Kevin Faulconer

Apparently just minding his own business while serving the District 2 City Council district so well he’s become a 2012 mayoral front-runner wasn’t enough for Kevin Faulconer. After a Pacific Beach Labor Day melee involving rioting revelers, Faulconer stepped squarely where decades of predecessors feared to tread: taking sides in the booze ban debate.

But Faulconer went even further and convinced his council colleagues to approve a one-year trial alcohol ban at all city beaches. His reasoning: The narrowing of spits of sand where liquor is legal in daylight hours, combined with the Internet’s ability to market local beaches as a place to party hearty, had tilted the balance toward the nincompoops who were skewing toward the side of being dangerous.

Now Faulconer will find out if not just his community, but the city as a voting mass, agrees. The ban seems certain to go on the ballot via a referendum. A decade ago, voters turned thumbs down on a more complicated ban. This time Faulconer believes sentiment has changed. Whichever way it goes, Faulconer has the most politically to gain, or lose. Cheers, Councilman.