Now This is a Politician @ his Best
In 1952, Armon M. Sweat, Jr., a member of the Texas House of
Representatives, was asked about his position on whiskey. What follows
is his answer, taken from the State Archives:
"If you mean whiskey, the devil's brew, the poison scourge, the
bloody monster that defiles innocence, dethrones reason, destroys the
home, creates misery and poverty, yea, literally takes the bread from
the mouths of little children; if you mean that evil drink that topples
Christian men and women from the pinnacles of righteous and gracious
living into the bottomless pit of degradation, shame, despair,
helplessness, and hopelessness, then, my friend, I am opposed to it with
every fiber of my being.
However, if by whiskey you mean the lubricant of conversation, the
philosophic juice, the elixir of life, the liquid that is consumed when
good fellows get together, that puts a song in their hearts and the warm
glow of contentment in their eyes; if you mean Christmas cheer, the
stimulating sip that puts a little spring in the step of an elderly
gentleman on a frosty morning; if you mean that drink that enables man
to magnify his joy, and to forget life's great tragedies and heartbreaks
and sorrow; if you mean that drink the sale of which pours into Texas
treasuries untold millions of dollars each year, that provides tender
care for our little crippled children, our blind, our deaf, our dumb,
our pitifully aged and infirm, to build the finest highways, hospitals,
universities, and community colleges in this nation, then my friend, I
am absolutely, unequivocally in favor of it.
This is my position, and as always, I refuse to compromise on
matters of principle."