tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-591881213265091346.post3084422770438784164..comments2024-03-13T11:10:25.333-04:00Comments on Why The PLCB Should Be Abolished: Just Imagine...Lew Brysonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04084380741402026573noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-591881213265091346.post-13895420241858063812013-03-05T12:08:23.042-05:002013-03-05T12:08:23.042-05:00Anonymous (the latest one), have you not been payi...Anonymous (the latest one), have you not been paying attention? First, there aren't "over 6000 employees" in the State Store System. There are about 3,200 full time employees, and about 1,800 part-timers. Still, 3,200 is a lot, sure. But as I've said: if they're as good as they loudly proclaim they are, the new liquor stores that open up will be hiring. The pay and benefits will likely be less, but the State Store is paying well over the national average; that's part of the reason people question the system. See, the State Store partisans tell us that the system is self-sustaining, and that it doesn't cost us anything, but that's not really true. By overpaying employees, and with its gross inefficiencies, the State Store System is stealing money from the State budget every day, money that could be paying for education, transportation, and the bankrupt pension system.<br /><br />We're also told that no new jobs will be created, which is simply silly. There are going to be 1200 liquor stores, compared to 605 now. We're told, 'those stores will just be "big box stores" that add shelves of booze and not hire anyone to staff them. Not really; the big box stores have a separate class of license that allows them to sell beer and wine, and that's likely what they'll go for; lower cost, good profit. Doubling the number of liquor stores WILL create jobs, and the State Store employees are experienced. They probably won't be union jobs...and I think that's the real issue for State Store partisans. Well, get to work and organize.<br /><br />Your other argument is simply silly. The liquor/wine/beer taxes will continue to flow into the General Fund. The State Store "profits" won't, but they're nowhere near as reliable as the taxes. And what we WILL get is the taxes from the sales that are currently going to New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, and New York from people like me, who would rather drive twice as far to get better selection and service than at the crappy, sucky, unfriendly State Stores. Even the PLCB admits that amounts to millions of dollars. If I have good alternatives here in PA, I'd LOVE to shop here rather than in NJ.<br /><br />Like you said, you have to look at all the angles. Here's a fact for you: since Repeal, there have been states that went from "control" to private stores. There have never been states that went the other way. There's a reason for that. I want choice. I want the good service that comes from competition. I want to be like citizens of other states, not stuck with this relic of Prohibition.Lew Brysonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04084380741402026573noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-591881213265091346.post-44302656658585055722013-03-04T22:18:48.401-05:002013-03-04T22:18:48.401-05:00That sounds all great and all but what about the e...That sounds all great and all but what about the employees? Are you ready to pay for the unemployment for over 6000 employees who will be looking for a job? How bout higher taxes? The PLCB put over 500 million dollars into the general fund last year alone. Where is that money going to come from? The governor has made severe cuts to education and other important programs. With the PLCB stores gone there will have to be even more severe cuts made to programs that are already struggling for funding. What maybe convenient for you at the time might not be in the future. Before you decided the stores must go look at all angles not just the one that benefits you at the current moment.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-591881213265091346.post-50595411988376424582013-03-04T11:24:25.914-05:002013-03-04T11:24:25.914-05:00Lew, I'll go one step further and suggest no l...Lew, I'll go one step further and suggest no license limit AND no fee. Why not go all the way? Rufusnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-591881213265091346.post-270242377623134302013-03-03T22:43:03.735-05:002013-03-03T22:43:03.735-05:00If I were to set a drug policy from scratch tobacc...If I were to set a drug policy from scratch tobacco would be a schedule 1 drug like heroin and crack and alcohol and cannabis would be sold through a state control system.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-591881213265091346.post-11429355095018235652013-03-03T17:55:14.656-05:002013-03-03T17:55:14.656-05:00I felt once Massachusetts added liquor sales to so...I felt once Massachusetts added liquor sales to some grocery stores, that they had a very reasonable system. You buy beer by the glass or buy the pitcher in a bar, along with wine and cocktails. You can buy alcohol by the bottle in some grocery stores and in liquor stores. The only current practice in Pennsylvania that I think should be maintained is the bottle shop, so you can buy a selection of varied beers by the bottle.Laurie Mannhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16886124993171547304noreply@blogger.com