Beacon Center of Tennessee » wine

Newspaper editorial board sides with Beacon

editor — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 19:10:11 +0000

The Times editorial board of the Chattanooga Times Free Press concurs with Beacon’s choice of the Tennessee Wine & Spirits Wholesalers Association as its 2011 Lump of Coal Award winner. Read the editorial board’s position here.

An Idea a Day: 51 Ideas for a Prosperous Tennessee

editor — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 19:00:18 +0000

Beacon Center Provides Legislature with 51 Ideas for a Prosperous Tennessee
Pamphlet offers a free market idea for each remaining legislative day of the General Assembly

NASHVILLE – The Beacon Center of Tennessee, founded as the Tennessee Center for Policy Research, today made available in electronic version its most recent publication, An Idea a Day: 51 Ideas for a Prosperous Tennessee. The second of its kind, the pamphlet offers one innovative free market idea for each remaining legislative day of the 107th General Assembly. Each idea is surmised in one brief sentence, followed by a link to original work published by the Beacon Center or contact information for more details.

Hardcopies of the pamphlet will be provided to each member of the General Assembly upon their return to session in January. The electronic version was sent to members and their staff today as the Legislature prepares for the second session of the 107th General Assembly.

“When lawmakers look for solutions that will expand individual liberty, return taxpayers’ hard-earned money to their pockets, and reduce the size and scope of government, they now have a place to turn,” said Justin Owen, the Beacon Center’s president & CEO. “We hope members of the General Assembly will frequently turn to this simple, concise resource as they conduct the people’s business.”

A new feature was added to the second edition of An Idea a Day, with a special emblem marking ideas that will create jobs and/or save taxpayers money. This makes it easier for lawmakers to identify those issues that are a top priority for taxpayers: job creation and tax cuts.

The electronic version of the pamphlet, complete with links to original Beacon Center work on the ideas offered, can be viewed by clicking here or visiting http://www.beacontn.org/wp-content/uploads/An-Idea-a-Day-2012.pdf.

The Beacon Center of Tennessee’s mission is to change lives through public policy by advancing the principles of free markets, individual liberty, and limited government. The Center is an independent, nonprofit, and nonpartisan research organization committed to providing timely free market solutions to public policy issues in Tennessee.

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And the winner is…

editor — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 17:02:33 +0000

Liquor Lobby Receives Lump of Coal Award for Thwarting Wine in Grocery Stores

NASHVILLE – The Beacon Center of Tennessee (formerly the Tennessee Center for Policy Research) today announced the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of Tennessee as the recipient of its 2011 Lump of Coal Award.

The Beacon Center awards this dubious distinction annually to the person or group in Tennessee who, more than any other during the past year, acted as a Grinch to Tennesseans by bah-humbugging the principles of liberty and limited government.

For the first time, the 2011 Lump of Coal Award was chosen directly by Tennesseans in an online poll. Respondents chose from a list of five finalists selected by Beacon Center staff. The Wine & Spirits Wholesalers received the most votes for the not-so-coveted prize, beating out Nashville’s Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency by a single vote.

The Lump of Coal Award goes to the association for its actions to prevent grocery stores from selling wine in the state, a measure that 33 states allow and one that would benefit Tennesseans economically.

“The liquor lobby, led by the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of Tennessee, has used questionable tactics to scare rural Tennesseans and lawmakers into erroneously believing that allowing grocery stores to sell wine will bring about some type of booze-propelled chaos, all in an effort to protect its powerful monopoly over wine,” said Justin Owen, the Beacon Center’s president and CEO.

“Despite the fact that nearly three out of four Tennesseans want to end the Prohibition-era restrictions on wine, their calls were yet again drowned out by this formidable lobbying force. Maybe the association’s leadership can wash down its lump of coal with a nice bottle of cabernet, purchased exclusively from a liquor store, of course.”

The Beacon Center of Tennessee is an independent, nonprofit, and nonpartisan organization committed to providing free market solutions to public policy issues in Tennessee. Through research, advocacy, and investigative reporting, the Center advances ideas grounded in the principles of free markets, individual liberty, and limited government.

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TCPR criticizes liquor lobby’s monopoly

editor — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 21:27:22 +0000

In a recent story about the state’s archaic alcohol laws, Tennessee Report cites the Tennessee Center for Policy Research’s “Drunk with Power” study, which shows how the liquor industry has successfully fought to maintain its monopoly and keep wine out of grocery stores. Read the article here. For more information about Tennessee’s Prohibition-era attitude toward wine, watch this video featuring Melanie Armstrong, one of TCPR’s “Faces of Freedom.”

Drunk with Power

editor — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 23:11:58 +0000

As lawmakers get ready for another legislative session beginning in January, the issue of wine in grocery stores is heating up. Earlier this year, TCPR released Drunk with Power: How Liquor Lobbyists and Distributors Control Tennessee’s Wine Laws. You can view the publication here.

TCRP recently sat down with the two friends of liberty highlighted in Drunk with Power, Melanie Armstrong and Randy Stepherson. Melanie is a wine educator who was wrongfully harassed and arrested by the state Alcoholic Beverage Commission. She sat down with TCPR to discuss her plight and how distributors have a stranglehold on the wine industry.

Check back in the coming weeks to hear from Randy, who owns Superlo Foods in Memphis, as he discusses how putting wine in his stores would benefit his customers and his employees.

Click here to view the video.