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Wisconsin Proposal Hurts Craft Beer, Protects Big Brewers
In the battle between international brewing giants SABMiller and ABInBev, Wisconsin craft brewers could bear the heaviest burden. On May 31, the state legislature’s Joint…
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New York City Health Officials: No Fun for Adults
Last year we watched as the FDA used its regulatory might to institute a de-facto ban on alcoholic energy drinks like Four Loko, Joose,…
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Alcohol Producers in Texas Must Unite For their Right to Produce
As discussed in my latest "Alcohol Regulation Roundup" post, a representative for brewing giant, Anheuser-Busch (AB-InBev) testified at a Lone Star State Senate…
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Black Friday All Over Again: Feds Seize More Online Poker Domains
This week thousands of poker fans and players will gather at the Rio Casino and Hotel in Las Vegas for the much anticipated 42nd Annual…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: May 23, 2011
Alabama: Small vineyards in Alabama support a bill that would allow them to self-distribute up to 24,000 barrels a year, allowing them to compete…
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Online Poker Showdown: States Step Over Feds to Legalize iGaming
In the wake of a federal clamp-down on Internet poker, states are forging ahead with their efforts to explicitly legalize, regulate, and tax online…
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Delaware to Erase a Remnant of Prohibition?
On April 6, a remarkable bill was quietly introduced in the Delaware state house. If it passes and is signed into law,…
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Colorado Governor Hickenlooper Overturns Low-Alcohol Ban
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Fighting for its Life: Absolute Poker Makes a Deal with Feds
In 2002, four fraternity brothers from the University of Montana founded an online gambling platform that became one of the most popular online casinos for…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: May 9, 2011
While some states seem to never change at all, this Monday's Alcohol Regulation Roundup highlights some pleasant possibilities on the horizon.
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Clinic for Porn Actors Closes, AIDS Group Rejoices
After years of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation trashing them in the media, the Adult Industry Medical Foundation (aka AIM) has closed its doors for good,…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: April 27, 2011
National: Seventeen state attorneys general are asking Pabst Brewing Co. to lessen the alcohol content of its new “Blast” product. Blast, the 12 percent…
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Los Angeles (City) Won’t Refuse Permits for Condomless Porn
After years of fighting and failed attempts to force Los Angeles County to require condom-usage on adult film sets, AIDS activists were finally successfully…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: April 6, 2011
Nation: Wine shipping is once again being threatened by federal legislation threatening to overturn Supreme Court decisions that clearly made it illegal for states…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: March 29, 2011
With April Fool's Day just around the corner, you might think that I'm pulling one over on my readers with the some of the laws…
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TTB Should Allow, Not Mandate Nutritional Labels
Last month I penned an article for BigGovernment.com in which I asserted that some large alcohol producers were in favor of the nutritional label…
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Alcohol Regulatory Roundup: St. Patrick’s Hangover Edition
While you guzzled green beer and nursed the subsequent hangover, politicians and other interested parties were busy creating or preventing regulatory headaches of their own.
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Human Achievement of the Day: Print-on Skin
Imagine being able to simply spray new skin onto wounds, scars, or burns as if they never happened? We may be one step closer…
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Bidding Bon Voyage to Nationalized Wind Insurance
According to several Gulf Coast legislators, the idea of adding wind insurance to the National Flood Insurance Program is not going to happen anytime soon.
