For those of you not fortunate enough to live in the tri-state area of the right coast, let me introduce you to the alcohol purchasing laws in PA:

• Wine and Spirits (the hard stuff) are sold in state owned Wine and Spirits shops.  The hours are controlled and they are tightly linked to the state.
• Wineries can sell wine at the location where they make it.  I’m not sure about distilleries or breweries.
• Beer can be purchased as special taverns in quantities of two six packs or less.
• Beer can be purchased in bulk (case, keg, etc.) at special “Beverage Distributors”.
• Wine and Spirit shops have their prices fixed by the state.

The system seems to be a series of compromises and concessions from an initially overly restrictive system.  As such beer is treated differently than everything else.  Does this seem confusing and stupid to anyone else?  Booze costs next to nothing to produce and yet the price must be inflated to account for taxation and cost of difficult distribution.  Even so, somebody who wants to be drunk all the time could still do so in PA for about $12 bucks a day.  Does anyone out there actually think price can be used to dissuade people who are addicted?  Also, with retail locations limited it must be incredibly difficult to introduce a new product to market.  How many awesome new beers and liquers are we missing because of this?  Lastly why aren’t more citizens upset about this?  Is it that we feel we should be happy that the government still lets us get at the sauce?  Flex your rights PA, lets see you scrap some antiquated legislation.

http://manchesterbrewing.com/

Brian Travis, Jason Osborne and Kevin Bloom have just opened Manchester Brewing in Manchester, New Hampshire. As I understand they won’t be shipping their brews due to cost and only delivering to local pubs. Murphy’s Taproom has been confirmed to be one of them.

There are now a few pubs, I believe a few restaurants, a several media outlets and other miscellaneous businesses run by free staters. These adventures will really help the FSP gain credibility in their respective communities. People seem to like those who are “pillers of the community.”

http://www.freep.com/…

The DJ was spinning old records by James Brown, Aretha Franklin and the Meters during Funk Night last weekend, when the heavily armed cops dressed in commando-style uniforms burst into the west-side Detroit art gallery.The cops yelled at the patrons to hit the floor. Witnesses said some officers used their feet to force down a couple of people who failed to move fast enough or asked too many questions.

Detroit police conduct raids frequently for all sorts of illegal activity, and the public never hears a thing. But cops almost never raid art galleries filled with young hipsters, students and at least one lawyer. So this May 30 raid, not unexpectedly, is turning out to have an afterlife: The gallery and patrons have decided to fight back, and the American Civil Liberties Union has become involved.

To the police, CAID was a blind pig, where people were buying beer after hours. They handed out 130 tickets for loitering in a place where alcohol was being sold illegally and impounded 44 cars, which cost $900 to get back.

Cops found no drugs, no weapons, no people with outstanding warrants.

Police spokesman James Tate said officers warned Timlin about violations during a visit several weeks ago. “We don’t often do that,” Tate said. “He was advised of the issues he needed to clarify.”

Timlin confirmed the visit, but said he believed he had made the necessary changes. He said the police told club officials May 30 that they also need a permit to allow dancing.

As a response to the raid, Timlin has launched a week-long arts festival that started at midnight Friday and will end with a concert Saturday.

Timlin is lining up bands, artists, lecturers, filmmakers and others to keep the CAID going 24 hours a day for 8 days.

Timlin said the 192-hour art festival this week will be alcohol-free, but in featuring dancing, he seems to be asking for more trouble.

“We’re standing up for what we believe in,” Timlin said. “We’d prefer that the police come and dance with us.”

But if they are found guilty by the courts will they refuse to pay the fines? Are they willing to go to jail for what they believe in? Will they fight to get their $900 back?