January 25, 2009

(South Carolina) - The Governor continues his malicious and shameless power-grab, this time, for the power behind the Employment Security Commission - if you're counting, that's four independent state agencies he wants to own; the President has been in office only a few days and he's already made five major mistakes - three - the bailout, the gov. sponsored murder of unborn children abroad, and the Guantanamo closing - we knew he was going to make - but practically no-one thought he would be so cavalier as to abandon his transparency push while appointing known miscreants to be his advisors and representatives; and a group of scientists have written a paper which affirms that constant sodomy is destructive to all but Superman, and not one news outlet ran the story - of course this finding isn't really new. But none of these stories compares to the discovery your faithful editor has made..

A Great Cup of Espresso! For those of us who brew our own, somebody else's coffee is usually something easily eschewed. And to be perfectly frank, while their regular coffee is certainly better than the other places, City Brew, on the corner of Stone Avenue and East North Street in downtown Greenville, individually brews an espresso which is the most intense, dynamic, yet smooth, experience you can have with a food group.

There are lots of espressos which are just harsh. Others are wimbly-wombly and might make a mild laxative, but that's about all. One espresso, at a Columbia market, could peel paint, but it was so bitter that, even with a lot (and I mean A LOT) of sweetener, it still tasted like the inside of a goat's stomach.

The reason I'm, taking the time to talk about this one little kiosk, stuck in the middle of the parking lot of the old, original Clock Drive-In (which closed some time ago), is - one, it has the best espresso I've ever tasted. But second, City Brew is the victim of yet another dumb, repressive, and completely useless city ordinance.

Now the guy, who really is just an every-day Joe, trying to make a great idea work, has been rebuked at every turn, is not allowed to put a sign up at what is arguably the busiest intersection in the city. If you KNEW it was there, you could safely access the place from two wide turn-in areas - three, if you count the open space between the islands next to the firehouse. But very few people know he is there. Why? Because he's not allowed to put up a sign. Any sign.

It's not like the area is the most picturesque, either. Before they started the snail's paced repairs on the Clock building, it was severely run-down. The kiosk is modest by even the most liberal standards. It not only doesn't stand out, you could easily pass by it, on any given morning, and not know it's there. Ever. Now, if he were allowed even the most modest and attractive of signs, the betting people would give better than even odds that his business would triple. But, no, the city feels it needs to exercise its authority and play like Mr. Bear Squash You All Flat.

This is why intelligent people question such power held in the hands of any one citizen or group of citizens. Such laws and rules are cowardly and reflect the chicken-hearted rapists of the human soul who lurk in the anonymous shadows and cringe at the light of discovery. They are small people with a tiny amount of power, like the leader of the local church women's group who couldn't get a real job of authority, and so lord it over other, less "powerful" women in the church. They are vermin, which you find under any given moss-covered rock, and use these rules that no sane person would agree to in circumstances such as this.

So my newly-found City Brew, on the corner of Stone Avenue and East North Street, in the authoritarian city of Greenville, will have to make it on word-of-mouth.

If you want to do something good for the real economy, for a regular guy with a dream, and for your taste buds, stop by, one morning, and get yourself a great cup of coffee or the best espresso imaginable.

Who knows, City Brew might just make it. .. oh, and this plug is on me..

- Dick Anderson