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Human Achievement of the Day: Nanospiders in Your Blood
In his writings, noted futurist and inventor Ray Kurzweil has said that he believes human technology will one day reach a point where the human…
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Human Achievement of the Day: Tree-Bombing Planes
As our frenemies over at Treehugger wrote last October about how Lockheed Martin had come up with an ingenious idea for its 2,500…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: Fat Tuesday Edition
Happy Fat Tuesday, everyone! While you enjoy that frosty alcoholic beverage, enjoy this latest round of alcohol-related regulatory actions throughout the nation:…
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Human Achievement of the Day: Turning Plastic Waste Back into Oil
This “human achievement of the day” is a true example of why we at CEI and many others around the world choose to celebrate the…
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Human Achievement of the Day: Mosquito-Zapping Lasers
It’s hard to deny that lasers are cool, but a lasers that can blast mosquitoes out of the sky, protecting us from the malaria spreading…
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Human Achievement of the Day: Flying Cars
Whenever some new, ground-breaking technology makes headlines there is invariable the observer who seems only mildly impressed and then asks when we’re going to get…
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Human Achievement of the Day: Mobile Phone Credit Card Processing
It’s a hot summer day, you pass by a lemonade stand and you think "An ice-cold lemonade would really hit the spot," but you have…
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Human Achievement Hour 2011: March 26, 8:30pm
It's that time once again to show your support for human achievement by not participating in the World Wildlife Fund's dark-ages hour, where people…
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Lessons from Four Loko: Don’t Be Too Good
That lawmakers are still wringing their hands about the alcoholic (formerly caffeinated) drink, Four Loko, reveals that their fears have nothing to do with…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: February 24, 2011
Kansas: The Kansas Federal and State Affairs Committee approved legislation that would phase in the sale of full-strength beer, wine and liquor in grocery…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: February 23, 2011
Alabama: After passing through the state Senate and House, Tuscaloosa voters approved a bill that legalizes Sunday sales of alcohol within…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: February 10, 2011
Massachusetts: State Representative Alice Peisch filed legislation this week (HD 2759), which would amend the state’s outdated laws from the 1970s that make it…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: February 9, 2011
Connecticut: Two days after Super Bowl Sunday, Connecticut lawmakers held a hearing on one of the most contentious issues this session:…
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Free Online Porn Still Legal in California
A three panel judge in California concluded that adult websites that “give it away for free” are not engaging in predatory pricing. According to…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: January 26, 2010
Texas: Despite the fact the two-thirds of Dallas voters approved a ballot measure last November allowing grocery stores in the…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: January 24, 2011
In national news: The Federal Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) is proposing a bill that would require all producers of beer, wine, and spirits…
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South Carolina Attempts to Ban Alcoholic Energy Drinks
We throw around the term “nanny state” a lot, but to put in plain English, nanny-state regulation differ from other types of governance in that…
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Stossel and O’Reilly on Sports Betting
Stossel hits the nail on the head in his recent blog post. Apparently, Bill O’Reilly reached out to him for feedback on the issue…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: January 14, 2010
Gulf States: Laws in some Gulf States get in the way of charity aimed at helping victims of Hurricane Katrina. This article…
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Pub Poker on the Table in Wyoming
There are many bars in Washington, D.C., where one can find a free poker tournament. Such events draw in a diverse crowd of customers and…
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Dime a Drink Tax in Maryland will Hit Everyone
Though it is touted as a “dime a drink” increase on alcoholic beverages, the proposal in Maryland to raise the excise tax on alcohol…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup and Update on Four Loko: January 7, 2011
Update on Four Loko: After being pulled off of shelves by FDA decree, the wholesalers who purchased of alcoholic energy drinks such as…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: January 3, 2011
A brand new year with brand new wacky regulations on alcohol consumption: Alabama: Is there such a thing as too much beer? While I…
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Driver Monitoring Increases Accuracy, Lowers Insurance Costs
Believe it or not, insurance companies do not want to overcharge you. They want to charge just the right amount — as little as possible…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup: December 28
Much a like a family that you don’t get to choose, let’s make a quick holiday visit to the states around the nation and their…
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Alcohol Regulatory Roundup: December 21st
Maryland: Lawmakers will likely pass a measure next year allowing direct shipping of wine to Maryland residents. Vineyards, especially smaller wine makers, claim that…
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New York Energy Drink Ban Hearing at 2:30 on Tuesday
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Alcohol Regulatory Roundup: December 20, 2010
While most lawmakers have checked out for the holiday vacation already (mentally and/or physically), there are still some movers and shakers out there getting frothed…
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Congress Set to Fail Online Poker Players
As I have written about before, Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) introduced a bill earlier this month that would legalize a limited form of online…
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Online Poker is Not Illegal: U.S. Courts
U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff of New York sentenced convicted felon Anurag Dikshit, the co-founder of PartyGaming.com, to a meager year of probation and indicated his…
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An Update on State Alcohol Regulations
Here is another installment in the roundup of news regarding the weird and wacky state of alcohol regulation in the U.S.: California: The “sangria…
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Alcohol Regulation Roundup
As alcohol regulations vary state-by-state and constantly shifting here is a quick roundup of booze news from around the states: In federal news, following…
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Energy Drink Ban? What’s Next?
