Please Don't Purchase Anheuser-Busch Products

[Fringe]

It came so close until InBev stepped in.

Chronicle article

[20thStDad]

I don't blame InBev for pushing their own interests, I would do the same. I blame what is apparently a weak government for bowing to them, and the cartel-like distributor setup that the idiotic laws require. I think the craft brewers would be smart to drop the cap on size for this law, and just apply it to every brewer. They'll still benefit the same.

[kylejack]

Kata Robata and Ziggy's Healthy Grill have stopped carrying Anheuser-Busch products as a response.

I don't blame InBev for pushing their own interests, I would do the same. I blame what is apparently a weak government for bowing to them, and the cartel-like distributor setup that the idiotic laws require. I think the craft brewers would be smart to drop the cap on size for this law, and just apply it to every brewer. They'll still benefit the same.

The cap was the only way the distributors would stand aside. It was doomed by business interests either way.

[Fringe]

It was the Wholesale Beer Distributors of Texas that insisted on the cap. Their the ones that killed the bill in previous years. Small breweries had to appease them to have any chance in the bill. It's a catch 22. Wholesalers insist on the cap and the big boys (who don't benefit anyway) oppose the cap.

It is a shame our government is run by big business. Both national and state.

[LTAWACS]

A big thank you to our spineless representatives in Austin.

[kylejack]

Anheuser-Busch's largest distributor in the country, Silver Eagle, has been pushing this bill for months and insisted on the cap. They liked the idea of people finding new niche beers to love and buy, but they didn't want people to be able to buy "normal" beers (macro-brews, Bud Light, etc) from the breweries when they could be buying from retail establishments where the distributor get a cut.

So what do the distribution companies think about the bills? John Nau, President and CEO of Houston-based Silver Eagle Distributors (currently the largest distributor in Texas, and the second- largest in the nation) told us, "Silver Eagle supports HB 602," stating, "We've even worked directly with Brock [Wagner] to perfect the language in past versions of the current bill."

http://blogs.houston...lation_seek.php

So A-B absolutely had to know that their largest distributor was pushing this. They could have said something at that time, but they didn't. They waited until 2 weeks from the legislative deadline and then dropped this bomb that they were opposed. They didn't want the cap removed, or the bill fixed. They wanted it killed, and that's why they waited until the 11th hour.

And why shouldn't they want it killed? They don't do tours at their Texas breweries! No need to sell during tours if you're not doing tours.

[RedScare]

It was the Wholesale Beer Distributors of Texas that insisted on the cap. Their the ones that killed the bill in previous years. Small breweries had to appease them to have any chance in the bill. It's a catch 22. Wholesalers insist on the cap and the big boys (who don't benefit anyway) oppose the cap.

It is a shame our government is run by big business. Both national and state.

Is this any surprise, given the political contribution patterns of those who hold the majority control in Texas? As long as the little people continue to believe that politicians controlled by big business are somehow looking out for the interests of the little guy, we will continue to be reminded that they are not. And, as long as the Supreme Court continues to support the "rights" of big business to buy politicians, the little guy has no say in the matter.

Admittedly, this does not affect me much, as I am a rum drinker. But, the parallels to other, more important issues are easy to find, such as the 'loser pays' legislation, the yacht tax break, and others.

[Marksmu]

It came so close until InBev stepped in.

Chronicle article

I don't see this as InBev's fault....its Silver Eagle you should be mad about....I don't really think that people taking home up to 144 ounces (12 pack) of a beer after a tour of a brewery is going to cut into the margins of any distributors pocket at all....Nobody is going to go pay to take a tour just to be able to buy a 12 pack.....but the people who take tours should be allowed to buy a 12 pack....InBev may not do tours now, but it would not be equal for everyone if they were prohibited from selling beer if they decided they did want to do tours later...thats just stupid.

I'm tired of carve outs for special interests....the laws need to be even and equal for all....if a microbrewery can sell beer at the brewery, then the monster brewers should be able to as well....

