When Is It No Longer Flattering To Be Carded?

January 21, 2003 9:39 AM

76-year old Wisconsin man carded while buying non-alcoholic beer. Wish the article had more information, like whether or not the clerk refused to sell the goods to a senior citizen, or just asked to see some ID, but still. Shouldn't a little common sense come into play here? Do you blame the "old man" for getting upset in the first place, or the clerk for not bending "the rules," or the owner for the policy, or the lawyers for the law suits that engendered the policy, or prohibition for getting this country so worked about about alcohol and appropriate drinking ages in the first place? Me? I blame society.

And yes, yes, I know "newsfilter this" and "newsfilter that." But c'mon. It's Wisconsin. Appreciate the irony.
posted by RKB (60 comments total)

That's what the old codger gets for buying a non alcoholic piss flavored drink(aka beer)
posted by Blubble at 9:46 AM on January 21, 2003

No, by all means blame lawyers for legislation, which is written and enacted by elected legislators. Blame doctors too. And Architects.
posted by Outlawyr at 9:46 AM on January 21, 2003

It's so obviously stupid of the clerk.

Of course, you have to beware of the minors who go around dressing up like old men and attempting to buy non-alcoholic beer.
posted by Juanito at 9:46 AM on January 21, 2003

I know the liquor store where I purchase my beverages requires the clerk to enter in a full date of birth before it will allow the transaction to be completed. Maybe this wasn't a legal, or common sense issue, but rather an inflexible point-of-sale system.
posted by dansays at 9:52 AM on January 21, 2003

Okay... anyone read the article?

"Meyer won't be the only senior citizen getting carded now that 11 Pick 'n Save stores in Wisconsin have begun requiring clerks to card everyone who tries to buy alcohol. "

It's company policy. It's also the kind of arsey policy that a clerk is likely to get fired for skipping for this old git.

Yes, it's stupid. Moaning about it is daft. Going to the papers is just plain stupid. Stupid old git should go back to telling kids they don't respect their elders rather than writing to the newspapers...

"Angry" in England. ;)
posted by twine42 at 9:55 AM on January 21, 2003

I'm nearing my mid-thirties, so whenever I still (occasionally) get carded I take it as a compliment.
posted by Dirjy at 10:00 AM on January 21, 2003

Hold on... NON-alcoholic beer? How old do you have to be to buy NON-alcoholic beer? Sheesh, they're strict in Wisconsin.

not to mention that regular American beer is practically non-alcoholic all on its own...
posted by GhostintheMachine at 10:03 AM on January 21, 2003

Okay... anyone read the article? ...
"...11 Pick 'n Save stores in Wisconsin have begun requiring clerks to card everyone who tries to buy alcohol. "
It's company policy.

did YOU read the article? there was no alcohol involved.
posted by quonsar at 10:08 AM on January 21, 2003

Apparently there is a trace of alcohol in the "non-alcoholic" brews, which is why it's found only in the liquor section and not out with the root beer & Coke. I don't know if anyone could ever get a buzz from the stuff. Seems like the input/output ratio would not work out right.
posted by Tubes at 10:13 AM on January 21, 2003

"I tell you, I was really ticked off — this little-by-little chipping away at your rights"

Alrighty, who is it. Come on, confess. You've tipped your hand. We know your a member of MeFi.
posted by Dick Paris at 10:17 AM on January 21, 2003

No, by all means blame lawyers for legislation, which is written and enacted by elected legislators. Blame doctors too. And Architects.

You forgot to blame the teachers and parents for not teaching this young clerk how to read a friggin' label.
posted by whatnot at 10:18 AM on January 21, 2003

If Pick 'n Save is a liquor store, in most states you have to be 21 to buy anything in a liquor store. I've been carded for a Snicker's bar before. If it is a convenience store though, that's a whole 'nother matter.

I've seen on several occasions with my own eyes people who are obviously grey haired old-timers get carded and turned down for lack of ID at grocery stores, restaurants, and baseball games. It never fails to amaze me. Whenever I can, I make the buy for them -- I figure its payback for when I was underage and nagged people to buy for me.
posted by spilon at 10:18 AM on January 21, 2003

My mom got carded at 42 at a Royals game. She said to the clerk who asked for her ID, "Awww, you're so sweet, I'm flattered." He responded, "Ma'am, I need to see your ID please."

