We watched the reaction to Mayor Gina LaPlaca of Lumberton, New Jersey given a DUI on St. Patrick's Day. The New York Post has a picture of her smiling with a high all in her hand. Town meeting was calling for her resignation.
We wonder were it reports of a breast cancer diagnosis, heart attack, or stroke. Would either be "a huge black eye and black cloud over the town?" We think not. Business owner Amy Callahan and others would be reaching out to help and comfort.
Mayor LaPlaca reported she is getting help for her addiction. Alcoholism is a disease as defined by medical professionals decades ago. It appears to have a genetic connection running in families from generation to generation. Alcoholics Anonymous is celebrating its 90th anniversary on June 10, 2025 and now serves alcoholics in more than 180 countries globally.
Attorney Ed Claire showed a client who had had a DUI in 1977 a copy of the Jelnyck Curve, illustrating death as the end for an alcoholic who cannot stop and life as the end for an alcoholic in recovery.
Alcoholism is often combined with some form of mental illness, such as depression. To get help, go to www.aa.org to find a friendly voice in recovery and a meeting in your community or online via Zoom, a positive outcome from the Covid pandemic. Every cloud indeed has a silver lining. We are aware of one meeting that started in Hudson and now spans the globe with regulars from the UK, Ireland, Canada, all USA time zones, New Zealand, and Australia.