Lynne Nowick, a legislator in Suffolk County, New York, wants to ban energy drinks for anyone under the age of 19 years old. Why?…
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Why Insurance Rates Rise in Calm Seasons
This year’s hurricane season, which officially ended at the beginning of this month, was the third most active season on record for the Atlantic. However,…
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Small Brewers’ Big Mistake in Colorado
In Colorado, the only place one can purchase alcoholic beverages over a strength of 3.2 percent alcohol by volume to take home is in a…
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Colorado to Ban Light & Low-Calorie Beer in Bars?
Next year bars and dine-in restaurants in Colorado might be forced by law to stop selling light, low-calorie, and low-alcohol beers. Any beer…
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Online Gambling in New Jersey Could Cause WTO Disputes
New Jersey is on the verge of becoming the first state in the U.S. to explicitly legalize online gambling in an attempt to keep…
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No Sense in Maryland’s “Dime-a-Drink” Tax Increase
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FDA Killing Big Beer’s Competitors
If you saw the movie Beer Wars, which was released last year, you might remember one hard-working entrepreneur featured in the film named Rhonda…
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Texas Veterinarians Want a Cut of Horse Dentists’ Profits
Three cheers for horse dentists in Texas and the Institute of Justice (IJ) which took up their defense. After three years, IJ and the horse…
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Why You Should CARE About the Ban on Four Loko
Late yesterday evening, the maker of Four Loko announced it was removing caffeine from the popular alcohol beverage. This came following media-driven hysteria, state…
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Celebrate Egyptian Blogger Kareem Amer’s Freedom by Defending Free Speech
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Online Casino Gambling Moves Forward in New Jersey
As I reported last week, though federal attempts to legalize online gambling have seen little progress in the last year, states’ efforts have shown…
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Maryland Considers Privatizing Liquor Sales
The only place residents of Montgomery County, Maryland, can purchase liquor is in county-owned stores, which until recently were only open six days a week.
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November 24: National Opt Out Day
OptOutDay.com the website and group is urging air-travelers on November 24 (one of the busiest travel days of the year) to refuse to submit…
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Product Bans Are More Dangerous than Four Loko
How many people follow up a heavy night of drinking with some coffee? How many restaurants serve coffee and desert right after dinners where diners…
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Legalized Internet Gambling in New Jersey?
What does it take to get governments to deregulate? You might think the answer is “a miracle” or maybe “drugs in the water,” both of…
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An End to Out-of-State Beer?
Would you be steamed if you couldn’t buy Anchor Steam (of San Francisco, CA), or go into a flying rage without Flying Dog (of Maryland)?…
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Liquor Privatization Still has Hope in Washington
As my colleague Angela Logomasini wrote in a post earlier today, voters in Washington State vetoed two measures that would have privatized liquor sales in…
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Feminist Porn Director Supports Freedom of Individual Choice
Porn actress, director, and self-described “kinky feminist,” Madison Young, spoke out in an interview with Salon.com about her feelings in the condom debate that…
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Private Liquor in Virginia Off the Menu… For Now
Virginia’s Governor Bob McDonnell announced last Friday he would not be holding a special session in order to act upon his Virginia liquor store…
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Beach House Bummer: State-Run Insurance Fuels Risky Coastal Development
Wouldn’t we all like to have a beach house? A large number of Americans have a dream of living near the sea, but few of…
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Hospital Cost-Shifting Leads to More Expensive Car Insurance
Lawmakers’ policies are making your car insurance higher than it should be. Rather than solving the problems that government intervention is causing, however, politicians would…
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An Alcohol-Caffeine Ban Won’t Work
The genie is out of the bottle. Mixing energy drinks and distilled spirits has become a popular trend in the U.S., particularly, among college age…
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My Role Model, Jenna Jameson
As a self-made business mogul, a mother and wife, and a cancer survivor, there are many aspects of Jenna Jameson to admire and emulate.
