Battle for Beer

The bros are fine; the beer not so much

Feb. 25, 2015

Editorial

Of all the battles the East Hampton Town Trustees could be joining, the one in which a majority appears to be fighting for the right of bros to drink at Amagansett’s Indian Wells Beach is one on which they should have taken a pass.

If you are uncertain what bros means, the term comes from the millennial vernacular and describes young men who can put good times and camaraderie above common sense and courtesy. This is not to disparage the bros; in fact, we were them at one time too. The problem is that in summers past there have been too many at that particular beach and their alcohol-lubricated presence has made many longtime beachgoers feel unwelcome. The bros are fine; the beer not so much.

Over at Town Hall, there is a sense that a trial daytime alcohol ban put into place last August at Indian Wells should be revived for the coming summer. From what we hear, some trustees oppose the idea and may object. This feels misguided.

The trustees need to remember that this is not Daytona Beach at spring break. East Hampton is a second home to many of the voters who put the trustees in office, and their wish for a family-friendly, safe, and inviting beach must take precedence over what may be an anachronistic idea about liberty and the freedom to enjoy a beer wherever and whenever one wants. Maybe the trustees never actually saw Indian Wells in full swing, before the trial alcohol ban. We did on several occasions, and let us tell you, it was crazy and not all that nice to be around.

Frankly, it may be time for the town board to look at prohibiting alcohol on the Montauk beaches as well. Early morning there last summer often revealed unacceptable heaps of empty beer cans and other debris. And, as the trustees have said, clamp down at Indian Wells and the party will just move elsewhere.

Town officials, whether on Pantigo Road or in the trustees’ headquarters in the Lamb Building in Amagansett, must again ask in whose interest they should govern. Promoting daytime bacchanals on our glorious beaches is not of broad public benefit.