I'm dreading the first time I don't get carded.
posted by gramcracker at 10:24 AM on January 21, 2003

I'm with you dirjy. At 37, I very rarely get carded anymore, but just a few weeks ago I was carded at the grocery story when I bought a bottle of wine (along with a lot of other groceries). Made me smile and I thanked the cashier and gladly showed her my ID. Regarding the "inflexible POS system" comment, I thought this was the case here too since the register appeared to require her to enter a birthdate to continue. Wasn't the case though as a couple weeks after that again buying wine at the same store, a different cashier just ignored the prompt and the system happily continued along.

As far as carding 76-year old men, well, that's just stupid.
posted by AstroGuy at 10:25 AM on January 21, 2003

Once when I was at Target, in the line next to mine they were waiting for a manager's attention.

It turns out that that the clerk was underage, and thus was not allowed to sell alcoholic beverages.

And of course, it was non-alcoholic beer that the person was trying to buy... but it was coded as from the beer section, and so the register wouldn't let the kid ring it up unaided.

Obviously, that's more a policy to keep high-schoolers from selling beer to each other, but how annoying for the customer.
posted by Jart at 10:26 AM on January 21, 2003

See, this is the problem with breaking news. Somehow the reporter failed to raise the obvious point to Pick 'n Save execs that the old guy wasn't trying to buy alcohol. If Tubes is right about the trace of alcohol in non-alcoholic drinks (and the Kuwaiti health ministry says he is), that accounts for the puritan requirement to card, but it's still amazing that in the rush to get the story out over the wire no one bothered to explain the point to readers.

spilon: Pick 'n Save isn't a liquor store.

Btw, there are two more paragraphs to the AP story here; can anyone explain to me why Yahoo! of all outlets needs to be editing wire stories for length?
posted by mediareport at 10:34 AM on January 21, 2003

I've seen many a clerk enter a quick 11/11/11 when they get the birthday prompt. Must throw their marketing demographics way off.
posted by MrMoonPie at 10:37 AM on January 21, 2003

Hold on... NON-alcoholic beer? How old do you have to be to buy NON-alcoholic beer? Sheesh, they're strict in Wisconsin.
Actually, non-alchoholic stuff like O-douls' still has alchohol content- try looking at the label sometime. When i was 15 or so, I was at a Red Lobster and tried to get one, but I couldn't for that very reason. Also, in some places its law and company policy to card (STRICT company policy b/c if you get caught selling to minors, I get a $1000 fine for selling, and the manager on duty gets hauled off to jail and a $5000 fine) . As a bartender, was I willing to be fired for not carding? hell no! It was my policy to card EVERYONE. If they didn't like it, I really didn't care...I got enough shit as a bartender where I just didn't care about people being pissed at me any more. Oh, and y'all better believe I carded for O-douls'...to see the reaction on people's faces was PRICELESS.
posted by jmd82 at 10:38 AM on January 21, 2003

Actually, non-alchoholic stuff like O-douls' still has alchohol content- try looking at the label sometime.

According to this kid nutrition site, Miller Brewing Co. says the amount of alcohol in a product like Sharps "is comparable to the alcohol content of products such as apple juice, ripe fresh fruit or ketchup."

Look for U.S. legislators to begin carding for ripe fruit any day now.
posted by mediareport at 10:46 AM on January 21, 2003

Those Wisconese, they're sticklers you know. Real sticklers.
posted by The Jesse Helms at 10:49 AM on January 21, 2003

For the record, you don't have to be of drinking age to sell alcohol, or even prepare it.

I worked at a marina during the summer I was 18 years old. They had a snack bar that also sold beer, mixed drinks and wine. I was the "bartender" and was the only one allowed to pour/prepare and serve the drinks. As well, I was the one who made the decision to card people. Numerous people tried to "call my bluff" and say that if I can serve it, they can buy it at the same age.

Eventually, we had to post a copy of the liquor control laws on the outside of the serving area because it became such a hassle to argue every time.

The funny part is that I never really had the urge to serve myself any alcohol. The smell really got to you after a while.
posted by grum@work at 10:58 AM on January 21, 2003

Okay... anyone read the article? ...
"...11 Pick 'n Save stores in Wisconsin have begun requiring clerks to card everyone who tries to buy alcohol. " It's company policy.

In Addison Tx, part of Dallas they have posted, We have the right to card up to the age of 40.

