Bottoms Up

Today marks the 75th anniversary of the ratification of the 21st Amendment to the United States Constitution. The amendment repealed the 18th, which began prohibition. Thus ended four years of an 'alcohol free' nation, which caused more problems than they were hoping it would solve. Instead of teaching someone to be responsible with something they really want, you just take it away, and say they can't have it anymore. Ever. Works well, right? Those of you with kids know that it ain't so easy. They will find a way to get it, and make your life miserable in the process. Our government found this out the hard way, as smuggling became rampant and basement breweries sprang up everywhere.
The harm of alcohol is not in its use (as is the case for cigarettes), but rather in its abuse. As a new generation of television-raised, Internet-refined, devil-may-care children has reached teenage-years, the statistics around the world are rising rapidly for alcohol-related deaths. The culprit for this, as I have seen, is the lack of information on the effects and dangers of alcohol being related to them by their parents and society at large. This is not a good thing, but this is an issue so multifaceted that simply banning it doesn't work, as we have seen before.
Oddly enough, the tipping state for the ratification happened to be Utah, and anyone who lives here knows its strict and archaic alcohol laws, and the recent ban of the sale on alcho-pops or 'bitch-beer' in grocery stores. We don't have any dry counties, but in most places you can't buy beer on Sunday. Because that like, totally stops people from drinking. And as the state watches its beer-tax revenue decline, watch how many legislators actually care.
So while I shake my head in sadness for the disregard teens as well as many adults show toward the same use of alcohol, I still celebrate the return of our right as Americans to purchase and imbibe alcohol, have a good time, make complete asses of ourselves, and create lifelong regrets. This is a free country, after all. Cheers.

If you're drinking along, tonight it's Steel Reserve 211, High Gravity Lager. Smooth, baby.