[ricco67]

I'll support the ban.

Then again, aside from trying Landshark, I haven't had any of their crappy beer in over a decade.

[kylejack]

I'll support the ban.

Then again, aside from trying Landshark, I haven't had any of their crappy beer in over a decade.

Agreed. It's just too bad that they bought Goose Island. That is some really good stuff.

[Flashman]

Cam someone remind me when we elected InBev to the state legislature?

Was that a special election?

Sons o'*******.

[august948]

Cam someone remind me when we elected InBev to the state legislature?

Was that a special election?

Sons o'*******.

See Red's comment above.

[Highway6]

This thread made me curious about what all beers were owned by Anheuser Busch.

I didn't know that Michelob, Busch, Natty, Rolling Rock... all just cousins of Budweiser.

The biggest surprise though for me was Ziegen Bock.. had no idea. It's almost identical to their Michelob Amber Bock, but is sold exclusively in Texas to compete against Shiner Bock. Lord, I hate marketing.

I always though Ziegen and the Mich Amber Bock tasted similar... but i just assumed it was the "Bock" thing... now I know.

[TheNiche]

AB InBev brands of relevance:

Bass

Beck's

Bohemia

Budweiser

Bud Light

Corona

Goose Island Brewery

Hop Hound Amber Wheat

Labatt

Michelob

Modelo

Natural Light

Pacifico

Red Bridge

Rolling Rock

Shock Top

Spaten

St. Pauli Girl

Stella Artois

Stone Mill Pale Ale

Tsingtao

ZiegenBock

[KinkaidAlum]

This past Lege Session makes me miss Molly Ivins. At least she could have made me laugh about the absolute stupidity of it all.

The winners? Big Beers. Yacht Owners/Buyers. Anti-Abortionists. Steroid-free high school athletes. Builder Perry. HOAs. Developers.

The losers? The children of Texas. College students. Medicare recipients. Doctors. Small/Medium-sized businesses. Home Owners/Property Rights Advocates. State colleges. State parks. The Arts.

And to top it all of, SMU Mark comes in to demand that we equal the playing field for InBev (which isn't even an American company anymore)!

[kylejack]

AB InBev brands of relevance:

Bass

Beck's

Bohemia

Budweiser

Bud Light

Corona

Goose Island Brewery

Hop Hound Amber Wheat

Labatt

Michelob

Modelo

Natural Light

Pacifico

Red Bridge

Rolling Rock

Shock Top

Spaten

St. Pauli Girl

Stella Artois

Stone Mill Pale Ale

Tsingtao

ZiegenBock

The only really unfortunate one in this list is Goose Island. That was a very recent acquisition.

[ricco67]

AB InBev brands of relevance:

Bass

Beck's

Bohemia

Budweiser

Bud Light

Corona

Goose Island Brewery

Hop Hound Amber Wheat

Labatt

Michelob

Modelo

Natural Light

Pacifico

Red Bridge

Rolling Rock

Shock Top

Spaten

St. Pauli Girl

Stella Artois

Stone Mill Pale Ale

Tsingtao

ZiegenBock

Tsingtao? aw man! Only drank it a couple of times, kinda' liked it.

You forgot "Land Shark". it was "otay."

[LTAWACS]

Unbelievable! I went out and purchased 2 sixers of St. Arnolds just for that. And I've not had ABInbev swill in 15+ years. UGH.

[editor]

People still drink Michelob? I thought all the Michelob drinkers died in the 70's. Of old age. Because they're old.

Did I mention...

[Marksmu]

This past Lege Session makes me miss Molly Ivins. At least she could have made me laugh about the absolute stupidity of it all.

The winners? Big Beers. Yacht Owners/Buyers. Anti-Abortionists. Steroid-free high school athletes. Builder Perry. HOAs. Developers.

The losers? The children of Texas. College students. Medicare recipients. Doctors. Small/Medium-sized businesses. Home Owners/Property Rights Advocates. State colleges. State parks. The Arts.

