of over 4,000 can still serve liquor while minors are present (all government venues will be exempt from the law), while venues with seating capacity under 4,000 cannot. The under 4,000 capacity venues like the Sunshine and Launchpad go to great lengths to segregate minors from being anywhere near the liquor and have a very good track record. In contrast, Journal Pavilion has been sited for incidents of underage drinking.

If they are going to make this change in the liquor law, they should make it even across the board. It really seems that they are basing this change on the fact that they don’t want older men dancing with young girls. If they are worried about this type of situation, they might want to ban wedding receptions in New Mexico. This administration is truly out of touch with the youth of today.

The all-age crowd is the one driving the music industry. If they are excluded from the Sunshine and the Launchpad, larger acts that play these medium-sized venues will not come through New Mexico. The small business owner deserves to make a living too, right? Plus, these venues let the local bands play. It is a big deal to local bands to get a chance to play one of these venues, and their participation helps drive the local economy.

The music community locally generates upward of eight million dollars annually—and with just a little support from our city government I’m sure this amount could be doubled and offer more jobs for the city, especially in the Downtown area. A lot of people e-mailed the mayor about the all-age issue and what we got back from him was this—“Simply, alcohol will be prohibited at all-age events in the Downtown district.” But I ask you—why is only Downtown prohibited from liquor sales while minors are present? What is the Journal Pavilion but a big outdoor bar with live music and kids?

I had not gone to a live music event in 13 years, so when I started getting out two years ago I was surprised at the amount of talent here in New Mexico. When you see firsthand the amount of energy these kids put into their music and equipment—it’s amazing! I feel very safe in the clubs and walking around Downtown. If parents would get more involved with their kids through the music, this world would be a better place.

I would like to encourage more parents to come to the all-age shows, even if you don’t have kids in bands. Enjoy the youth of tomorrow and this great music scene we have in New Mexico. I knew where my 15-year-old was when Mudvayne rolled through town and played the Sunshine, because I was with her—did Mayor Chavez know where his daughter was that night?

Will the last one leaving Downtown please turn out the lights?

Have you ever pondered during a meal, “You know, this is a great dish but there’s just something missing … Maybe it needs a little salt? Hot sauce?” Strange when that happens, isn’t it? Kind of like the last month of the Alibi. Great paper—no doubt. But just a little something missing. Eye-opening features? Check. Informative news? Check. Great film reviews? Check. Hilarities of the Gastrological Forecast … wait … [furious page-turning/mouse-clicking] … ahhh—Where’s Gwyneth? Maybe Google holds the secrets of her disappearance. Oh wise one, give me the answers to this great debacle! New Mexico Business Weekly writes, “’In the midst of reshuffling, I was let go,’ says Gwyneth Doland, who worked for more than five years at the paper.” Sniff. Where was the goodbye?

While Lockheed Martin and Bechtel Corporation are vying for the administration, accounting and business operations of the Los Alamos lab complex, they’re also joining with universities, one with the University of Texas and the other with the University of California. Our state universities talk about the research funds which will come from spin offs of projects at the labs. And some private companies hope for the same.

Is federal money (our taxes) the overriding motivation for this interest? Are the secondary jobs which would be created by more bomb development or space weapons worth this deadly business with more radioactive waste and quarantined land?

The Navajo Nation has spoken against further uranium mining on their lands. San Ildefonso Pueblo rejects the idea of more lethal waste from the labs being stored on the mesas above them.

The traditional last page of the New Mexico magazine humorously points out the lack of geographic knowledge of our state. But many throughout our country are unaware we’re being messed with. Either that, or they just leave us off the map.

We New Mexicans, whether native or transplants, are being treated by our government in the way it treats some third world countries.

Take, for example, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in southeastern New Mexico and a proposed nuclear fuel plant whose toxic waste still has no takers; the storage of thousands of nuclear bombs here in the center or the state; the ongoing contamination of the once pristine mesas of the north central region—all make us a militarized state dictated to by Washington.

Are we going to sell our birthright or adopted land to those who think war–premeditated, preemptive, and pro-profit–accomplishes justice? If not, then we need to let our elected officials hear from us.

Any moneys budgeted for the labs must not be for weapons production with its unacceptable pollution, but rather for peaceful purposes and protection of the environment.

Then we can again take pride in our Land of Enchantment.