A 14-ounce pint?Byline: The Register-Guard When you buy a gallon gallon: see English units of measurement. of gasoline gasoline or petrol, light, volatile mixture of hydrocarbons for use in the internal-combustion engine and as an organic solvent, obtained primarily by fractional distillation and "cracking" of petroleum, but also obtained from natural gas, by at the service station, you expect to receive 128 fluid ounces fluid ounce or fluidounce n. Abbr. fl oz, fl. oz. A unit of volume or capacity equal to 8 fluid drams or 29.57 milliliters. of fuel - no more, no less. When you purchase a quarter-pound of provolone pro·vo·lo·ne n. A hard, usually smoked Italian cheese. [Italian, augmentative of provola, a kind of cheese.] from the deli, you expect to get 4 ounces of cheese. And when you order a pint pint: see English units of measurement. of ale at a tavern tavern: see inn. , you should be able to count on getting 16 ounces in your glass. Instead, many establishments serve beer in glasses that hold 14 ounces, sometimes even less. There oughta be a law. If state Rep. Jules Bailey, D-Portland, has his way, there will be. Bailey's proposal would stop far short of holding bars, taverns and restaurants to the weights-and- measures standards imposed on other retailers. No pint police would prowl Oregon's bars. Instead, House Bill 3122, the Honest Pint Act, would invite establishments that serve full 16-ounce pints of beer to advertise that fact to customers by means of a standard decal. The decals would be issued by the state inspectors who make regular visits to establishments that serve alcohol; any added cost would be borne by the retailer. Bailey's proposal would do nothing to prevent the widespread practice of serving "cheater pints" in glasses that look like standard pint tumblers For other meanings, see Tumbler. Tumblers were proposed by Ted Nelson in "Literary Machines" as a means to address every bit ever written, or a particular span of bits in any text ever written. A tumbler is a unique numerical address of an interesting artifact. but have thicker bottoms and consequently hold less liquid. The only penalty would be the absence of an "honest pint" sticker on the door. This makes Bailey's bill a modest piece of legislation in a state that takes beer seriously. A more heavyhanded approach would require that a 14-ounce glass be called something other than a pint - it is, after all, 12.5 percent short of a pint, and ideally should cost that much less. Some complain that lawmakers facing a $3 billion budget shortfall have bigger things to worry about than 14-ounce pints of beer. Yet in these recessionary days, the Legislature should do what it can to ensure that Oregonians get what they pay for - or at least are given some way of knowing when they're getting a full pint. The fact that HB 3122 imposes no mandatory standards and involves no public expense makes it a good fit for the times. Now, about those "foot long" hot dogs ... |
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