And to top it all of, SMU Mark comes in to demand that we equal the playing field for InBev (which isn't even an American company anymore)!

The rules should be for the same for everyone regardless of size. I don't understand the problem with that...I don't agree with the result achieved by the legislature here...The brewery should be allowed to give tours and sell beer...it's stupid that they cannot, and makes absolutely zero rational sense - but there is no rational or responsible reason that ALL breweries can not sell beer straight from the factory. I simply advocate that if a small brewery can sell beer from the brewery, so can a large one. Nothing more, nothing less...it is not some conservative conspiracy theory...its common sense. SAME RULES FOR EVERYONE.

Your post does make me think though...if the current Texas Session can screw up as much as they did, (I don't agree with everything you wrote above) I sure am glad we did not elect Democrats...because I have yet to see a Democrat make a single wise economic decision, and when it comes to social items, they certainly dont care how much they spend as long as they keep their voters on the payroll....so if the republicans did such a bad job, we really dodged a bullet this time by making darn sure the Democrats stayed out.

[infinite_jim]

AB InBev brands of relevance:

Bass

Beck's

Bohemia

Budweiser

Bud Light

Corona

Goose Island Brewery

Hop Hound Amber Wheat

Labatt

Michelob

Modelo

Natural Light

Pacifico

Red Bridge

Rolling Rock

Shock Top

Spaten

St. Pauli Girl

Stella Artois

Stone Mill Pale Ale

Tsingtao

ZiegenBock

Dang.

[RedScare]

Your post does make me think though...if the current Texas Session can screw up as much as they did, (I don't agree with everything you wrote above) I sure am glad we did not elect Democrats...because I have yet to see a Democrat make a single wise economic decision, and when it comes to social items, they certainly dont care how much they spend as long as they keep their voters on the payroll....so if the republicans did such a bad job, we really dodged a bullet this time by making darn sure the Democrats stayed out.

In an earlier post, I questioned how voters continued to elect people into office after those legislators continued to step on them. I believe we now know why. There are those who will never punish them for it. Thanks, Mark. You are a huge part of the problem.

[TheNiche]

In an earlier post, I questioned how voters continued to elect people into office after those legislators continued to step on them. I believe we now know why. There are those who will never punish them for it. Thanks, Mark. You are a huge part of the problem.

The problem is bigger than Marksmu, though. He's absolutely right that elected officials do not carry out their stated policy objectives, even when their party dominates the political landscape. This is why inflation-adjusted taxes per capita have been rising in Texas over the last decade. Whodathunkit!

But what is a Republican to do? Vote for the people who say what they don't want to hear? Vote for a hopeless third party candidate? That's about as good as voting for the opposition, and if the third party candidate gets elected, they can't rely on teamwork or contribute towards teamwork to accomplish anything for their constituents. The Nash Equilibrium is to vote for the two-party candidate that says what you most want to hear, even if you know they suck.

That sucks. I have good ideas as to how a less skewed voting system could be set up, but none that would be adopted to the federal or state constitutions under the existing two-party system. The powers that be wouldn't allow it.

[kylejack]

But what is a Republican to do? Vote for the people who say what they don't want to hear? Vote for a hopeless third party candidate? That's about as good as voting for the opposition, and if the third party candidate gets elected, they can't rely on teamwork or contribute towards teamwork to accomplish anything for their constituents. The Nash Equilibrium is to vote for the two-party candidate that says what you most want to hear, even if you know they suck.

Taking just the governor's race, I think White was moderate enough for a Republican to jump off Perry.

But hey, I guess I was giving them way too much credit.

[RedScare]

This is why inflation-adjusted taxes per capita have been rising in Texas over the last decade. Whodathunkit!

