I was watching a Modern Marvels episode about coin operated machines. One segment dealt with a vending machine in Pennsylvania that dispensed wine to supermarket customers. I was a cool machine. that looked more convenient than squatting and reaching in front of poorly organized shelves or pulling the bottles from a rack to check the price / contents. The bottles were clearly displayed in a well-lighted glass case and you saved yourself the time by not having to wait in the check out line for a pure wine run.
Not so fast, Thomas. The machine had you slide your credit card and driver's license into a slot, then took your picture. The narrator went on to say that the company that invented the system has on record every customer who has used the machine. All because this was alcohol and because it seems that grocery stores can't sell wine in the same way they do soda and unhealthy snacks.
More effort is spent enforcing the law than it is worth. Here, In Indiana, one can buy whiskey at most any grocery store. We are not without our own idiotic legislation in these matters. One can still not buy package liquor on Sunday. A few years ago, beer could not be sold in 16 oz. cans. (Fear of drinking too much? I dunno.) In Shelby County, taverns cannot advertise alcohol produces on the outside of their establishments.
I plan to run a search on crazy and convoluted liquor laws, right now. I know Indiana and Pennsylvania are not the only locales that have them on their books.
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