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Atlanta Forward: Quality of life

Bottles of Wild Heaven Brewery's Ode to Mercy brown ale are bottled and capped at the Decatur, Ga., brewery.

Credit: David Tulis/Special

Credit: David Tulis/Special

Bottles of Wild Heaven Brewery's Ode to Mercy brown ale are bottled and capped at the Decatur, Ga., brewery.
By Tom Sabulis
Dec 3, 2015

A recent AJC story detailed how Georgia officials showed favoritism toward politically connected beer distributors over craft breweries in the battle for drinkers’ access to alcohol. Today, a local lawyer says state restrictions on local breweries block free-market enterprise. We asked Georgia Speaker David Ralston’s office for an opposing view, but a spokesman said no legislator was willing to weigh in. The Georgia Beer Wholesalers Association did not respond to requests for an opinion. In our second column, an industry group speaks out against a recent column that advocated raising cigarette taxes.

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In this photo from 1997, then-U.S. Sen. Max Cleland, D-Ga. (in wheelchair), and fellow senators (left to right) Bob Kerrey, D-Neb.; John McCain, R-Ariz.; Charles Hagel, R-Neb.; John Kerry, D-Mass.; and Chuck Robb, D-Va. walk along the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall behind the wreath they would lay to commemorate the 15th anniversary of groundbreaking for the memorial. All six senators served in Vietnam, and Cleland lost both legs and an arm in that war. (Rick McKay/Washington Bureau)

Credit: Rick McKay

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In this photo from 1997, then-U.S. Sen. Max Cleland, D-Ga. (in wheelchair), and fellow senators (left to right) Bob Kerrey, D-Neb.; John McCain, R-Ariz.; Charles Hagel, R-Neb.; John Kerry, D-Mass.; and Chuck Robb, D-Va. walk along the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall behind the wreath they would lay to commemorate the 15th anniversary of groundbreaking for the memorial. All six senators served in Vietnam, and Cleland lost both legs and an arm in that war. (Rick McKay/Washington Bureau)

Credit: Rick McKay

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