I don't thunk it. As with most statistics, you can make them say all sorts of things. However, a quick look at Texas spending in the years 2000 and 2010 show budgets of $55.7 Billion and 80.6 Billion respectively. multiplying the 2000 budget by the rate of inflation and the 20.6% increase in population over the last 10 years reveals a 2010 adjusted budget of $84.5 Billion, $4 Billion higher than the actual 2010 budget, showing a 5% reduction over the last 10 years.

This does not include federal dollars that Perry accepts while saying that he will not. It also does not include the 2011 figures, which will be even lower than 2010. It also does not account for the fact that the state agreed to reimburse school districts in return for lowering property tax rates, effectively adding to the state budget what used to be local taxes.

[TheNiche]

I don't thunk it. As with most statistics, you can make them say all sorts of things. However, a quick look at Texas spending in the years 2000 and 2010 show budgets of $55.7 Billion and 80.6 Billion respectively. multiplying the 2000 budget by the rate of inflation and the 20.6% increase in population over the last 10 years reveals a 2010 adjusted budget of $84.5 Billion, $4 Billion higher than the actual 2010 budget, showing a 5% reduction over the last 10 years.

This does not include federal dollars that Perry accepts while saying that he will not. It also does not include the 2011 figures, which will be even lower than 2010. It also does not account for the fact that the state agreed to reimburse school districts in return for lowering property tax rates, effectively adding to the state budget what used to be local taxes.

I went over this in a different thread a couple months back and you didn't bring any objection. Perhaps it was because I was citing taxation rather than spending, and taxation only accounts for a portion of state revenues.

[TheNiche]

Taking just the governor's race, I think White was moderate enough for a Republican to jump off Perry.

But hey, I guess I was giving them way too much credit.

Texas doesn't do moderate. We both know its true.

[RedScare]

I went over this in a different thread a couple months back and you didn't bring any objection. Perhaps it was because I was citing taxation rather than spending, and taxation only accounts for a portion of state revenues.

Perhaps because I did not read it, or did not care to respond, or it was so long I ignored it. The fact remains that spending on the traditional budget items has declined, and the only 'increase' occurred when the state reduced school district taxes to fund it itself. Of course, now the state is reducing that funding by $4 Billion.

[Marksmu]

In an earlier post, I questioned how voters continued to elect people into office after those legislators continued to step on them. I believe we now know why. There are those who will never punish them for it. Thanks, Mark. You are a huge part of the problem.

I dont like the system we have, and I don' care for Perry at all....He is as double speaking as they come....I am sincerely hoping he does not run for President and that the Republicans do not vote for him...he double speaks as badly as any democrat, except Obama....White was a terrible choice for Texas as well. He all but bankrupted Houston - He openly advocated Houston as a sanctuary city, and he left Houston worse off than it was before he came in. He was a moderate Democrat and he still managed to do significant damage to the City.

That said - the Democrats remain an incredibly poor choice no matter how you look at it....They spend MORE than republicans, they pass more legislation that is anti-business, and they do it all under the guise of being the party of the people....Obama has proven himself to be so incredibly crooked its not a surprise to me at all that corporations and small business are sitting on their cash waiting to see what 2012 brings.

I'm not adding to the problem by voting for those who say more of what I agree with - I am picking the lesser of two evils....I sincerely do not believe that there is a democrat who is good for this country. I sincerely believe that the republicans are the lesser of two evils.

[Marksmu]

Taking just the governor's race, I think White was moderate enough for a Republican to jump off Perry.

But hey, I guess I was giving them way too much credit.

White was an idiot. He was a terrible choice for governor. He bankrupted Houston, made it a sanctuary city, robbed from city departments to further his political agenda and prop up his friends, and then bailed out when it was clear the city was in trouble and tough choices would have to be made...he is your typical pass the buck democrat....I dont particularly care for Parker, but she is tremendously more responsible than White, and is having to clean up the huge mess he left behind. White did well with the handling of the Hurricane, even though Ed did most of the heavy lifting there

White was a bad mayor and would have made a terrible Governor.....I thought more democrats would have thought so too, but I guess that was giving them way too much credit.