Is your beer manly enough?

I remember, when I was a little runt, sitting down with my Dad and watching the big football game of the week. There was always a beer commercial that caught my attention. It depicted a group of men that were usually out in the wilderness somewhere, either fishing, hunting, or something of that sort. Anyway, they gather back at the camp spot, with the big catch, and start cooking it over an open fire, while the beer froths at the lip of the can and snow-capped mountains loom in the far horizon.

One of the fellas raises his beer and looks to the others, and proclaims, "Guys, it doesn't get any better than this."

Men being men. Drinking manly, cheap beer that made you more of a man. It was a great ad. I'm not an Old Milwaukee beer drinker, but when a cowboy with an overgrown mustache hands you a fresh, cold one, who's going to say no?

Now a days, you got commercials depicting men asking which beer has the lowest calories and which one has the lightest, most refreshing taste. In 20 years, we've gone from the capable and secure, master-of-his-domain man, to the ultra-insecure, "am I too fat in these jeans" type of man.

What happened?

Advertising. Those clever bastards mess with our heads more than we know, or give them enough credit for. You see, this is an epic campaign of psycho-infiltration started decades ago, and the effects have become subconsciously wired into the general psyche.

The mighty corporate beers (Budweiser, Miller Lite, Coors Light, etc..) have spent so much money persuading us to ignore our senses, our reasoning and judgement, and obediently purchase only their product, it leaves little room for us to consider another tastier option. If you don't buy Bud (or if you say anything bad about it) you're labeled un-American and driven off without an offering of debate. Not sure if you knew this, but Anheuser-Busch isn't even an American owned company, it's a Belgium-Brazilian company, InBev, that is the world's largest brewer.

Why is it that when someone wants to drink a micro-beer (aka a small brewery not owned by the corporate fat-heads), they are labeled a "fancy pants," or too "hoity toity."

"Is our beer not good enough for yuh?" The old timers say out loud.

What the hell?

The advertisers and fat-heads have achieved what they were after: brand loyalty. If you drink, or seek out, another beer, you're labeled a traitor, a trouble-maker, or have perverted sensibilities.

Soon you'll be an outcast in the far, dark corner of the bar, drinking your imperial IPA.

Look around you before you saddle up to the bar and order. Take notice to what beers everyone around you in this bar is drinking: Bud Light, Miller Lite, Coors Light, with an occasional Michelob Ultra and a few bottles of Corona spattered around.

Then make a decision. Do you join the rest of the sheep and order a mediocre, watered down beer, or do I rebel against the programming, go outside the box, and order a beer with flavor and substance.

Man up.

Soon, they'll be changing their advertising tactics and go after the younger set. Gotta sell all that beer.

James