On Politics and Beer...

I couldn't find a "political" beer
photo, so here's a beer and a
burrito... 

It was bound to happen sooner or later: I got a direct message on Twitter that said (I'm paraphrasing, here), "Why don't you just post stuff about beer and keep your political opinions to yourself?"

Yeah, I suppose I have gone a little over the edge with my outspoken political opinions lately--you know, ever since HE WHO SHALL NOT BE NAMED was elected leader of the Free World and our democracy started circling the drain like a giant, orange turd! Current national events have made me a little...concerned. A little...preoccupied. A little...HOLY MOTHER OF MALONEY, WHAT THE F**K JUST HAPPENED? Let's just say I'm feeling a certain sense of urgency that is telling me I need to spend more of my time doing something a tad more proactive than just DRINKING BEER!

Normally, I'd be the first one to say that I don't care what your political leanings are, as long as we can have a nice, friendly beer together. That's what beer is, after all, a wonderful social lubricant that brings people of diverse opinions, cultures, and persuasions together for fun and frivolity. However, these are not normal times. Oh, no, not at all.

Sorry, I can't have a friendly beer with you if you're sitting across the table from me with a MAGA hat perched atop your head. Ain't gonna happen. Nope. Nopitty. Nope. You drew a big, hateful, racist, misogynistic, MEDIEVAL line in the sand, and I ain't crossin' it! Gratefully, I live in the politically progressive city of Portland, Oregon, where most of my neighbors share a similar viewpoint. Hey, I know we have our problems here: police brutality, homelessness, crummy schools, but we certainly aren't building any walls! This is a sanctuary city in a sanctuary state and most of us like it that way.

Last night, a group of Portland craft beer industry leaders put on a little fundraiser for the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) and raised thousands of dollars from Portland's supportive craft beer fans. The Beer Party PDX is a fledgling community action group with the following mission:

Founded in 2017 in response to the ongoing attacks on civil rights, the environment, and democracy as a whole, Beer Party PDX’s mission is to organize members of the PDX beer community in order to effectively protect and promote basic civil rights including voter access, freedom of speech, and equal rights.

I'm proud to be a founding member of this awesome group and happy that my small contributions added to this successful event. I can promise you that there will be more to come! I can also promise you that as long as our Freedom is threatened by oligarchs, kleptocrats, fascists and morons, I will continue to mix beer and politics. If that's unacceptable to you, it's pretty easy to avoid me! If you feel the same way I do, please join us!

Many of the key principles contained in our Constitution were items first brought up for discussion by American patriots at pubs and mulled over while sipping on tankards of ale. Let's bring that tradition back and take back our nation!