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Show Features Editor: Jesica Medellin _ Wednesday, OctoBei»5,f2005 Hookah Joe is on the grow Utah clean air act prohibits hookah bars without a permit and comfortable environment and a 20-minute, "all-you-cansmoke" smoke runs about S10. Forget about sitting around Not only is this an inexpensive drinking coffee and shooting the social drawing; it is a quick and breeze; Weber State University legal way to get a slight buzz. students have a more culturally But don't look in the Yellow diverse way of just hanging out. Pages any time soon for a nearby The hookah is making a come hookah bar: Due to the Indoor back, and people are trying this Clean Air Act of 1996, indoor Egyptian tradition. smoking - no matter what the For those who do not know form - is completely banned what a genuine hookah looks unless inside a private club with a like, reminisce back to childhood permit. Until Utah hookah lovers and "Alice in Wonderland". Many canfigureout a way to get around people remember the caterpillar the contradictions of this law, sitting on his fluffy mushroom, local hookah fans will continue smoking his hookah and making their own mini hookah philosophizing about life. bars in their houses and garages. "It's better for you than Since smokers are using smoking a cigarette, better tobacco, it is true hookah smoke tasting; just something to do contains trace amounts of while you're hanging out" said the harmful chemicals found Christopher Wirkus, WSU senior. in cigarettes. Utah law states Hookahs, although there are many smokers must be 19 to purchase misconceptions about them, are tobacco paraphernalia - that mostly used for tobacco and are includes hookahs. believed to be less harmful than According to ancient Egyptian cigarettes because of the filtering. customs, the hookah is to be Hookah smoking also allows smoked right after a meal. It is smokers to choose from many said to enhance the meal that was different flavors and varieties. The just eaten and to leave a sweet loose tobacco used in hookahs taste. Hookah smokers say the comes in many assorted flavors, flavored tobacco leaves the same including strawberry, cherry and sweet taste as eating a delectable even rum. dessert, but without all of the Although here in Utah, calories. hookahs are just becoming There is a growing population big, other places embrace the of tobacco-smoking hookahs. fad. Places such as Chicago, For many WSU students, buying .Las Vegas and New York have hookahs is the *. equivalent of establishments devoted solely to buying a car; they are always this Egyptian tradition. competing to have the bigger, Hookah bars promote a relaxed cooler hookah. By Amber Kasper correspondent | The Signpost Miles Wirkus, Hank Murach and Chris Wirkus (left to right) sit around the family room smoking tobacco in their hookah, a growing college fad. College keggers? Not in Utah careers in jail. Local liquor laws a hinderance to theirKegscollege and party balls - a smaller keg - can be purchased on Hill Air Force as well as high-point beer, but college life for out-of-state students Base, possession of such items off the base is By Kristy McMahon correspondent | The Signpost "High point" is a phrase well recognized by the not-so-sober public of Utah in reference to the beer they can't buy in the local supermarkets. Watered-down beer and state-owned liquor stores are the essence of Utah culture. Utah is the place; the place to buy 3.2 percent alcoholic beverages as compared to the nationally accepted "high point" of 5.6 percent or so. "Whatever happened to separation of church and state?" ask several out-of-state Weber State University students. Students from other states hear horror stories about Utah and ; / its alcohol policies before coming h e.r e . Then their nightmare becomes reality when they walk down their dormitory halls, overwhelmed with signs stating the consequences of being caught with alcohol on campus. University Village signs caution a $25 fine for each alcohol container found anywhere on the property. A dozen cans may end up costing $300. "I think this rule is just ridiculous," said Shannon Kholer, WSU student. "Having rules like these just encourages binge drinking, if anything. You know you can't take it home with you, so you drink as much as possible before you get there." Another Utah liquor law that gains much attention from WSU students is the fact liquor can only be purchased through either state-owned liquor stores or by the glass in a private club. "I can't even go out bar hopping with the guys like back home because a) bars are not exactly plentiful around here, and b) you have to pay a [darnl membership fee every time you walk in one of these places," said Nik Kuhn, WSU transfer student. In the event a decent bar is discovered, there is another tip to ordering a mixed beverage that will save money and disappointment: No matter how tall the glass is, the alcohol content is metered and does not exceed 2.75 ounces of liquor. Drinks are actually measured in 1-ounce pours, and a "side car" or double needs to be ordered to get the full 2.75 ounces. A 6-ounce