Pennsylvania's Gov. Tom Wolf has banned the sale of alcohol at bars and restaurants across the state from 5 P.M. Wednesday, November 25, until 8 A.M. Thanksgiving Day, November 26.  Wolf says the 15-hour prohibition is needed to protect Keystone State residents from the coronavirus.

"It turns out that the biggest day for drinking is the Wednesday before Thanksgiving," cried Wolf.  He added, "When people get together in that situation, it leads to an increase in the exchange of fluids.  That leads to an increase in infection."

So it's not enough for Gov. Wolf to impose indoor — and outdoor — mask mandates on the citizens of his state, nor to limit Thanksgiving Day gatherings to no more than a handful of people from a single household.  Wolf now wants to dictate when, where, and if people can "exchange fluids."

The ban on alcohol sales on the busiest night of the year will be devastating to the small, independent bars, brewpubs, and restaurants that are already hurting due to COVID-19 restrictions and lockdowns.  And it is particularly hypocritical and bizarre, considering that Gov. Wolf has been pushing for the Quaker State's General Assembly to pass legislation legalizing the widespread sale and use of recreational marijuana, with a portion of the revenue generated by legalization to be given to "historically disadvantaged businesses" and "to further restorative justice programs that give priority to repairing the harm done to crime victims and communities as a result of marijuana criminalization."

It is unclear how a 15-hour Prohibition Era will diminish the spread of the coronavirus, unless Wolf thinks it's spread by drinking Coronas.  (Although it's apparently okay to start quaffing them again at 8:01 A.M Thanksgiving morning.)

Many of the ongoing intrusive lockdowns, mandates, and other edicts and decrees affecting nearly all aspects of citizens' lives, including their ability to make a living, are in violation of the First, Fourth, and possibly Ninth and Tenth Amendments to the United States Constitution.

It is ironic that Independence Hall, the building where the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were adopted, is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  Ben Franklin, a longtime resident of the state, purportedly said: "Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy," though some insist that the quote is inaccurate and that Franklin actually said something similar about wine.  In any case, the Founders believed that elected officials should be temporary public servants, in the truest and purest sense of the word, whose power should be derived directly from the people and be checked and limited in every respect.  They would not have tolerated governors dictating decrees in the manner of King George III.  They would not have tolerated a governor claiming to have the right and power to decide when, where, and if citizens could "exchange fluids."

History recalls the "Boston Tea Party," colonists' bold defiance and rejection of a relatively insignificant tax on tea.  Perhaps Pennsylvanians should take part in a "Philadelphia Freedom Party" or "Pennsylvania Beer Bash" on Wednesday night.  Maybe even show up outside the governor's mansion in Harrisburg and toast the esteemed gentleman.  "Hooray for Wolf, hooray at last!  Hooray for Wolf...he's a horse's ass!"

Just sayin'.

Photo credit: Bruce the Deus, Creative Commons, Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.