I know I'm just asking to get chewed out here, but I wanted to make note of this. It is generally considered bad etiquette to host a cash bar and make your guests pay for anything. However, #1, some couples are on a very tight budget which means it's either going to be a cash bar or no alcohol at all. My fiance and I would prefer to give our guests the option to drink rather than cutting it out completely. But, #2, it's not just a matter of saving us money. It's also about the type of environment we want to have. People generally don't get wasted when there's a cash bar, because they don't wan to pay for a ton of drinks... and we do not want wasted people at our reception. We both come from more conservative Christian families and there will be several children at our reception. We don't want fights and drunks staggering all over the place. IMHO, hosting a cash bar can be MORE respectful to your guests, in this sense.
Then there is the issue of dollar dances. My FI thinks they are common at every wedding, but I hate the idea -- I think it's terrible that all these people came all this way just to see you, and now they have to PAY to even get close to you??!! Maybe this seems contradictory, considering what I just said about the cash bar, but in this case, I really don't see the point. They already bought (or wrote a check as a gift) -- now you're going to choke another dollar out of them??
What does everyone else think?