I wonder how much of a role palate refinement is for this trend. For example: Starbucks, for as terrible as their coffee is, did a lot to elevate the overall regard of coffee; bean juice was no longer just a bitter stew we tolerated to get our caffeine fix. Starbucks broke trail for craft coffee roasting more general popularity.
Could it be the same with alcoholic beverages? I used to think Maker's Mark was the best bourbon going. Now I know better, but so many of the craft bourbons are expensive or just plain hard to find. Ditto for my favorite hazy IPAs. Why binge drink the good stuff when your palate is going to be wrecked after three beers? And since I'm not going to drink swill, welp, guess I'm not going to get drunk tonight!
Holy hell! This was the most succinct, concise, and "yeah, your high school history textbooks whitewashed all this shit" summary of the modern Conservative political machine. It's like Robert Evans, Matt Taibbi, Jake Hanrahan, and Kurt Andersen had a love child that came out as a summary text.
If anyone got to my comment here, but only skimmed parent comment, please do yourself a favor and bask in that bit.