This was when I had just turned 30 and they carded me my on my b-day. Then, I quipped about because a month earlier it had said: age 30, sheesh. When will I be old enough not to be carded, 5 more years.

But as I get older I have this trouble, no ID, no alcohol.

Repo Man, great flick don't see how it relates. Yet as it was produced by the same Monkee who sold the idea of MTV, maybe the connection, or I can just have his mother of invention, no his mom the inventor of liquid paper wipe out the carding age of 40?

No this is not news...more loss of liberties in mhop.
posted by thomcatspike at 11:01 AM on January 21, 2003

From MADD, a possible explanation about why people are so anal about these "card everyone" policies (enforced by jmd82 and others):

Alcohol use is America's No. 1 youth drug problem, killing 6.5 times more young people than all other illicit drugs combined. With some 10 million current drinkers between age 12 and 20, the problem touches all families. Yet our country has not placed a priority on addressing this overwhelming problem.

In 1984, the U.S. Congress passed a law requiring all states to raise the legal drinking age to 21 or face the loss of federal highway construction funds. By 1988, every state had passed a 21 law. As a result, about 1,000 lives are saved each year.

In 1995, the U.S. Congress passed the national Zero Tolerance Law, requiring all states to make it illegal for people under 21 to drive with any measurable level of alcohol in their system or face withholding of federal highway construction funds. By 1998, every state had passed zero tolerance legislation.

Yet, despite these laws, alcohol remains the drug of choice among America's youth.

I dunno, but the more authorities -- parents, police, Tipper Gore -- tell kids not to do something, the more attractive that thing tends to become. Plus it's that whole "do as I say, not as I do" problem.
posted by RKB at 11:01 AM on January 21, 2003

For the record, you don't have to be of drinking age to sell alcohol, or even prepare it.
I worked at a marina during the summer I was 18 years old

Every state I lived in you must be 18 to serve, your age at the time: )
posted by thomcatspike at 11:06 AM on January 21, 2003

Different states have differing liquor laws. In Texas, except for some special circumstances, it is illegal to have an employee under 18 sell or serve alcoholic beverages.
posted by John Smallberries at 11:07 AM on January 21, 2003

Here in GA this sort of thing is standard procedure, usually enforced by management that doesn't want to lose their liquor liscense and the revenue that goes with it. They often go through interesting contortions of fact to justify it, i.e. "You should be flattered" (no, I am not flattered to be reminded that I am being forced to prove I am innocent of the crime of purchasing alcohol while underage-I am 39) or "It's a county ordinance" (no, these sorts of things are regulated at the state level). You can't get non-alcoholic beer on Sundays here, either. I think this gives some insight into who is behind this nonsense. You should have seen the uproar when one of our state reps introduced legislation to raise the allowable alcohol content of beer from 5% to 10 or 12% (so some quality beers such as Trappist ales from Belgium could be sold here).
posted by TedW at 11:19 AM on January 21, 2003

I know that in my state you have to be 21 to buy even non-alcoholic beer. It's probably true in other states. Sure, it's stupid, but it's the law. Laws are stupid.

"You know what I blame this on the downfall of? Society." Moe from the Simpsons.
posted by nyxxxx at 11:19 AM on January 21, 2003

I didn't bother learning how to drive until I was 28. To get by, I commuted by bus and did my grocery shopping on a bicycle. For ID purposes, I had one of those ID cards the driver's license bureau issues that isn't really a driver's license but does have the name, address, and that all-important date of birth on it.

A chain grocery one day refused to honor my ID when I was buying a six-pack, and I wound up having to write to the president of the company (whose name I knew well from the commercials he appeared in on TV) to rectify it. Put it down to clerks who were being good Germans and a store assistant manager who was a total frickin' idiot.
posted by alumshubby at 11:25 AM on January 21, 2003

"Apparently there is a trace of alcohol in the "non-alcoholic" brews"

"Nonalcoholic" means beer with an alcohol content of less than 0.5% by volume. (Alas, the BATF's website is not very easy to find things on, but Travel Envoy's info jives with everything I've read before)

"I don't know if anyone could ever get a buzz from the stuff"

Not if you have a liver...
posted by nickmark at 11:28 AM on January 21, 2003

For the record, you don't have to be of drinking age to sell alcohol, or even prepare it.

