Just three days ago, the Daily Tribune reported on a “Fall Pub Crawl” that is being planned by the Cartersville Downtown Development Authority. I wrote about this sobering moral development, as it relates to trend of selling alcohol in Cartersville, in my last blog. Yesterday, the Tribune reported that the City Council and Alcohol Control Board are now considering creating an “Entertainment District” in the downtown area in which retail establishments could sell alcoholic beverages. This is another cause for moral concern.
In my former career as an external auditor, one of my clients was the City of Forest Park. At that time the Army operated a base, Fort Gillem, in the city. The proximity of soliders infused a demand for alcohol and women into the local economy. The economy provided it and the city taxed it. The City of Forest Park imposed an adult entertainment tax on the local strip joints. I audited that tax. I had never heard of such a thing before and can remember being taken aback that a city government would profit* off of houses of ill repute. Yet, Forest Park did so.
Now, my own city is considering an “Entertainment District”. In the case of Cartersville, the “entertainment” in question is selling alcoholic beverages in shops. As a teetotaling Baptist I don’t see how drinking beer while shopping constitutes entertainment but I digress. I’ve never been one for slippery slope arguments but surely Cartersville faces one with the proposed Entertainment District. Could adult entertainment eventually fall under the regulation of such a district? Would the City of Cartersville, which already brings in revenue through an alcohol excise tax, one day tax strippers (male or female)?
Today, the Christians of Cartersville need to take a hard look at why church attendance has been trending either downward or toward entertainment-driven venues like Crosspoint City Church. The Christians of Cartersville need to ask why their city is run by a Roman Catholic mayor while their local Masonic Cult is run by Southern Baptists. Supposedly, Cartersville is in the Bible Belt. Unfortunately, it looks like the leather is wearing thin.
*I use the term “profit” loosely here. “Sin taxes” such as this one are typically meant to offset the costs of increased police activity associated with strippers and alcohol.
**Please note that the preceding is my personal opinion. It is not necessarily the opinion of any entity by which I am employed, any church at which I am a member, any church which I attend, or the educational institution at which I am enrolled. Any copyrighted material displayed or referenced is done under the doctrine of fair use.
Seth Dunn 