The economy is freaking me out...

...For the totally wrong reasons. And YES, I will blame it on my Irish heritage because I need some kind of scapegoat for this kind of stupid logic.

If my favorite breweries have to close their doors because of this...how should I put this....ummm...ECONOMICAL TRAIN WRECK, I am gonna be one pissed off drunk. America has come so far in the past 25 years with microbrewing that we are the envy of the beer world in terms of selection and innovation and quality. Hopefully, some of these breweries can weather the storm because if the land-of-the-free once again becomes dominated by american light-lagers I won't know what to do. (Well I know actually, and that is drink more whiskey) Don't get me wrong, there are days when drinking is just a means-to-an-end, but there are many days that I like to just enjoy one or two bottles of good, high-quality beer. Now Mr. Naysayer, don't tell me I can't tell the difference. I know too much about hop-varieties, barley roasting, esters, phenols, retro-olafaction and umame to be convinced by your weak argument of "it's all the same." Believe me, it's not all the same.

In conclusion, I should be worried about a mortgage, car payment, rent, health insurance, etc. and yet I'm worried if I'll be able to get my favorite IPA or imperial stout. They call 'em vices for a reason.

Here's to you Obama, hope you can figure this mess out...slainte!