It's also a state-by-state thing. Other than when Congress bitchslaps the states with its mandatory-age laws and such, it's the states that get to make laws governing the sale and use of alcohol. and some states allow it on a county-by-county basis.
posted by tolkhan at 11:32 AM on January 21, 2003

Here's some info from the Indiana University:
Because Indiana law defines an alcoholic beverage as a liquid or solid that is or contains 0.5 percent or more alcohol by volume, is fit for human consumption and is reasonably likely, or intended, to be used as a beverage, alcoholic beverage laws do not apply to "non-alcoholic brews." This means there are no legal restrictions on age of purchaser, hours of sale, etc.

I don't live in Indiana. Heck, I don't even live in the US. But I'm willing to bet most jurisdictions work the same way. Sure, there's alcohol in non-alcoholic beer, but you'd have to drink 30 12 ounce glasses of it to be over the legal limit in most jurisdictions. Or should we just ban any substance that can produce intoxication? If that's your stance, I suggest you look up hyponathremia.

Power tripping bartenders... man. Does everyone with the least bit of authority have to abuse it?
posted by GhostintheMachine at 11:46 AM on January 21, 2003

Power tripping bartenders... man. Does everyone with the least bit of authority have to abuse it?
Just remember the next time you're at a bar and u don't want white swirly stuff in your drink who your best friend in the world is ;) (Actually, I would never dare to spit in anything, thats just wrong. But, yes, I do know people who have and will spit if you successfully piss them off- which, as the other servers in the world may know, happens fairly often)
posted by jmd82 at 12:00 PM on January 21, 2003

I know the liquor store where I purchase my beverages requires the clerk to enter in a full date of birth before it will allow the transaction to be completed. Maybe this wasn't a legal, or common sense issue, but rather an inflexible point-of-sale system.

This is likely the case. At a local pharmacy chain I worked at for a summer way back when, DOB was required for tobacco sales (including nicotine patches.) 01/01/60 did the trick but of course it screwed up any demographics they were trying to achieve - a situation very familiar to your local Internet marketer. You should either not be lazy with your data collection, or not collect it at all.
posted by PrinceValium at 12:44 PM on January 21, 2003

wisconsin has pretty harsh personal liability laws concerning alcohol. many other states more highly regulate the where and when of purchasing, ie ohio has state stores with ludicrous hours and prices. here you can buy nice single malts at the grocery store. it's about license types for selling it. but having been a bartender for a coupla' two three years, its pretty clear when you start that it's not the bar owner or restaurant owner or in this case store owner who is liable. it's the bartender/waitress or clerk.
posted by jyoung at 1:08 PM on January 21, 2003

I know the grocery store I work for (Shaws) when we sell non-alcoholic beer (which is all we sell since MA laws don't allow beer to be sold in grocery stores) the registers won't scan it through without a birthdate. Same thing with cigarrettes. And it's very difficult to explain to the 70 year old men who come through my line that it is impossible for me to ring up their pack of Camels without a picture ID. If any employee is caught selling non-alcoholic beer or cigarrettes without seeing an ID, they will be fired.
posted by krazykity16 at 1:17 PM on January 21, 2003

My bad.
I forgot to mention that in Ontario, you have to be 19 to order/drink alcohol, but you can be 18 to prepare and serve the alcohol. That's why the annoying 18-year-olds got on my case so much about not giving them alcohol.

I'm not sure why the law allows me to handle, prepare and serve alcohol, but would charge me if I gave myself a drink.
posted by grum@work at 1:19 PM on January 21, 2003

For the record, you don't have to be of drinking age to sell alcohol, or even prepare it.

Oregon recently passed a law disallowing anyone in a bar to be under 21, including musical performers and strippers.
posted by pudders at 1:27 PM on January 21, 2003

The state by state laws for serving alcohol are pretty interesting. I go to school here in Boston, and in Massachusetts you can be 18 and serve alcohol. I know this because I considered going to bartending school and maybe getting some bartending jobs while I'm here. One major reason I ditched the idea is that I discovered that back home in San Francisco, you have to be 21, and I wouldn't be able to get any bartending jobs over the summer (I turn 19 this Superbowl Sunday).
posted by swank6 at 1:34 PM on January 21, 2003

How funny... I used to work at the Pick 'n Save mentioned in the article. I like to think that I was fair in my carding practices, but that was a couple of years ago. There was no policy at that time requiring us to card everyone.

