West 6th Shootout: Blame it on Greed

Everyone wants to blame the people who are attracted to these types of bars instead of blaming the management for these places ["West 6th Shootout," First Punch, July 11]. Any bar that has to open its doors to people who are legally not allowed to drink is an embarrassment to the ethics of running a good business. These people are just out to make money, which to the majority is understandable, seeing as how we Americans are spoon-fed the idea that money is what makes life worthwhile. But now there are six lives that don't even have a chance to be anything, at the expense of these 18-and-over nights. It should be an embarrassment to this city and to the owners of these types of bars. I've been to bars downtown, to the Flats, West Sixth and a couple other popular spots for underage kids to try to sneak around into. I've been handed free drinks by bartenders at Spy Bar that I didn't even ask for. Handing someone a fake ID is one thing, but to just have someone blindly look at the large "X" on your hand and pour you a tequila shot anyway, that is quite another. It's got nothing to do with type of music or theme for the evening. It's the fact that bar owners are opening their doors for kids to be mingling with adults. These business may boom for a while, and probably still won't bat an eyelash after hearing about the deaths over the July 4th holiday. I just wish they could see that allowing these 18-and-over nights takes its toll on the older crowd. After what happened on West Sixth this holiday, the bar owners will start to pay attention to the law they're allowing a lot of these kids to break. And maybe they'll actually consider it before any one else gets hurt. Blaire Bommer Cleveland Heights