Alabama remains one of two states in the U.S. to still prohibit home brewing of beer. After President Jimmy Carter legalized home brewing at the national level in 1978, home brewing has experienced a resurgence in the United States with new microbreweries and brewpubs offering more choice and better beer — except in Alabama and Mississippi. Dan Smith, in his recent article in AL.com, argues that Alabama’s restriction on home brewing is just one more example of increasing local, federal and state encroachment on personal and economic freedom.

“The deeper issue at stake is the tendency of politicians — whether at the local, state or national level — to manage every aspect of their constituents’ economic and personal lives. This trend threatens the development of personal responsibility and undermines the foundations of a free society… In fact, the Alabama Constitution clearly states that when government oversteps its responsibility to protect life, liberty and property, it usurps and oppresses the people. Growing paternalism, such as bans on homebrewing, threatens the development of responsibility, and thus a free society.” –Dan Smith

Read the entire article here.