If the liquor laws in OK were modernized...

[bchris02]

If grocery stores could sell wine and high-point beer in Oklahoma, do you think it would really attract stores like Costco and a much needed mid-high end grocery chain like Publix? Or would it simply hurt the local liquor stores because Wal-Mart can now sell wine and strong beer. Stores like Costco, Trader Joe's, etc exist in other 3.2 or package-store only wine states so I don't 100% buy that excuse. Thoughts?

[Plutonic Panda]

It is time for Oklahoma to get with the friggin program!!!!!

[Prunepicker]

If the liquor laws of Oklahoma were modernized then Oklahoma would
have more alcoholics. Ya gotta love it!

There's nothing quite as nice as so-called progress. As we always say,
"to hell with family and neighbors, let's get drunk!"

It's a wonderful world.

[Dustin]

If the liquor laws of Oklahoma were modernized then Oklahoma would
have more alcoholics. Ya gotta love it!

Where are the studies from other states with modern liquor laws that would support this? Your logic is flawed.

[Edmond_Outsider]

That is an unreasonable request. "Studies" and "facts" are what the resident expert on all things define them as. I believe there is a wiki which explains some of these customized and alternative definitions of various concepts.

[stick47]

I think Oklahoma needs to be rid of all the special interest regulations that protect certain businesses at the expense of the public's right to free choice. Liquor laws, whether they bring about an elevated risk of associated drunk driving, etc need to be brought into at minimum, the 20th century. And that's just one of the special interests that make our great state look so backwards.

[RadicalModerate]

I think Oklahoma needs to be rid of all the special interest regulations that protect certain businesses at the expense of the public's right to free choice. Liquor laws, whether they bring about an elevated risk of associated drunk driving, etc need to be brought into at minimum, the 20th century. And that's just one of the special interests that make our great state look so backwards.

"Don't make me call the flying monkeys . . ."

[Sabbathhead]

If grocery stores could sell wine and high-point beer in Oklahoma, do you think it would really attract stores like Costco and a much needed mid-high end grocery chain like Publix? Or would it simply hurt the local liquor stores because Wal-Mart can now sell wine and strong beer. Stores like Costco, Trader Joe's, etc exist in other 3.2 or package-store only wine states so I don't 100% buy that excuse. Thoughts?

We moved here from South Carolina (Bible belt)this year and they didnt have these crazy laws.A liquor store sells liquor not beer ! We had bars all over the place like Oklahoma has liquor stores on every corner. We werent overrun with liquor stores on every corner and strip mall. I love living here now, but damn the laws need to get up with the rest of the country ! Its also not called " strong beer" its normal beer, unlike the watered down **** here. I only buy Corona's here or i pickup a couple cases of Bud when i'm near the Texas border.

[mcca7596]

If the liquor laws of Oklahoma were modernized then Oklahoma would
have more alcoholics. Ya gotta love it!

There's nothing quite as nice as so-called progress. As we always say,
"to hell with family and neighbors, let's get drunk!"

It's a wonderful world.

I see more family friendly qualities in states that are modern and not stuck in 1950.

[bchris02]

If the liquor laws of Oklahoma were modernized then Oklahoma would
have more alcoholics. Ya gotta love it!

There's nothing quite as nice as so-called progress. As we always say,
"to hell with family and neighbors, let's get drunk!"

It's a wonderful world.

I suppose you would support a ban on alcohol entirely. We tried that before and it didn't work. Like it or not American culture is loosening up its views on alcohol and there are a lot of moderate drinkers out there (while at the same time tobacco is becoming a taboo). Prohibition actually encourages alcoholism as it causes people to binge drink rather than drink responsibly.

The current laws don't keep people from drinking but they, by some measures, could be keeping business out of this state that would otherwise be here, lowering quality of life for everyone, drinkers or not.

EDIT: One more thing is that the current liquor laws keep many high-quality, craft beers out of the state that are sold in neighboring states. People who go after these expensive beers drink for the flavor and are more likely to be responsible drinkers. All these laws do is give a bad image of our state to young people, keep businesses out like Costco or a good grocery chain, and make it more difficult for the responsible drinker while doing nothing for the binge drinker who can get drunk on cheap Whiskey from a liquor store or 3.2 Budweiser.

[Bunty]

If the liquor laws of Oklahoma were modernized then Oklahoma would
have more alcoholics. Ya gotta love it!

There's nothing quite as nice as so-called progress. As we always say,
"to hell with family and neighbors, let's get drunk!"

It's a wonderful world.