Our registers did require a birthdate to be entered, but [i]I had the power[/i] to override that. Go me!
posted by fore at 1:36 PM on January 21, 2003

crap. i'm mixing my UBB-codes with my HTML.
posted by fore at 1:37 PM on January 21, 2003

It's a pity he wasn't 74 or 78 -- then there'd be 1 chance in 366 that he was actually 19.
posted by Sonny Jim at 1:50 PM on January 21, 2003

krazykity16: MA laws don't allow beer to be sold in grocery stores

Foodmaster does, near Inman Square in Somerville.
posted by lbergstr at 1:51 PM on January 21, 2003

When I worked at a grocery in high school (1994-1997 ish) they told us to ID anyone that looked under 30, and enter in "11-11-11" for everyone who was clearly overage. I was mystery shopped several times (when the local police get minors to try and buy cigarettes or alcohol), always without problem.
The problem with that was, it relied on the assumption that cashiers could apply common sense to determine age. And, well, that assumes people posses some common sense.
posted by Kellydamnit at 1:54 PM on January 21, 2003

"I tell you, I was really ticked off — this little-by-little chipping away at your rights"

That's how it works these days. The government relies on private corporations to enforce its most oppressive policy agendas. It's called fascism.

Blame it on prohibition, or the War on Drugs, or the new War on Terrorism. You can also blame it on moral crusaders like MADD. The base cause, IMHO, is a governmental policy of oppression. Or, you could say, a corporate interest policy of pushing the government to create oppressive policy. It's really hard to draw a clear line.

What really disturbs me is that corporate employees are so willing to enforce these policies, and so often tell people that it's "the law." I wonder if they know the difference?
posted by son_of_minya at 2:28 PM on January 21, 2003

Yes, it's stupid. Moaning about it is daft.

Yes, we must accept all things that are stupid immediately and without complaint.

Anyway, soon the fingerprint-and-embedded-RF-device national database will relieve cashiers of this onerous burden. So no worries.
posted by rushmc at 2:31 PM on January 21, 2003

the registers won't scan it through without a birthdate.

Same here at Jewel in the Chicago area. It's to ensure that the grocery store cannot be blamed for underage purchase because the buyer wasn't carded. Fake IDs are another matter...
posted by me3dia at 2:35 PM on January 21, 2003

The government relies on private corporations to enforce its most oppressive policy agendas.
Right...and as a bartender, FUCK FASCISM!!! Who cares about the law. I mean, as along as my bosses don't care, I shouldn't care till the police comes in and shops me causing my boss and me get hauled off to work. Right...this is fascism. How blind i am!!!!!!!!!
Oh yea, do you blame fascism on the government OR the corporations. You say "governmental policy of oppression" and say "corporate interest policy of pushing the government to create oppressive policy" in the same breath. That just confuses me. Also, do you REALLY think i'm willing to get fired just b/c something's not the law. Its not law to show up to work on time, yet I do because, among other things, its company policy. When I sign that contact to work, I know full well what I'm taking on. If YOU don't like having to do "non-law" things for your company, then be your own boss. But don't bash us other lowly minions for enforcing policies because we need money.
posted by jmd82 at 2:45 PM on January 21, 2003

You say "governmental policy of oppression" and say "corporate interest policy of pushing the government to create oppressive policy" in the same breath. That just confuses me.

It confuses me, too. It's a riddle inside a labyrinth wrapped up in an enigma. Which is why I said it's hard to tell the difference...which was my whole point.

Also, do you REALLY think i'm willing to get fired just b/c something's not the law. Its not law to show up to work on time, yet I do because, among other things, its company policy.

There are always alternatives. While I never said that all corporate employees are guilty, or assumed that you work for a corporation, it is necessary for you to take responsibility for your actions. If you compromise your values in order to keep a job, that's your business. Myself, I'd rather not.
posted by son_of_minya at 3:17 PM on January 21, 2003

The problem with that was, it relied on the assumption that cashiers could apply common sense to determine age

Or there are people like me who have always looked much older than they are. I was able to buy alcohol from the time I was 15 without being carded.

I've been carded 3 times since then, while my husband is carded everytime we go into a bar and he doesn't drink. (He's a year older, he just looks like an 18 year old kid.)
posted by SuzySmith at 3:19 PM on January 21, 2003

John Smallberries, you're completely wrong about Texas. You only have to be 18 to serve alcohol. Try asking the age of your server at Bennigan's some time. This is also why every hostess at any chain resturant is 16-17. They're just there until they can wait tables, and they can't wait tables until they are old enough to serve alcohol.

