“Devil's Brew “by Keith Spencer is a book about a CIA agent who became conflicted with avarice and abuse in the liquor business. He was the enforcer for Mafia-connected investors who had trouble collecting from liquor store operators. The tremendous profit in the alcohol business, the system of discounts, the profiteering of locations (there are 3 rules for success of a liquor store: 1. geography 2. geography 3.geography) the offering of sexual vices of pimps and whores to make the collections easier. Next to gambling, the most profitable vice in the world is that of the beverage alcohol.
In America, $573.6 billion is spent each year on liquor. Almost every prisoner in the largest prison system in the civilized world (US) is in there because of alcohol (alcohol is a drug). 50% of all marriages end in divorce, most are alcohol-related. Millions of children are in foster homes, paid for by tax dollars, usually the result of alcohol. A lady came to my house just recently about renting space. She was caring for two foster children because both parents were in prison for alcohol-related crimes. The wife of one of my college classmates called me, her husband, a wealthy doctor with a good practice, was found dead in a Las Vegas hotel room from alcohol poisoning.
I am probably the only male student who matriculated through eight years of college, who did not drink. I know I was the only non-drinker on staff of any hospital where I served. I am still a non-drinker, not that I believe that anyone is in danger of hell fire for drinking, I just have better things to spend my money on. I was reared on a tobacco farm and I believe my parents would have died a natural death if they had seen one of their children smoke a cigarette. My father said he made his living on a farm, farming tobacco, because of the habit of foolish people.
In the real estate which I have owned, three buildings were used as night clubs, two very large clubs (one a capacity of 700 people). So, in one way or another, I became associated with the alcohol business. Harry Payne, prominent lawyer, member of the Council of State, legislator from this area, who was for many years, my lawyer, said, “ The alcohol business and your property may come back to haunt you.” I am not a drinker or a smoker, I do not sit in judgment on those who do, but I believe I know as much about both as the average person; the logistics of alcohol sales and taxation, regulation and hypocrisy.
One of my friends, Lawrence Rose, a member of the state ABC board, told me one time while walking with me on Wrightsville Beach that state-controlled liquor was the crookedest business he could imagine. He did not know about state DOT or other divisions of state government but said that pawns and lackeys pay large political contributions for the privilege of appointments to any state board. It has always been that way, you pay to play. In my lifetime, those “pay-to-play” members of the Democrat party hierarchy were appointed to the boards of predominate black colleges. In my lifetime, you supported the Democrat party in order to teach in public schools and, to this day, you must get approval by the Democrat party to drive a public school bus.
This American citizen (this writer), whose parents, grandparents, great grandparents and great great grandparents go back with a paper trail to 1766, and who is a totally blind, 100% disabled service-connected, medical officer veteran, applied to serve on the Public Health Board and the County Library Board. The County Manager, Mr. Powell, came to my house to tell me I would not be appointed to any board because of my blindness. So let the Democrat legislature, the Democrat Council State, talk about discrimination.
Recently, it was uncovered, much to the miracle in this age of political correctness and NC newspaper support of the Democrat Party hierarchy, that the administrative head of this county's ABC board is paid a salary of $342,000 a year. To keep the nepotism of the Democrat Party in line, his son, his assistant, is paid $115,000 a year. On top of this, not reported anywhere until recently, the father gets a yearly bonus of $30,000 and the son gets a yearly bonus of $20,000. This is the type of hypocrisy witnessed by every school student in the county.
The county commissioners, who appoint the ABC board members and employees (39), seem to know about the closeted problems of everyone in the county except their own appointees. They made like they had never heard of these salaries or bonuses. As I have told many parents, many times, don't encourage your child/student to be a doctor, pharmacist, nurse or engineer, but rather encourage them to work for government. All they have to do is “kiss enough tail”, make enough political contributions and be bereft of morals, and they can draw down large salaries, such as every government worker. The average pay, now, for a federal employee...mind you I said average...is $71,000 a year. Most get upwards of $250,000. In North Carolina, going to work for the state, right out of college, you can retire in 30 years and draw 90% of your top pay in retirement. At 55, retired with a state pension, you still have time for a second career and, if you get affiliated with a military unit as so many do, you can “double dip”. If you are smart, you will get your wife and children one of these plush jobs with all the retirement benefits, holidays, vacations, sick days, which make we peasants look like paupers.
As a youngster, NC was a “dry” state. The last two states to get liquor by the drink were NC and Oklahoma. Each county controlled wine, beer and liquor. So, there was that weekend processional by drinkers to the liquor stores in “wet” counties. When the state decided to make the state very wet, all the political hacks, who for years had supported the Democrat party on the precinct level, were given jobs working in the liquor stores. I was a member of the committee to keep alcohol out of the state, just as I was a member to keep gambling out of the state. I have yet to recover from the lack of support the very “dry”, prohibition, Baptist, Methodist and even Pentecostals gave me in support of keeping these vices out of the state. Baptists, in this state (Free Will Baptists, Southern Baptists) have about lost all my support except for $30,000 I give to one Baptist college each year because Baptists, more than any other group, have kept corrupt Democrats in power, this state, poor and indifferent toward immoral principles supported by the Democrat party (abortion, homosexuality, gambling, liquor) I will give anyone a nice cash bonus, not as large as the bonuses given in this county to ABC liquor sellers, who can show me that alcohol or gambling has improved life, liberty or the pursuit of happiness to any citizen in this state. One Episcopal preacher told me, with bitterness towards me, that there was no more harm in his members drinking a bottle of liquor than eating ice cream. Of course this is the same denomination who supports abortion, same sex marriage and even has gay preachers and bishops in the pulpit.
Before Dr. John Messick (fifth president of ECU) died here, he said to me, “Our country is about one generation away from barbarism.” Those of you, even those of you who go to church (only 5% of people who attend church are real Christians), and who vote to put alcohol, gambling, the sewer of pornography in your neighbor's pathway, those of you who continue to vote for a political party and politicians who try to support schools and other services with the grief of others, you have much for which God will hold you accountable. The motto of the great state of NC is “esse quam videri” (to be, rather than to pretend). It is time for politicians, pastors, parents, to stop pretending, start loving their children and their fellow man enough, to keep the vices of drugs and gambling where they belong, in the dark, dark pit of hell. The great writer CS Lewis said, “the greatest evidence for and against Christianity, are Christians.” As I said to a Southern Baptist pastor in this town, he and his wife members of the Cape Fear country club; he, known for his excessive drinking, “you are not responsible to me, but to the God you supposedly represent when you stand in the pulpit.” And, so it is with those who sit in the pews, and vote at their precinct.
No comments:
Post a Comment