Does Sask liquor And Gaming Need To Get With The Times?

I am not a person who frequents these types of establishments but am a person who believes in the rights of everyone.  The problem with legalizing strippers would be to make sure that the bike gangs do not control these establishments or the circuit, which could be a big problem.  It then starts to look a lot like the argument of legalizing the sex trade which is run by gangs and pimps.  These people run their businesses with fear tactics and it is quite effective in keeping people in line.  Is there a way to put in checks and balances?  I think it could be done, where all businesses are really checked out by the RCMP to make sure there is no affiliation to organized crime.  The same goes for the circuits of talent that comes through the establishments.  Is this something that the taxpayers want to foot the bill for or should it be for the establishments to submit to authorities all related documentation on a yearly basis and then pay a large sum of money for the costs of the investigations? There could also by anonymous tip lines set up for the talent/staff of these operations where they could submit information that could lead to actions being taken by authorities.

In the end it comes down to this, if you disagree with these places, don't go but if you believe in all rights supported by the constitution then these places should be allowed to open.  I personally would not go, but who am I to say my neighbour cannot, or any of my friends?  Who gave me the right to tell others that they cannot do what they want with their spare time?

This topic is difficult one for me because it is human nature to hope that everyone would live by the same standards but the fact is they don't and it is easier to accept it than it is to try to change them. 

Burlesque show riles SLGA

BY BARB PACHOLIK, LEADER-POST JUNE 28, 2011 10:54 AM

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Kevin Pattison, who runs the Bare Essentials show, with a letter of non-compliance from the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority.

Photograph by: Don Healy, Leader-Post

REGINA — A Regina bar's burlesque show has caught the eye of inspectors with the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA).

Liquor laws don't bar stripping — as long as it isn't served up with booze. The Bare Essentials show at the Gaslight Saloon features plenty of pole dancing and suggestive poses, but the scantily-clad dancers behind screens don't actually bare it all. So Kevin Pattison, the man behind the show, thought it was OK.

That was, until the bar got a notice of non-compliance late last week from the SLGA.

Pattison said Monday he plans a few changes — eliminating lap dances and so-called "body shots" — but the burlesque show will go on. "There's no way we're going to get pushed off."

He noted that the shows have been running for nine months. "Nothing's come of it until now."

SLGA spokeswoman Stephanie Choma said she couldn't comment specifically on any action taken at the bar. However, speaking generally, she said that if an inspector visits an establishment and identifies a potential violation, a notice of non-compliance is issued. "That notice to the permittee is basically a notice that an investigation is underway. It gives them an opportunity to submit comments," said Choma. The investigation continues, and if warranted, the bar owner can get a "sanction," for example a fine or liquor licence suspension. The bar owner can appeal or accept the penalty. Only after appeals are exhausted and if the sanction is upheld, will SLGA publicly identify the establishment.

Pattison said the Gaslight's owner, who couldn't be reached for comment Monday, asked him to help respond to SLGA since Bare Essentials is his show. "We're going to play by the rules for now, and fight it out, and see what happens," said Pattison. "I really don't want to lose the show. It's the best thing going in town right now," he added.

According to a June 23 letter from SLGA, an inspector doing a "permittee inspection" checked out the show for two hours on June 8 — and wasn't pleased with what he found. The letter notes $2 raffle tickets were sold for a lap dance; a dancer sold shooters "that could be consumed by the customer by taking the shot glass from her breasts, buttocks, or vaginal area;" dancers appeared on stage in lingerie; and the inspector saw two winners of the lap dances collect their prize with a dancer straddling the customer. In addition, one dancer, age 18, stepped into the area covered by the liquor permit to sell raffle tickets, but minors, under age 19, aren't allowed in that area.

The Alcohol Control Act prohibits "any nude activity or entertainment," including a striptease performance or wet clothing contest.

The letter concludes that the incidents will be referred to the SLGA head office to determine if sanctions are to be imposed upon the liquor permit holder.

Saskatchewan businesses have flirted with the province's stripping laws for years. In 1992 a fitness demonstration by aerobics instructors in spandex was shut down at the Buffalo Days beer garden. Businessman Craig Cunningham, took a run at the law a year later by opening up a strip club without liquor — but ran up against city zoning laws prohibiting such adult entertainment in the downtown core. The door to stripping in bars was briefly opened by a court ruling after a Saskatoon bar challenged the law, but an appeal shut it down in 2000.

bpacholik@leaderpost.com

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