Now, you do have to be 21 to be a "bartender". I'm not sure why there's a difference, but I'm not going to try to comprehend any of the reasoning behind out liquor laws in Texas.
posted by betaray at 3:21 PM on January 21, 2003

If you compromise your values in order to keep a job, that's your business.
My problem with this is when I sign up for a job such as bartending, I know what the deal is. Now, if I take this job, not doing what I signed up to do against goes against my ideals. I guess thats where me and you are different.
Thats interesting, Beteray...in GA, you definitely only have to be 18 to bartend...though it is always fun having people trying to convince me that i'm not allowed to be one untill I'm 21.
posted by jmd82 at 3:29 PM on January 21, 2003

I forgot to mention that in Ontario, you have to be 19 to order/drink alcohol, but you can be 18 to prepare and serve the alcohol

Maybe because at one time the drinking age was 18 to drink, like most of America, it is now 21 from 18.

which I will add this rant, as I get older I find myself pointing at the younger crowd, but then I remember I was young too. So I don't poop on their party.

But the ones who changed these laws must have been the same ones pointing at me when I was younger, old-geezer-jerks.
posted by thomcatspike at 3:42 PM on January 21, 2003

Just for the record, in Wisconsin you are allowed to bartend/sell alcohol at age 18. You are not allowed to drink it (or be in a bar when you're not actively bartending) until age 21. (Mind you, there's a small loophole in the law that says that if you're a minor and you're in the bar with a parent, that parent can buy you a beer or wine -- but no liquor -- as long as they are with you when you're drinking it. If I remember correctly, I believe a legal-age spouse with proof of marriage can also buy a minor spouse beer or wine. No, I have no idea why. It's been almost 10 years since I bartended. Those laws may have changed.)

And if this Pick 'n' Save is like the one near my house, the liquor dept. is separated from the store and liquor purchases are made separately from food purchases. It's quite possible that any purchases made in that department need to be accompanied by a birthdate. (I only have purchased alcohol there and have been carded and had my birthday recorded every time.)
posted by aine42 at 3:53 PM on January 21, 2003

I used to ask people for their IDs when I wanted to see just HOW old (or how heavy) they were. Just bringing up an alternate view
posted by hoborg at 4:00 PM on January 21, 2003

No picture of the guy. We all look very young here in Wisconsin. Must be all that beer we drink.
posted by pekar wood at 5:49 PM on January 21, 2003

In some states, failure to accept a State Identification Card (ie. not a drivers license) can actually lead to revocation of alcohol/tobacco licenses. It demonstrates the retail outlets misknowledge of law.
posted by benjh at 6:06 PM on January 21, 2003

Speaking of ignorance of the law: if you don't know the laws, it's probably a lot easier to just throw up a blanket statement like "ask everyone for ID, period" figuring you'll never get into any trouble.

Keep your head down. Don't question the boss. When in doubt, do whatever you're told to do; if they ask you about it later, you can say "I was just doing my job."

Good thing there aren't other laws like this that might prevent somebody from getting on an airplane if they choose not to show their ID.
posted by RKB at 6:40 PM on January 21, 2003

In Addison Tx, part of Dallas they have posted, We have the right to card up to the age of 40.

How can they tell?

jyoung: wisconsin has pretty harsh personal liability laws concerning alcohol.

Really? That's interesting. I figured the beer lobby would be pretty powerful in Wisconsin, of all places.
posted by Vidiot at 8:36 PM on January 21, 2003

And yes, yes, I know "newsfilter this" and "newsfilter that."

Or not.
posted by hama7 at 1:48 AM on January 22, 2003

How can they tell?

Vidiot, you hit the hammer on the nail. At what age do you have to look; to buy alcohol. Or even cigarettes as they can card up to the age of 27(?) in Texas.

Not to rant about a store policy but these are policies being enforced by the state and city laws not the store's own policies.

Good thing there aren't other laws like this that might prevent somebody from getting on an airplane if they choose not to show their ID.

PKB, it doesn't always happen but can be enforced: you must have a valid Texas ID to purchase alcohol in Texas.
A nice welcome mat when visiting or moving here...it happened both times for me.
posted by thomcatspike at 11:12 AM on January 22, 2003