Standing firm on the rollback

Mayor Edward Clancy is not about to change his mind about rolling the hours back here of bars and of liquor licenses.

He believes, as we believe, the city is a better place with a 1 a.m. closing than a 2 a.m. closing time.

Why?

Because we don’t believe anyone in their right mind needs to be inside a bar or at a bar inside a restaurant at 2 a.m. – and then leave that restaurant to drive in their automobiles to wherever they are going.

Alcohol causes problems wherever it is served.

This is not anecdote. It is science.

When you rid the streets of deadly drunken drivers early in the morning, it makes for a safer city – or at the very least, for safer streets.

Mayor Clancy is to be complimented for not taking a step backward and keeping Lynn a better place.

And it has been a safer place since the bars were made to close their doors an hour earlier more than a year ago.

It is sticking to this kind of decision, no matter the political consequences, that makes Clancy a strong leader.