I diverge from mainstream libertarians in that I think there ought to be a law when it comes to consuming intoxicating substances. I don’t believe there should be penalties for violating laws that can’t be Constitutionally enforced. Still, I can’t bring myself to accept the absence of a “Thou shalt not” for intoxicants.

I was brought up to fear addictions. I read in my conspiracy theory books how intelligence agencies could use something as simple as an addiction to supplemental income to make people do what they wouldn’t otherwise.

And so, it is with disappointment that I see government, that protector of liberty, using liquor, that potential enslaver to habit, to raise revenue.

Many people in Madison County were upset last fall to find out only after the elections that their government had held an election to legalize the sale of alcoholic beverages. Murphy just held two referenda to make alcohol more readily available. The voting was so close, provisional ballots are being counted.

This is a very colorful portrayal of the referenda. One envisions the pious widower respectfully requesting people to consider the horrible fate of his beloved wife, who died in an alcohol-related car accident; and a wild woman recklessly joy riding through town whooping up support to legalize alcohol sales.