Your government looking out for you -- NIH hides the truth

http://www.napavalleyregister.com/articles/2007/03/07/features/food_and_wine/doc45e6db921e555564424275.txt

Is this country ever going to come into the light? I guess we're good for a chuckle in the EU.

A great article - thanks for posting it. I've already forwarded it to several people in the hopes of spreading the truth.

It's true - in North America to this day we have an immense Prohibitionist hangover to crawl out of. So many people still fail to look at moderate wine consumption as one component of a holistic approach to life that can make for healthier, happier lives overall. There is still a lot of reactionary "all alcohol is evil - but let's tax it to the max" thinking out there. Kind of cynical really.

I think the ideal situation is for wine to become an active component of the overall culinary culture in our continent; an edifying component that raises the standard of our food culture by bringing it closer to the earth and away from soul-less mass production.

The EU is no longer a good role model on this issue. In France, of all places, alcohol is now public health enemy number two (after tobacco) and the Politically Correct are all hastening to distance themselves publically from the promotion of ANY of its benefits (although many may still consume in private).

In a recent television show, presidential candidate Nicholas Sarkozy made sympathetic noises about the plight of French vignerons and the need to protect them from "unfair" competition but did not forget to underline that he himself is a teetotaler.

In France, of all places, alcohol is now public health enemy number two

Marvelous....

"There is still a lot of reactionary "all alcohol is evil - but let's tax it to the max" thinking out there. Kind of cynical really."

Not so much "it's evil, but let's tax it" as "it's evil, therefore let's tax it." In some ways it's not cynical at all, but quite idealistic. "

It's evil, we tried to legilate it out of existence, and failed, so let's try to tax it out of existence." Much like cigarettes.

However, the cynicism creeps in when those who spend the tax money start seeing a diminishing return. Their goal is not to tax alcohol out of existence, but to maximize revenue while minimizing public objection.

http://www.napavalleyregister.com/articles/2007/03/07/features/food_and_wine/doc45e6db921e555564424275.txt

Is this country ever going to come into the light? I guess we're good for a chuckle in the EU.

Warning: Vicodin and caffeine induced rant because the cortisone has worn off, the arthritic hip has kicked in, and I'm allergic to NSAID's!!

I doubt it, Randy. Hyprocrisy seems to have made this country great. These United States seem to be run by gay-bashing, closet-homosexual, Republican preachers on one side and prurient Democratic millionaire pseudo-Cincinnatuses on the other, each using the Blue Laws upon which this country was founded (on a sandy bottom, to say the least,) to their own ends. To thine own self be true and the rest of them you can screw. Fortunately, there are enough folks who don't fall into these categories and ways and means inbetween such that the careful citizen can evolve and pursue happiness here better than most other places on earth. That's part of the American mystique. One can always choose one's level of participation.