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OLD SNAKE OIL IN NEW BOTTLES
How can the wholesalers justify their state-sanctioned monopoly? Well,
they can't. They serve no economic purpose. However, they do have the
resources to hire the most impressive spinmeisters in the business.
And spin they do.
Their spinmeisters are banking on the Hoosier public not understanding
the three-tier system. Then they cynically play on public fears relating
to underage drinking, while lathering our politicians with "campaign
contributions".
The wholesalers would have us all believe that government regulation
is all that separates Hoosiers from a Bacchanalian meltdown. Naturally,
preserving public control over this dangerous beverage entails
maintaining the regulatory status quo (i.e., the legislation that
authorizes them to peddle their wares without any competition). Its
a simple, elegant, and (thus far) effective tactic.
Now, it might strike you as rather odd that wholesalers should be
so concerned with underage drinking, since they are, by the very same
law they strive to uphold, prohibited from making any direct sales
of alcoholic beverages in this state. Are they truly concerned about
minors ordering a Chateauneuf du Pape online with daddy's
credit card? Or, possibly, could it be that they just don't want
anyone else selling Chateauneuf du Pape on their turf?
You decide.
Be that as it may, fear-mongering is a time-honored tradition among
those who have an economic interest in obfuscation. The chosen vehicle
for fear-mongering seems to be a bogus organization with a lofty-sounding
goal, a clever acronym, lots of funding and a slick website. We have
such an organization here in Indiana. It's called "Hoosiers for
Responsible Alcohol Distribution" or HRAD for short. Check it out
at
http://www.hoosier-rad.org.
Naturally, the folks at HRAD conveniently fail to mention that 36
states, representing 85% of the nation's population, have abolished
the three-tier system with nothing but positive economic effects.
Children in states which allow direct shipping of wine are no more
likely to suffer from alcohol abuse than their peers who reside in
the few remaining three-tier states. But let's not let the facts
get in the way of making money, shall we?
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