glass of rum and coke will have the same amount or rum as a 12 ounce. Follow? Order the 12-ounce drink and you're paying a lot more for a little more soda. It is also against the law here to get drunk. Utah Code Annotated 769-701(1) states,'"A person is guilty of intoxication if he is under the influence of intoxicating liquor, a controlled substance, or any substance having the property of releasing toxic vapors, to a degree that the person may endanger himself or another, in a public place or in a private place where he unreasonably disturbs another person." Many college students - were this law actually enforced - would be spending Tobacco Flavors Cherry Jasmine Strawberry Pistachio Chocolate Lemon Coffee Mixed Fruit Peach Mocha Plum Apricot Orange Pineapple Mango Cappucino Banana Melon Bubble Gum <^9kVanilla Apple Rose ifli "I went over to my friends' house and saw that they got a new pretty cooi hookah, so I drove down to Salt Lake and bought a bigger, way cooler one that set me back about $200," said Andy Osikowicz, WSU freshman. "It's worth it, now I have the coolest one." So even though the chances of going to a real-life hookah bar are slim to none in the near future for Utahns, the indoor clean air act doesn't apply to homes. Anyone over 19 who wants to buy a hookah can do so and get a "legal" smoke. You can leav a message for reporter Amber Kasper at 626-7621. Laws of past still in the record books Laws are outdated, silly and not enforced, but still on the law books illegal in Utah. No one can purchase or possess beer in a container larger than By Angela Tyler two liters, except for beer retailers. Again, correspondent | The Signpost many college students - were keggers actually disbanded and punished more often - would be frequenting the courthouse. Out-of-staters often notice the lack "Happy Hour" promotionals at restaurants and hotels. You guessed it. The concept of discounting alcohol or giving away alcohol in Utah is also against the law. Many agree that having strict liquor laws does not encourage or discourage anyone from drinking or not. If they're going to do it, they're going to do it no matter what the rules are. Rules are made to be broken anyway, right? Utah students are no exception e i t h e r . According to the National Institute for Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Laws are Utah's per n e c e s s a r y capita sales for order and in alcoholic safety, but some b e v e r a g e s laws on the books last year were in Utah and other states competing with contradict what is applicable in modern much of the society. country. After a winter storm, many students "I drink just as much here as I did play in the snow. But in Provo, those in California - and then some - and I frolickers could receive a $50 fine for know for a fact I'm not the only one," said throwing a snowball. McKenzie Brunson, WSU student "You cannot enforce that," said WSU students will continue to find Pacome Zokou, a Weber State University their way around Utah's stringent student. Even sillier, it is considered an offense liquor laws - whether by using fake IDs, friends in high places or just a to hunt whales in the landlocked state little caution - and they will celebrate of Utah. Shantel Eddy said she didn't private happy hours with a little public know this was a law because there are no drunkenness; because honestly, there's whales in Utah. "Let's go hunt whales," Zokou said. more of them than Utah would like to There may not be any whales in Utah, admit. but there are birds. Birds here have right You can leave a message for reporter Kristy of way on the highway. McMahon by calling 626-7621. "Why would that be considered a law?" said Ross Murray, a WSU marketing student. "1 think they are going to get hit." There are several other weird laws. For example, it is against the law to fish from horseback. And there is a Logan law stating women may not swear. Some.students may remember from younger years that junior high gym teacher who examined the distance between dance partners and gave that stern look when students moved too close. In Monroe, daylight must be visible between partners on the dance floor. School age or not, this law gets enforced on a different level. At the age o f 5 0, one becomes eligible marry one's to cousin Another interesting law is that it is illegal to detonate any nuclear weapon. These weapons can be legally owned - just not detonated. Another law says no one may walk down the street carrying a paper bag containing a violin: So be sure to tell the WSU music department faculty and students not to carry their violins in paper bags; they must use those violin cases. For those who have migraines, a pharmacist may not sell gunpowder to cure headaches. Gunpowder may not be the wisest choice anyway, since it is used to ignite fireworks and power ammunition. Gunpowder is formed from the chemical mixture of saltpeter (potassium nitrate) at 75 percent, sulphur at 10 percent and charcoal at 15 percent. When ignited, gunpowder burns rapidly and causes an explosion. A student who needs gunpowder is looking for a lot more than a cure for headaches. See Laws page 7 |