Home-brew Beer Bill Passes Over Objections in Oklahoma House

Uh oh:

Despite a lawmaker’s worries it could lead to legalizing marijuana, a measure that would allow Oklahomans to legally brew beer for their own use won easy passage Wednesday in the House of Representatives.

House Bill 2348 would allow Oklahomans to brew up to 200 gallons, or about 80 cases, a year for their personal use.

They must get a permit from the state’s liquor agency, just as people who make wine or cider do now. Beer made for personal use would not be subject to excise tax.

It’s legal for Oklahomans to make wine and cider, but state law excludes beer brewing, said Rep. Colby Schwartz, author of HB 2348. Many brew beer for their own use, to serve to guests and to enter in beer-making competitions.

You mean. . .?

Okay, let's forget about the legality of home-brewing for just a second. Let's take a look at the ridiculousness behind the opposition of such a bill in the first place.

Representative Todd Russ, a Republican, is worried we'll be on our way to being just like California if this bill is passed, where marijuana is legal. Well, it's not entirely legal but not matter. I don't believe in the slippery-slope argument - one thing doesn't necessarily lead to another. We're perfectly able to stop things once they get too far. It's only a matter of will. So, no, legalizing the home-brewing of beer won't lead to the legalization of growing marijuana or cooking up crack in your kitchen. No, Russ reveals his true colors when he says "If you go to church Sunday, remember how you voted today." Fair enough. But why not just come out and say you're opposed because of your religious beliefs instead of this home-brewing-leads-to-the-road-to-ruin?

Surprisingly, it's Representative Joe Dorman, a Democrat, who has to remind Russ about Russ' party conservative philosophy:

(Dorman) thought conservatives were against government in people’s lives. It’s not an issue about character — at least three of the Founding Fathers made their own brews, he said.

"Samuel Adams has a beer named after him,” Dorman said.

If Dorman's right, I'm in good company.