That's what I always say about Canadians.

Kinda like what was being done at ABG?

Kinda... but not really.

The laws on absinthe will not change until the government can make money off of it. End of story... any thoughts of how that could be done, except for trying to bring as many noobs into the fold as possible, to make demand?

1. Jizzbomb . . . is that something new from DQ? Only available thru the back door?


2. Remember about 6 months or so ago, some dimwit in the UK died after rapidly doing 9 shots of some-absinthe-or-other? (The equivalent of about 18 shots of vodka, a helluva lot!) He died of alcohol poisoning, which is what the coroner said, but his family kept insisting it was that horrible evil toxic ABSINTHE that did it. Nothing to do with him being a moron who drank too much, and his father was trying to challenge the death certificate. Probably wanted to sue the distiller and make money off his kid's death.

I've little doubt the same will happen here. It's happened with Everclear, but had no effect on sales (in AZ, anyway). Whether such an event becomes the turning point for the re-demonization of absinthe or not will largely depend upon how we handle it, and what groundwork we have laid before it happens.


3. It's possible to submit a petition to the FDA, following a prescribed format, and backed up with all the necessary science. It's a big deal, and probably won't be cheap to get all the research together (like showing how much t-jone there is in a serving of Stove Top (sage) vs. a glass of UE68). It's definitely not something to do half-assed.

Another challenge possibility is tarragon. All Artemisias are regulated, to have no detectable t-jone in the finished product. Tarragon is an Artemisia, and a prime source for t-jone oil. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that products containing tarragon contain t-jone.

Proving this, and the levels present, and the lack of a correlation between mass murders and a preference for Stove Top instead of potatoes, could be enough to turn the tables.

Meanwhile, once a petition has been submitted, the public is able to comment upon it.

Logical approach? Perhaps (my speculation here) a campaign of absinthe-educated people getting accurate articles into those "alternative" papers; then, once there are a significant number of properly-informed articles published, shooting for the mainstream papers or magazines, while at the same time a petition is prepared for submittal.

After the petition is submitted, an organized letter-writing campaign, both in the form of letters of support to the FDA (including us as individuals, as well as every non-US absinthe distiller and distributor, every lobby group, even EU/Health Can-ada officials, etc. that we can find), letters to the editor of both local and national publications, AND to our elected representatives. Yeah, work. Not just an e-mailed form letter, ya know?

That MIGHT work. Conversely, that MIGHT lead to a crackdown. However, it would be more likely to boost public opinion of absinthe as "a tasty (or EWWWWWWW LICORICE-like) beverage which causes a slightly different type of intoxication, just as Scotch and vodka cause different types of intoxication" rather than "something that makes you go crazy and kill people." You know, like Stove Top.

Ned Brew has apparently put together (or been involved in) a documentary about the history and formulation of absinthe. I don't yet know the details. Obtaining copies of this and getting them into the hands of the media, elected representatives, and as an attachment to an FDA petition might also help. I'd not be surprised if Ned is working in that direction, himself. I'm sure he'd like to bring Jade- the only REAL Burnt™ absinthe to the potentially-vast American market.

Meanwhile, if there's GOING to be any article running of which any of us are aware, I believe it's important that we know our stuff and be sure to communicate it clearly and that it is correctly understood. And never, ever mention the existence of US-made HG's or HG'ers (if you happen to be aware of any). New Zealander or Austrian HG'ers, on the other hand (apparently, it's legal there) . . .

Any thoughts?

I think that was a really long post.

If you think THAT was a long post . . .

There's THREE long posts.

Speaking of posts, I'm over 400. How did THAT happen?

There you go.

Yeah, I figgered it out. It's from followin' Skeeter around, taggin' the threads behind him.

Better than taggin' his behind, I spoze.

Well, yeah, I look like I'm just tagging... but I actually have interesting things to type.

Yes, after that it is Skeeter season.

Well, it's sleepy season here. Nighty night, Mr. Skeeter, and all the rest of you sleeping people.

Oh, and >TAG<.

I think with enough work and money, absinthe could be legalized. However, as AZ points out, it involves a long administrative process and decent amount of reliable science. While it is certainly possible to pursue, only if you have enough money to see it to the end, would it have any possibility of success. For example, what happens when the FDA approves your petition for review, but asks for an economic impact study? Ugh.

Anyway, absinthe, like any other taxable liquor, can make the gov't money if it is legalized. So I really don't think it's an issue of the gov't being able to make money off it.

Hey I have an idea. In exactly 1 week, I will be hopelessly unemployed (yes, there were times I was hopefully unemployed, but alas, they have passed). I'll set up a webpage dedicated to the legalization of absinthe, and y'all can donate money to feed me while I write the petition and to commission any additional studies the FDA asks for.

How bout it? Any takers? Anyone? Beuler?

So why are you holding back ?

Me me me!
A very great idea, Festus.

OK, I got five bucks.
Who else is in?

That was actually my last post of the night... it was late. I was all out of wittiness and relevance, so beddy-bye time for me.

if i stopped posting when that happened, i'd have about 4000 less.

And bless you for your lacking sense of self restraint.

yeah, it's never been a strong point of mine.

Wow, Bearnuts, you've really reined it
in since you said you going to.
Must be really kickin' out the work for
the man.

I'm concerned that any effort to use open channels to legalize the sale of absinthe would result in old myths being brought out to justify the usual fears of anything new and unfamiliar.

One way absinthe might be legalized is if someone is appointed to run the FDA who has friends in the liqior production or importation business. Since it would only take a bureacratic change of rules and not an Act of Congress to lift the ban, then the ban could be quietly lifted as part of a political deal. If absinthe grows more popular, Seagram's etc. will take notice and look into how they might make money from it. As long as this happens before the media goes on a "Drunk on Banned Booze Kills 7 Pedistrians" feeding frenzy, this might happen.

Not that I'd expect an absinthe from Seagram to be of high quality (pre-sweetened oil mix I'd expect), but it would open the door for importers and domestic producers interested in bringing quality products to the market.