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Steam Whistle has made their first advertisement! Can’t wait to see it on TV!

Well after all that hooting and hollering, press coverage, lineups, empty shelves, and the biggest liquor sales day in Ontario of all time the LCBO workers are still going to work today.

Details from official sources are a little scant at this time. With the LCBO website saying nothing but

June 24, 2009 12:01 p.m.

The LCBO and OPSEU LBED bargaining teams have agreed to continue bargaining.

All employees should report to work as usual until notified otherwise.

The workers made a last minute decision to put off going on strike stating that a resolution was soon enough in the wind that a strike wouldn’t be nessisary.

CP24 interviewed one customer yesterday during the booze grab blitz:

Toronto resident Bruce Wallner considered it important to hoard some hooch; he spent about $700 on liquor and organic wines to add to his personal cabinet.

“You can’t run out of wine — you’d have to stop eating,” he joked.

I’m glad they’re not striking. I like their selection better than that of The Beer Store. Although you CAN get Steamie there so I guess I’d be okay.

Whelp… the L.C.B.O. workers are threatening to strike. So get your butt to the Liquor store if you’re running low on anything cause tonight is the deadline.

L.C.B.O. workers want more full time jobs. 60% of LCBO workers fall into the casual worker category and earn an annual income of less than $20,800 per year. They also want to nix a management proposal to be able to issue 90-day layoff notices at any time and don’t like the idea of privatization on the L.C.B.O.

Many bloggers and much of the public seem to disagree. There has been a lot of comments about the current L.C.B.O. being a monopoly and even a few calls to strike so that Ontarians will realize that the sale of booze should be opened to the corner stores and grocers.

At least the privately owned Brewers Retail (a.k.a. The Beer Store) will still be open and I have a closet full of home made wine at home so I won’t have to brave any crowds tonight.

The open beer market for Ontario has come up again in our recent politics. This time it’s Progressive Conservative Leadership Candidate Randy Hillier striking up conversation of bringing beer to our local corner stores.

Last time this issue came up I was against it. Even praising Dalton McGuinty for declining the thought of selling in corner stores. But after some discussion on A Good Beer Blog I’m pulling off my best impression of a politician and doing a flip-flop.

My first reaction almost a year ago was to think that sellers of cigarettes are already doing a piss poor job of keeping THEM out of the hands of minors and that would just pass on to beer and wine. But I’ve had almost a year to think it over and think over the arguments posed to me by my readers and the readers of A Good Beer Blog and I’m thinking now that it wouldn’t necessarily be easier for kiddies to acquire alcohol in all cases and that the deregulation would end up to be good for the industry little guys.

I’m still somewhat on the fence though. I would like to see beer in my local convenience store but I do still think it would sometimes be easier for kids to get their hands on it. BUT that being said I never really had troubles getting my hands on a beer or 12 when I was under age either and that beer had to come from The Beer Store.

I’m sure if deregulation did occur though that the govt. would surely police it quite strictly for a long time to come.

Here’s what Randy thinks:

“Beer distribution in this province is currently controlled by foreign companies.” Hillier said. “In these tough times we need to give struggling small Canadian businesses like corner stores, restaurants and hotels more opportunities.”

“Dalton McGuinty is costing local Ontario businesses millions of dollars, to the benefit of foreign-owned breweries.”

Hillier proposes to allow corner stores to be able to sell wine and beer. As well restaurants, bars and hotels would be able to sell off-sales to further help their businesses.

I think he’s got a point or two that are quite valid. I for one would certainly take advantage of closer beer and wine (although now I mostly make my own). But I will still have that twinge in the back of my head about some dick-head shop keeper being too lazy to check an ID and some kid ruining or ending someone’s life. We’ve all seen it before though coming from the current system as well. So why am I afraid of this change?

It’s that time again! Well… this blog hasn’t been around long enough to announce any previous but The Golden Tap Awards are upon us and internet voting has commenced!

In its second year now The Golden Tap Awards are a series of acknowledgements for Ontario brewers. The Categories this year are:

• Best microbrewery in the GTA
• Best microbrewery in Ontario (outside of the GTA)
• Best beer brewed in the GTA
• Best beer brewed in Ontario (outside of the GTA)
• Best bar in the GTA in terms of draught beer selection
• Best bar in the GTA in terms of bottled beer selection
• Best bar in Ontario (outside of the GTA)
• Best brewpub or tied house in Ontario

Head over to the Site and vote now.

Premier Dalton McGuinty has made comment on the recent pressure from certain groups to change the way you and I in Ontario buy beer.

There has been some pressure to remove the monopoly that is held by The Beer Store on Ontario beer buyers. When asked is the system should change at a news conference McGuinty said “No, I like the system as it’s found at present,” he said “I don’t think consumers would tell us that. Certainly, Ontarians are not delivering that kind of a message to me.”

Some think The Beer Store is not good for Canada being a foreign-owned operation, it’s a joint venture by American-owned Molson, Belgian-owned Labatt, and Japanese-owned Sleeman. But let’s not forget that all of those were Canadian companies before they were bought by bigger breweries. The Beer Store is also one of Ontario’s rightest supporters and contributors to recycling in Ontario.

Progressive Conservative Leader John Tory also defended The Beer Store but said he’s willing to see change in the area of micro or local breweries. “I’m open to looking at ways in which we can give a fair chance to the craft brewers” by allowing them to sell in corner stores.

Personally I think this is a bad idea. There’s enough underage kids getting cigarettes as it is there’s no need to allow them to get beer as well. There is a better way to help craft brewers. Mandate The Beer Store to drop their prices for entry. Breweries are forced to pay to have thier beers supported in thier local beer store or LCBO. Lower that fee and more Craft beers will be eligible.

The Toronto Transit Commission is considering mandatory drug and alcohol testing for it’s workers after the death of a subway working in April of 2007. This is a move that some are calling “highly controversial”

Personally I call it UTTERLY LUDICROUS!

How can something that takes so many lives in to it’s hands daily even consider NOT having mandatory drug and alcohol screening for it’s workers?

Just last week on Tuesday June 3rd the passengers of a TTC buss called police because they suspected that their driver was under the influence. Upon being pulled over the driver a 48 year old male was charged with one count of driving over the legal limit. Is this something that’s acceptable in our community? Drinking and driving is never okay but it’s especially ridiculous when you are carrying 100’s of passengers within a shift all over a city!

A TTC spokesman said that the union deals with about six cases a year of alcohol or drugs on the job from within 9,000 members. I say that’s six too many!

1.5 million people ride the TTC every day. 1.5 million. If one of the many TTC workers is impaired how many of those people are in danger?

Mandatory drug testing is sometimes considered discriminatory under the Canadian Human Rights Commission guidelines unless it’s in “safety-critical” occupations. Trucking is considered to be one of the “safety-critical” occupations. Yeah hauling blue jeans along the 401 is “safety-critical” but hauling myself, all my friends, and the elderly and young of Toronto isn’t “safety-critical”.