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Insurance Lessons from Alabama
While Alabama certainly has some ambiguous laws and archaic regulations, the federal government ought to take a lesson from Alabama when it comes…
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Porn Stars Get Behind Personal Choice by Opposing Condom Mandates
The most recent case of porn actor testing positive for HIV has renewed calls (or at least media attention to the calls) for a…
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PETA vs. CEI: A Surprisingly Amiable Exchange of Ideas
Yesterday, the DCist reported that PETA planned a protest outside of the Capital Grille, a meat-centric restaurant here in the nation’s capital. The…
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More Support for Privatization of Virginia Liquor Sales
Yesterday, the Virginia Retail Federation (the advocacy arm of the Retail Alliance and the Retail Merchants Association) came out in support of privatizing liquor…
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Poker and Private Property in South Carolina
In South Carolina, the fate of five men has hung in the balance for the last four years. They crime they have been accused of…
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A Republican Sweep Might Not Stop Online Gambling
Many analysts and pollsters are predicting a Republican sweep of the coming midterm elections in the House. While Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) seems untouchable,…
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McDonald’s 6-Month-Old Burger is a Triumph, Not a Terror
To prove a friend wrong, New York artist Sally Davies left a happy meal out on her counter for six months. Yesterday, several media…
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Virginia ABC Store Privatization: Improving Plan, Dimming Political Support
When Virginia’s governor Bob McDonnell’s unveiled his plans for privatizing the state-run liquor sales system nobody was terribly thrilled. The plan’s basic outline (as I…
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Not Wright for Internet Gambling
Some Net gamblers are lamenting the indictment of California State Senator Roderick Wright (D-Inglewood) who was indicted by a grand jury for alleged voter…
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Using Government to Weed Out Competitors
In states throughout the country, beverage distributors are stepping into the political ring and in every case the opponent is the same: competition. Since prohibition,…
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San Francisco’s Mayor Opposed to Alcohol Tax
It isn’t often that we get to praise politicians, but cheers to San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom who vowed to veto plans for an…
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Obama to Insurers: Stop Telling the Truth
During the fight for health insurance reform earlier this year, opponents of the bill (aka Obamacare) claimed that the proposal would increase the cost of…
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VA Liquor Privatization Bought with Higher Taxes?
Free marketeers in the Commonwealth of Virginia waited with high hopes after Governor Bob McDonnell made the announcement that he planned to privatize state-run…
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Government Insurance: Guaranteed to Fail
Few observers were shocked when the Federal Emergency Management Association (FEMA) asked for a nearly $20 billion bailout of its National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).
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Barring Illegals from Driver’s Licenses: Dangerous and Dumb
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Republicans Should Favor Privatization of Liquor Sales
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Radical Capitalism: A Noble Experiment We Ought to Try
Earlier this month, Bloomberg published an article by Boston University economist Larry Kotlikoff in which he declared that the U.S. was bankrupt and headed…
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Alcohol middle-men pay lawmakers to protect industry
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Hopes for Federal Property Insurance Expansion: Gone with the Wind
Insurance industry members are wiping there collective brow after a bill was pulled from the floor of the House of Representatives before a vote.
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New “stimulus plan” brewing in Congress
It is actually less of a “stimulus” plan and more of a “get government out of the way and stop inhibiting growth” plan. A bi-partisan…
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California poker players: 1 – Free market opponents: 0
As I wrote yesterday, California was on the verge of passing a bill that would have allowed residents to play poker online at one…
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Anti-stripper law could create more prostitution
As so many journalists have punned, recently passed anti-stripping legislation makes the “Don’t Show Me” state a far more appropriate nickname for Missouri. Yesterday, Gov.
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CA to criminalize Internet poker?
That is, unless you play at one of the three state-sanctioned “hubs”. Much like other proposals to “legalize” online poker and other Internet gambling activities,…
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Liquor store privatization on tap in WA
In Washington state’s November election ballot will have a very interesting twist: dueling initiatives to privatize the state-run liquor stores: Washington Privatize State Liquor Stores…
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Choosing individual liberty is no gamble.
On June 1st the Oregonian published an opinion piece by the editorial staff, titled “Legalization would be a gamble, too” The basis for the…
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FL property insurance: turning a blind eye is not reform
While deregulation is always a good thing, we shouldn’t be fooled into believing that the recent news that Florida’s office of insurance regulation has…