As a Canadian, I think it’s important to provide some additional context. In Ontario, the province where I live, the provincial government has a near monopoly o

As a Canadian, I think it’s important to provide some additional context. In Ontario, the province where I live, the provincial government has a near monopoly on alcohol sales through its LCBO stores. These stores bring in well over $2 billion of revenue each year (https://www.lcbo.com/content/dam/lcbo/PDFs/AnnualReport/LCBO%20FY2021%20ANNUAL%20REPORT%20-%20FINAL%20ENGLISH%20-%20AODA%20COMPLIANT.pdf https://www.lcbo.com/content/dam/lcbo/PDFs/AnnualReport/LCBO...). While I know there are arguments for this like “if people are going to drink anyway, the government should control and benefit from it,” it certainly sends mixed messages. The LCBO even advertises to promote alcohol consumption. Even worse, the sale of alcohol doesn’t offset the costs of alcohol to governments, according to this study on a government website: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/reports-publications/health-promotion-chronic-disease-prevention-canada-research-policy-practice/vol-40-no-5-6-2020/alcohol-deficit-canadian-government-revenue-societal-costs.html https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/reports-publ...