Brittany Farrell | November 9, 2011 | SHARE: 
As a new year begins, we at the North Carolina Family Policy Council anticipate a challenging, but fruitful year continuing to positively influence public policy relevant to North Carolina families. This issue of Family North Carolina is very much a part of the common-sense decision-making process suggested by Ben Stein—“The indispensable first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: Decide what you want.” We have decided what we want to see the General Assembly accomplish, and are prepared to do the hard work to help make those priorities a reality. These pages explore several of the topics we know are important to you and your families, and which deserve attention from our representatives.
This issue features an article that addresses a topic about which you have likely been hearing more and more—privatization of the state’s Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) system, which owns, operates, and regulates the sale of hard liquor in North Carolina. The current system has the goal of limiting the availability and consumption of a product that brings steep social costs, while providing revenue to state and local governments. With the state in a difficult budget crunch, the Governor and legislators are considering new options to balance the budget, including possible privatization of the ABC system, which has been successfully in place since before Prohibition. This article explores the history and rationale for this system and makes the case for keeping it intact.
As we look toward the new legislative session, a bill that has often been filed and just as often ignored is one that would offer justice to the unborn children who are injured or killed as result of vio- lent crimes committed against their mothers and their families. Attorney Dorothy Yeung, who serves as the vice president of North Carolina Right to Life, provides a clear and succinct history of this bill and why it is so important that it receive a fair hearing in the 2011 General Assembly.
