Opinion: The Anti-youth movement
By Joel Flores
If you are a member of the 18-25 age group, your days of “getting folly” on Folly are numbered.
Let’s face it. There’s more white hair on the combined heads of the Folly Beach City Council than there are on a herd of aging polar bears. So it came as no surprise when an exchange was overheard between three of the Council members at their recent July 15 meeting, suggesting police officers walk the beach checking for various sorts of violations with a focus on the 18-25 crowd, seeing as how they were responsible for most of the problems on the beach. “10th block is one beer away from Girls Gone Wild,” one of the Council members reiterated. Apparently this Council member has never witnessed one of the countless bachelorette parties that frequent our Town.
Another recommendation that got some attention from the Council members was the possible creation of a Citizens Patrol. Rumor has it that the Mayor and his band of kill-joy Council-folk were turning to areas like Isle of Palms, Sullivan’s Island and Utah for inspiration and examples on how to resolve some of the issues involving our beach, but now it seems we are such a crime ridden community that we are tearing a page from the City of DelRay, Florida’s crime prevention manual. DelRay, a town with a population of over 60,000 (compared to our 2,200 or so), appears to have a good thing going with their Citizens on Patrol (COP) program. Good for them, I say. But is it something a Town of approximately 2,200 really needs? And of the 2,200 here on Folly, who’s actually going to do the patrolling? I know who’s not going to do it; people in the age group of 18-25. Why? Because they are going to be doing what anybody in that age group would be doing when on the beach; enjoying it! While it was refreshing to hear that our Town’s representatives would like to encourage more community involvement in curbing the rabble-rousers that do have a tendency to spoil it for the rest of us, couldn’t we just use our town resources of communication to encourage our citizens to utilize their cell phones to report suspicious happenings opposed to making our City by the sea look like it’s on the verge of a decaying 1920s Chicago?
A few observations developed as the meeting ended. First, our City Council seems to strongly represent the agenda and holds an exclusive ear for those who share demographic similarities with most of those sitting on the Council; The 50 and over, white haired, male, “if-it’s-too-loud-I’m-too-old” genre. Perhaps that is a reflection of the poor 49 year old and younger voter turnout when elections were held. Still, it’s their job to represent the entire City, regardless of voter turnout. Surfers, barflies, all age groups and yes, even members of political parties other than their own should all receive equal billing from our elected representatives. Our Council seems to fall short in meeting that particular requisite.
The second observation was that it took a moderator to conduct the meeting. Really? Are our elected officials so incapable of holding a forum or meeting, regardless the weight of the issue, with so little confidence of agreeing that a referee had to be brought in to assure effective communication? The moderator, by the way, successfully guided the Mayor and Council members to some excellent possible solutions concerning the issue of littering on and off the beach. Still, watching her work her magic, you had to wonder, “Where did the funds for this moderator come from exactly?”
Another observation is how this Council seems to be under the impression that a great majority of this Town’s litter problems and inappropriate behavior issues seem to stem from the conduct of anyone younger than the age of 30. It’s almost as if everything from the lack of parking to beach erosion to the ATM in City Hall running out of money is clearly the fault of anyone too young not to appreciate the comfort and fashion sense of plaid golf pants. Here’s an idea for the Council: try hanging around the Front Beach Inn on Arctic sometime. I can almost guarantee a plethora of misconduct and drunken behavior by so many of those over the age of 30 that it’s bound to convince even the most narrow- minded of the Council members that perhaps the young adults who frequent our beach aren’t solely responsible for the majority of our beaches problems.
Finally, it seems like the nightmare of a Folly Beach transformation from an original, hip, peaceful surfing village into a McMansion riddled, cookie-cutter, Bishop Gadsden retirement community is not too far from evolving into reality. With the present City Council paving the way, coming soon will be weekends filled with out of control Grandparents Gone Wild. Skateboards will no longer have a place on our island. However, mobile scooters presently used by lazy, heavyweight shoppers and the elderly will frequent our sidewalks. Live music and Thursday night trivia will be replaced with the return of shag music and silent bingo. Instead of a pizza at Woody’s with friends, a 3pm blue plate special will be the preferred meal on the island and everyone will be comfy in their beds as the City Council will enforce their latest city wide ordinance; a-lights-out-by- 8:30pm policy.
And then of course, there’s still the whole banning alcohol on the beach issue that’s yet to come up. Oy vey.
Note: this article is purely the opinion of its author and is not necessarily reflective of the opinion of the Folly Current or Lucky Dog Publishing.
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