Your parents must have thought the very same thing back in 1959 when Oklahoma was crazy enough to vote to repeal prohibition of alcohol. Strange how Oklahoma took so long to do that while Utah was one of the states to ratify the 21st Amendment in 1933, which repealed alcohol prohibition. Oklahoma was one of the 8 states that never did.
It's a wonderful world.

[Bunty]

It is time for Oklahoma to get with the friggin program!!!!!

We're probably lucky, though, that Oklahoma alcohol laws are more consistent and less confusing than in some of the other states.

[ljbab728]

How funny that pp rants all of the time about constitutional laws. Where is it in the constitution that the government should regulate alcohol? He thinks we should have no laws that regulate weapons of any category but that we should regulate alcohol availability. But then consistency is never his strong point. We can all agree with that.

[Prunepicker]

I suppose you would support a ban on alcohol entirely...

Yes, I would. Drunkenness is a horrific problem to our society.
As are drugs, whiskey and the like should be totally banned. It causes
more problems than solutions.

[CaptDave]

And yet bourbon distilling was started by the right Reverend Elijah Craig.......another inconvenient truth. But he was probably the "wrong" kind of reverend......

[ljbab728]

Yes, I would. Drunkenness is a horrific problem to our society.
As are drugs, whiskey and the like should be totally banned. It causes
more problems than solutions.

Just as crimes commited with guns are and we know how you feel about weapons. Conflicted much when it comes to government intrusion into our lives?

[Bunty]

Yes, I would. Drunkenness is a horrific problem to our society.
As are drugs, whiskey and the like should be totally banned. It causes
more problems than solutions.

As deeply as you abhor taxation, how would it be possible to find the funding to build a bunch of new prisons to put criminal drinkers? The U. S. is the most highly imprisoned nation in the world as it is. Yet, there is still drunk driving and getting high going on. So I assume it would take a lot more imprisonment to try to get rid of drinkers. And then the problem about outsiders throwing whiskey over the prison fence late at night. However, much of the desire to ban substances is motivated due to prejudice against race. Ban a substance a race of people you don't like uses, and you have a means of getting rid of such people by putting them in prison. So Prunepicker, is much of your desire to ban alcohol based on racism?

[rcjunkie]

It is time for Oklahoma to get with the friggin program!!!!!

Right on brother, how can we have a thriving, successful, society when you can't be liquor or high point beer on every street corner.

[bchris02]

Yes, I would. Drunkenness is a horrific problem to our society.
As are drugs, whiskey and the like should be totally banned. It causes
more problems than solutions.

The Bible does not forbid all alcohol consumption, simply drunkenness. Jesus himself drank wine. You have probably been told it was only grape juice but there is nothing to back that up in Scripture or extra-biblical evidence. It's simply a person's opinion. The anti-alcohol movement in this country is rooted entirely in the late 19th century temperance movement. Prohibition does not work as its been tried before and it was such a disaster it was repealed very quickly. What needs to be encouraged is responsible drinking vs binge drinking which is largely a result of the fact alcohol is considered a taboo to young people.

[Hawk405359]

It should be up to the market to determine it. The government doesn't much business trying to regulate morality based on the more puritanical of people in the country.

We already saw what happened the last time the government tried to ban alcohol. It practically created gang violence in this country and crime rates went up significantly, the complete opposite of what Billy Sunday claimed was going to happen.

[kelroy55]

Why do you folks, myself included, argue or try to make sense out of PP's posts? It doesn't change his way of thinking, notice I didn't say logic. 95% of the posts are intelligent and add to the topic but we focus on the small percentage that don't.

[Bunty]

Why do you folks, myself included, argue or try to make sense out of PP's posts? It doesn't change his way of thinking, notice I didn't say logic. 95% of the posts are intelligent and add to the topic but we focus on the small percentage that don't.

I thought it was 50%.

[onthestrip]

If the liquor laws of Oklahoma were modernized then Oklahoma would
have more alcoholics. Ya gotta love it!

There's nothing quite as nice as so-called progress. As we always say,
"to hell with family and neighbors, let's get drunk!"

It's a wonderful world.

So why dont we limit the amount of liquor stores in the state. Maybe a moratorium on new liquor store openings? Since, according to you, it causes more alcoholism

[onthestrip]

Right on brother, how can we have a thriving, successful, society when you can't be liquor or high point beer on every street corner.

We already do.

[Celebrator]

I don't drink at all and I want the laws changed because of the effect it will have on the grocery business in this market. I have lived in other states with more liberal or modern liquor laws and I did not notice that alcohol-related problems were any worse than they are here. I can't tell the difference in that area, but I sure can in the area of the grocery choice. All though even that is MUCH better now than it was about 16 months ago!