Free Republic

Students of American history will recall the colorful figure of Carrie Nation, who in her enthusiasm for the temperance movement, took to whacking up saloons with a hatchet. The six-foot-tall Nation would later go on to earn her a living from her notoriety by selling small axes as souvenirs. Nation’s avid co-laborers in the temperance movement would later succeed in passing legislation prohibiting all alcohol consumption. The broad sweep of what she and others saw as a deleterious influence on individual and national health and welfare accomplished little in the way of removing the scourge of alcoholism. But the temperance...

If they weren't already gone, there goes the bars & restaurants.

Baltimore City will not extend riot recovery money to liquor stores that operate outside of zoning regulations, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said Monday. More than 380 businesses across Baltimore were damaged by riots and looting at the end of April, including 23 liquor stores that operate in residential areas. The city has banned alcohol sales in residential areas, but many liquor stores have been grandfathered into current zoning rules. If those stores plan to continue to operate as grandfathered liquor stores in their current locations, they will not be able to receive recovery money being made available to other businesses through...

Personal responsibility just got thrown out the window — again — thanks to a nanny state congressman with hopes of saving ourselves and others from — you guessed it — us! Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.) on Thursday, June 10, successfully attached an amendment to the Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 2010 that would “authorize $8 million in annual funding for five years for the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety (DADSS) program.” The DADSS technology proposed in the ROADS SAFE amendment will likely lead to alcohol-sensing devices becoming mandatory factory-installed equipment on all automobiles within the next five-to-ten years, reports...

A proposal to scan the driver licenses of bar patrons and keep it on file in a state law enforcement database is a good start, says Senate President Michael Waddoups, but he wants to see the program go further. Waddoups, R-Taylorsville, says he wants to see the database idea start with private clubs, but extend to restaurants that serve diners beer and liquor.

Mass congressman Stephen Lynch (http://www.house.gov/lynch/) has proposed a complete ban on the drug Oxycontin.On the Blute and Scotto show yesterday he clearly implied that anyone who took the pill became instantly addicted.So because a few idiots are addicted to it, people who desperately need it should be denied their relief.He'd better ban aerosol spray paint as well, many people are addicted to "huffing" the fumes.And anyone over 40 would remember the fears about model cement in the 70'sMr. Lynch is sounding a little like Carrie Nation, leader of the temperance movement.

<p>In the beginning, there was prayer.</p> <p>Then came a woman with an axe.</p> <p>Now, almost 130 years later, the oft-violent charge of the wife brigade against the debilitating effects of alcohol in the home focuses on education, not confrontation.</p> <p>The Women's Christian Temperance Union continues to actively -- if quietly -- wage war against alcohol on the national and international fronts.</p>