Everybody’s got an opinion about the debacle between Cambridge Police Officer Sgt. James Crowley and Professor Henry Louis Gates and whether President Obama should even be wasting his time on this uber local issue when we have a financial crisis crippling the country, etc., etc.
But here’s my concern: three men are meeting in the White House — arguably the most American structure on the planet — and what are they drinking? Mr. Obama chose Bud Light, Crowley ordered a Blue Moon and Gates requested Red Stripe. Mr. President, I beg of you, pick some beer that better represents the talents of your country’s brewers!
First of all, Obama’s Bud Light is one of the flagship products of the largest beer conglomerate in the country. It is American, yes. But for a president who really needs to make a dent with small businesses, shouldn’t he be taking into account one of the many, many, many breweries who make good beer? And don’t make the argument that you can’t find Fat Tire at your local beer wholesaler — you’re the most powerful man on earth; you could probably have it delivered to your front door.
And, furthermore, how soon this man must forget that small brewers of America tend to be of a more liberal mindset and more than likely supported the president when he was running for office. For chrissakes, both Ommegang and Sixpoint Craft Ales made beers named after the prez: Obamagang and Hop Obama, respectively.
While Obama’s beer choice may be the poorest choice of all the beers to be served at the White House today, I’d still like to comment on the other choices: Blue Moon and Red Stripe. While many Americans may not realize it, Blue Moon is owned and brewed by Molson Coors — the fifth largest brewer in the world and also half Canadian. It by no means represents the majority of beer made in this country.
And Red Stripe isn’t even half American! It’s owned by Diageo, an international company with offices in London, and originally comes from Jamaica. I will concede that it’s probably a better beer than the others but that’s not the issue at hand. We’re talking about representing good, American beer in America’s Capital.
Sir, if Ben Franklin were here today, he’d probably be pretty upset about the watered-down beer you choose to drink. All I’m saying, Obama, is that you have a lot of influence and you should use it for the good of the country. Perhaps you should have a word with the guys over at Beer Advocate and they can help you make some more appropriate suggestions for good American alternatives to the crap you’re planning on serving today.
Oh — and just so you know, the real Beer Summit will be held in Boston.