Mack made some phone calls this morning about wine in grocery stores. Good!

I called a number of local liquor store owners this morning to ask for arguments against allowing wine sales in grocery stores.  I’ll say this…they are all on the same page, short as it is.  I heard the exact same arguments each time, and I have to admit even the most compelling is probably not enough to stop this legislation.  As a former small business owner, I am well acquainted with the night sweats that occur when you have placed everything you own into your business, or borrowed heavily to start in the first place.  One owner told me he invested in the liquor business based on the laws in place at the time, that is, that only licensed liquor stores could sell wine and spirits.  Changing the rules after the fact seemed pretty unfair to him.  That seems reasonable enough, but as I stated above, absent a viable class-action lawsuit, probably not convincing enough to stop this legislation.

The “what about the kids” argument falls flat.  End of argument.

But the whole approach to liquor sales in this state and in Georgia strikes me as unfair.  One example:  As a bar owner, i was forced to buy certain products from certain distributors.  If the sales rep failed to come by to take my order, I wasn’t allowed too buy that product from anyone else, at any price.  Thats a pretty cozy arrangement for the distributors, is it not?

Read the whole thing at The Coyote Chronicles.

There is also a spirited discussion going on at Kleinheider’s abode about the issue of wine in grocery stores.