The year 2009 has not been a good one for many people and nations. So it is with some relief that we bid goodbye to 2009. But what will 2010 bring? Will it be a happy new year? Or another year of belt tightening and job losses?
But for the moment everyone is thinking of the New Year’s Eve countdown to the new year. And France has just passed a new decree that is bound to please partygoers.
Up to now, France has a non-standard closing time for night clubs. In Paris closing time differed in the city’s 20 arrondissements, or neighborhoods. But now night clubs all over France can stay open until 7 a.m. This is later than what was previously allowed in most places.
The new decree also requires night clubs to stop serving alcohol an hour and a half before closing to cut down on drunk driving.
Until now, partygoers simply hop from one place which closes early to another which closes later. So in a way, this new decree levels the playing field for night club owners in that partygoers can now party at one place till dawn.
The Macumba club near the border with Switzerland is preparing for New Year’s Eve. It has hired 10 DJs for its 7 dance floors. 24-year old Elodie Bari is preparing to attend this party. He is pleased with the new decree. He said: “This way we can get our money’s worth from the cover charges.”
However, the new decree appears to take club owners by surprise. Many big nightclubs do close at around 6-7 a.m. These clubs used to benefit from other clubs that closed earlier as their patrons moved over to them.
Fabrice Gadeau, director of the Rex Club in Paris said: “This law came out of nowhere right before New Year’s Eve.”
But what prompted the new decree? In part it is because of complains that nightlife is Paris is losing its glitters. It seems that musicians, DJs and partygoers are leaving Paris and heading to London, Barcelona, Prague and Berlin. British clubs, for example, can now open 24 hours daily.
Think about it. Drink driving is going to claim many innocent lives in road accidents and in fights. It is also a cause for domestic violence and breakup of marriages. Why then should governments facilitate consumption of alcohol at nightclubs by extending operating hours, even to 24-year as in Britain?
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