Beer, not Politics.

[SailDesign]

I just received a nice little email from DirtRag (the best little mountain-biking rag around, for those uninformed among you) about a change in their forums - maybe we should try this!
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Hey there SailDesign !

We want to let you know that we felt that the Politics Forum on the Dirt Rag message board was bringing everyone down. So we did away with that, and added a Forum dedicated to....BEER! We figure beer makes people more happy than politics does. We hope you find that the Dirt Rag Forums will now be a more friendly place as a result.

Here's the notice we just posted:

"Keep Your Politics Out Of My Music"

Such was the slogan on a sticker back in the early 1990's from the pop-punk band, All. I want to make a new sticker that says something along the lines of: "Keep Your Politics Out Of My Bike Ride!" Or better yet: "Let's Have Beer After Our Bike Ride!"

Who needs a beer?

After much internal deliberation, we've decided that everyone...in the Dirt Rag office and in the Forums...needs a beer. The nature of the Politics Forum has become detrimental to the overall good vibe of the Dirt Rag Forums, so we've decided to take it down and replace it with something more relaxing. Something that more people have in common. Something we can actually (nicely) share with each other.

Beer!

That's right. It's time for everyone to take a break and have a beer. After all, beer goes much better with post-bike ride hanging-out than political discussions. Politics can be a very divisive topic, and we all truly know that bicycles are just the opposite. Bicycles are what unite us! And, well, beer unites us too!

Out with the Politics Forum flame wars, and in with the sharing of good beer recommendations, fine homebrew recipes, and good stories and ideas brought about in a way in which only beer can. "Beer can." Get it?

Ok thanks!

[mikenacarato]

+1 i hate politics

[jclo3313]

Are you aware of the amount of federal, state and local taxes that are added to your beer?

[Bob_VT]

Are you aware of the amount of federal, state and local taxes that are added to your beer?

And for such a shot time spent inside you too! :biggrin:

[SailDesign]

Are you aware of the amount of federal, state and local taxes that are added to your beer?

Hey! Keep your politics out of my beer! :smile:

[mikenacarato]

haha, politics is in everything it seems.

[jclo3313]

Roll Back the Federal Beer Excise Tax Increase

On January 1, 1991, the federal beer tax doubled - from $9 to $18 a barrel - when Congress also imposed luxury taxes on certain cars, yachts, private airplanes, and jewelry. Since then, all of the luxury taxes have been repealed or phased out principally because of the devastating economic impact on the industries affected. Yet the beer tax increase remains.

The effects of the beer tax hike were devastating.
Approximately 60,000 Americans lost their jobs in brewing, distributing, retailing, and related industries. Rolling back the beer tax increase would benefit our nation's economy and could create thousands of American jobs. The beer industry directly or indirectly accounts for nearly 1.8 million jobs nationwide now; a roll back could significantly increase that number.

Nearly 86 percent of the beer consumed in the U.S. is domestically produced. At a time when so many manufacturing jobs are being lost, it is unfair to allow the U.S. tax code to contribute to job loss in the beer industry. Additionally, the high quality domestic manufacturing jobs in the U.S. beer industry are already being unfairly suppressed by high taxation. Consider that a recent study found the total tax burden on beer to add up to almost 41 percent of the price paid. The $31.9 billion in taxes that this represents is 68 percent higher than the taxes paid for average good in the U.S. economy.

The federal beer tax is also regressive and therefore unfair because it hits lower income taxpayers.
Nearly half of all beer purchased in the U.S. is by consumers with a household income below $40,000. Excise taxes, such as those on beer, are highly regressive; meaning their impact on the lower and middle income consumers is significantly greater - as a percentage of income - than their impact on those with higher income.

Legislation has been introduced in both the House of Representatives and the Senate to eliminate the unfair increase on beer taxes. In the House, H.R.1610 would roll back the 1991 beer tax increase and restore an element of fairness to the federal tax system. The prime sponsors are Reps. Earl Pomeroy (ND-At large) and Phil English (PA-2). A bipartisan group of more than 200 House members supported the bill in the 109th Congress. Senator Ken Salazar (CO) is the prime sponsor of the companion bill in the U.S. Senate.

Please show your support for tax relief for this vital U.S. industry and for millions of responsible beer consumers. Contact Diane Oakley (225-2611) in the office of Rep. Pomeroy, David Stewart (225-5406) in the office of Rep. English or Sam Mitchell (224-5852) with Sen. Salazar to cosponsor this important effort.

[nemelek]

By the time I was 31 I drank my lifetime share and 5 other peoples share of alcohol. 1/10/89 was the date I did society a huge favor and had my last drink of alcohol. My wife still drinks and once and awhile if she gets too plowed, I'll wheel barrel her around the house.

[firemachine69]

The only thing certain in life are death and taxes.

[Nigal]

My top beers. Guinness is #1 and the rest are too close to call for #2.

http://images.teamsugar.com/files/users/1/15259/10_2007/guinness.jpg

http://www.shoppersvineyard.com/img/productImages/05239.gif

http://www.beerstore.com.au/beerstore/uploads/beerImages/Boddington_Pub_Ale_Large.jpg

http://www.drunkenpolack.com/images/heartedale.jpg

[50MPGDream]

they don't tax your beer with anything more than sales tax if you make it yourself :)

[Ferret_san]

Hmmmmm. b-e-e-r

[eTiMaGo]

wow, utter the word beer and who comes out of the woodwork? an Australian! :laugh:

[SailDesign]

wow, utter the word beer and who comes out of the woodwork? an Australian! :laugh:

Don't act all surprised about it, Thomas - who else would you expect? :biggrin:

[Malaya1221]

DRINK UP!


12107

[Ferret_san]

Don't act all surprised about it, Thomas - who else would you expect? :biggrin:

wow, utter the word beer and who comes out of the woodwork? an Australian! :laugh:

Then you wouln't be surprised to learn that my first word uttered was ... ... ... :smile:

[SailDesign]

Then you wouln't be surprised to learn that my first word uttered was ... ... ... :smile:

"Blimey!?"

[Black Yaris]

My favorite

Weihenstephan Hefeweiss
http://www.goldmedalmarketing.net/Products/Bavaria%20House%20Corp/weihenstephan.jpg

I also like
Hoffbräu Dunkle - warm
http://ridgeviewliquor.com/hofbrau%20munchen%20hofbrau%20dunkel.jpg

[jclo3313]

My top five.
1216212163
1216412165
12166

[MadMax]

Sail

Wow, something we see eye to eye on! I've been reading Dirt Rag for well over a decade now, despite not really having ridden my Cannondales for the past few years. But I still love the Rag, and they have always been the most down-to-earth and honest mountain bike magazine I have ever seen! So many good magazines eventually go commercial, but not Dirt Rag, as seen by their dedication to beer!

Oh, and my favorite...a small brewery that was near our village in Germany:

http://harburmarketing.com/images/bischoff-index.jpg

Cheers! M2

[SailDesign]

Sail

Wow, something we see eye to eye on!

Yeah, Finally! I've been into DirtRag for about 9 years now. Good stuff.
Of course, now we have something REAL to argue about, I ride a SpecialEd, and you have Crack-and-fails...... :biggrin: