Time to sober up: our drink problem is a crisis

SURPRISE, surprise, St Patrick’s Day turned into an alcohol-fuelled binge of violence. Now there’s a shock. Didn’t see that coming.

Strolling down the capital city’s most fashionable shopping district around Grafton Street, innocent passers-by saw punch-ups breaking out while a woman and her children distressingly witnessed a teenaged couple performing a sexual act in broad daylight.

While not occurring in quite as high-profile locations, the general pattern of public disorder was repeated across the country.