Maryland Wine Consumers Screwed Again By State Legislature
According to the Baltimore Sun,
Maryland wine consumers' ability to purchase wine online is still being
held hostage by state officials. This time the culprit is State Senator
Joan Carter Conway, a Baltimore Democrat and chairwoman of the
Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee. She claims to be
an advocate of prohibiting underage drinking: "Her chief concern, she
said, is that underage drinkers will tap the Internet for wine. There's
no way, she said, to force delivery agencies, whether the U.S. Postal
Service or a private carrier, to verify the age of the person accepting
a package."
Well, if that is the case, how am I able to order
wine online while living in neighboring Virginia and have the delivery
company check my ID upon delivery. Her statement is quite laughable.
On
a saner note, Sen. Jamie Raskin, a Montgomery County Democrat and
proponent of "Free the Grapes", states that he has not heard "any
convincing argument against the wine bill. It's working in other
states. It can work here, too."
Of course it can. Here's a
suggestion if you still can't conceive of wineries shipping directly to
individuals. Have consumers order the wine and have it delivered to a
local wine shop. The wine shop can collect taxes and ID the purchaser.
Problem solved.
Posted by
WineCompass
at
11:55 AM