' Ban will leave a dry taste on vodka lovers' palates
By Denise Fuller
Of Iht Emerald
Connoisseurs of Stolichnaya,
the only Russian vodka sold in
Oregon, soon won't find their
favorite brand in state liquor
stores.
Karen Bjorklund, program direc
tor for the Oregon Liquor Control
Commission, estimates they had
130 vodka cases a few weeks ago,
but she is unsure how long that
supply will last.
On Sept. 28, Oregon joined
Iowa, Maine, New Hampshire,
Pennsylvania, Utah, Washington
and West Virginia in banning the
future sales of Russian vodka. The
ban is in response to the Soviet
Union's downing of a Korean
commercial jetliner with 269 peo
ple aboard Sept. 1.
Symbolic act a response to Soviet downing of jetliner
Russian vodka sales were
previously prohibited in Oregon
after the Soviet invasion of
Afghanistan in 1980.
Of Oregon's total vodka sales,
Stolichnaya, which means “The
Capital City" in Russian, accounts
for only 1.4 percent or approx
imately one bottle out of every 100
sold, says Leon Joelson, a Eugene
retail liquor agent.
“It's quite possible we're selling
more of Finnish vodka and other
imports than the Stolichnaya. Peo
ple who tend to buy a foreign pro
duct have switched," Joelson says.
Stolichnaya retails for $12.45 for
a 750 ml bottle and SStOS for the
500 mL size.
Oregon and all the other states
that have banned vodka sales are
"control" states, meaning the
state is the sole retailer of liquor.
"The vodka boycott is a symbol
of outrage from America's
grassroots and as a symbolic
guesture it is welcome, but it is
not a political measure against the
Soviet regime," says Russian Prof.
Fruim Yurevich. "Practical
responses are limited, but in the
long run more people become
aware of the Soviet regime and its
nature. The regime has an out
ward veneer and doesn't expose
what's below that veneer too
often."
But the symbolic value of the
ban is limited.
■- \ I
mm
Photos by Dave Kao
"It would be wonderful if we could solve the world's problems by refusing to sell a country's pro
duct, " says Tom Hovet, political science at the University.
"I think prohibiting the future
sales of Russian vodka is sort of
silly and not a lot of vodka is
sold," says political science Prof.
Tom Hovet. "We don't stop eating
bananas because they're grown in
Nicaragua." Instead, Hovet sug
gests that measures should be
taken by international aviation
authorities.
"It would be wonderful if we
could solve the world’s problems
by refusing to sell a country's pro
duct," Hovet says.
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These bottles of Stolichnaya Russian vodka soon will become
nonexistent due to Oregon's recent decision to ban the product
in response to the Soviet downing of a Korean jet and its 269
passengers on Sept. 1.
Stiffer penalties face Oregon drunk drivers
By Mike Cross
Of the Emerald
Students indulging in alcoholic beverages
may want to know about the tougher
penalties involved with drinking and
driving.
The State Legislature passed three laws
during the 1983 session that are designed to
curb drunk driving in Oregon. All were
signed into law by Gov. Vic Atiyeh
"Our ma|or concern was due to the high
incidence of deaths on our highways caus
ed by drunk drivers" says House Minority
Leader Larry Campbell, R-Eugene.
Campbell says he was pleased with the
overwhelming bipartisan support these
bills rec eived.
All three laws, which go into effect Satur
day, will make it easier to convict those who
drink and drive, Campbell says.
The state also will have ample resources
to enforce the new laws, he says.
One of the bills. House Bill 2550, makes it
a Class A misdemeanor for anyone 21 years
of age or over to supply alt oholit beverages
to a minor. Anyone over 21 faces a man
ditory fine of $300 for violation of this law —
and that's just for a first offense. A judge
cannot suspend fines under any
circumstances.
HB 2975 affects those under 18 years of
age. Specucally, if they're involved in a drug
or alcohol offense while driving, they
automatically lose their driver's license.
Another law, created by the passage of
Senate Bill 710, will automatically suspend
drivers' licenses for 12 hours when they are
stopped by police officers and retuse to
take breath tests. The law will be passed
shortly. .
If no sober persons are with the drivers,
they then will have their cars towed away —
at their expense — and must find a means
of getting home
If drivers suspected of intoxication fail to
r<t$uest hearings with the Motor Vehk U*s
Division within H) days of the t itafiom,
Emerald graphk
I heir licenses will be suspended lor a
minimum of 90 days or a maximum of one
year. If I hey request hearings, their refusals
Of breath tests are admissible in court as
evidence against them.
Similar laws been efter tive in other stales,
says Barb Stoefller of Mothers Against
Drunk Drivers Her organization, along
with the Oregon chapter of the American
Medical Association and many individual
citizens, were instrumental in getting these
laws passed.
Tougher standards also include lowering
the legal blood-alchohol driving level from
. 10 to .08. According to a chart published by
Allstate Insurance Agency, a 165-pound per
son exceeds this level by drinking six or
more beers in a three hour period. The
body only can process the alcohol content
of one beer (or one mixed drink) during a
one hour period.
Drunk driving is responsible for 55 per
cent of the deaths and injuries on Oregon
roads, according to MADD.