Great points. If beer was sold during the game, the possibility someone would binge drink the few minutes before entering the dome would diminish. When that diminishes, the possibility of someone puking in the first 15 minutes of the game in real time also decreases.
People are going to drink before the game. Some people find a way to drink during the game. A very large percentage drink responsibly. The very article outlines a possibility those who don't drink responsibly would be mitigated towards being more responsible by eliminating the power drinking 20 minutes before kickoff. I don't think that number is very large, but obviously it is there.
My feeling towards some of the anti-beer fargodome crowd: There is no way to prove drinking has to be included in a sporting event to make it a better experience for anyone. But eliminating alcohol from the sporting event didn't eliminate any problems. I have no problem with maintaining status quo, but I do have a problem with failing to argue a position while ignoring evidence to the contrary. The article was a good example of contrary evidence. NIU, for example, had experiences decrease in issues resulting in the likelihood fans have eliminated their need to power drink before entering the stadium. That is pretty powerful stuff. I do think there needs to be further information like if there is an increase in other behavior like DUIs after the game. That wasn't addressed. So far, serving beer during the game has been successful for them and goes against the arguments made by the anti-alcohol crowd at the Fargodome. There is also the added income potential.
Lastly, everyone could discuss this until they are blue in the face but there will never be any hard evidence with the Bison crowd until the Fargodome taps are turned on. I do think a solution to this is to announce a trial. Open 2016 with beer offered and if there is a spike with in-game issues, shut it down. Counting my time living in the cities where we were season ticket holders for the Twins, Vikings, and attending other events where beer is sold, I am up to over 500 games. I have had one beer spilled on me and 3 cokes. I have only seen a couple of people puke and they were in the opening minutes of an event, so event alcohol was not the issue. I have seen a total of 3 fights and one was in the Fargodome concourse following a game. I have seen more stupid shit at a wedding reception than sporting events. Run a trial and see how it goes. I have a feeling the experience won't change for most, the first quarter issues will decrease like at NIU, and people attending the game will continue to insure they have a safe ride home. On top of all this, there will be another income source opened up. It is still an event mostly attended to by adults. If there is less than adult-like behavior, shut it back down. The simplicity in finding out if there would be a problem is quite phenomenal.