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Busch Sponsorship Revisited
a year later....
06/13/2003 - After a full season under our belts on the BASS Tour with Anheuser Busch as a sponsor, I would like to take a minute to fully express my opinions about Busch and bass fishing.
Many seem to think I am vehemently opposed to Busch being involved in bass fishing. This is not true. I am not against Busch being a sponsor of the Tour. I have said all along that their involvement could potentially be a very good thing for the sport. A successful Busch marketing campaign on the BASS Tour could open the eyes of other potential non-endemic sponsors.
What I have taken issue with for the past year is the idea of being forced to promote Busch, or any alchoholic drink for that matter. This is simply a personal conviction, it is not a question of right or wrong. There is nothing in the Bible that condemns drinking a beer. The Bible condemns getting drunk, but even Jesus drank wine from time to time.
I don't even consider this conviction of not promoting alchohol to be one of a "religious" nature. I simply dont want to promote something that could possibly have a negative effect on someone. If everyone in America who drank alchohol did so responsibly, I could promote Busch Beer. Unfortunately, too much alchohol leads to too much pain, sorrow and death - stuff I dont want to contribute to.
After winning BASS Angler-of-the-Year this season, I have nothing but kudos for the people at Anheuser Busch. They appreciate and respect my convictions, and have told me I don't have to do any promoting of Busch if I don't want to. That is a refreshing dose of liberty compared to the plans BASS introduced to us at the beginning of the season.
If BASS had said from the very beginning that the AOY would not have to promote Busch if he didn't want to, think of all the trouble and controversy they could have avoided.
I appreciate the fine folks at Anheuser Busch. Now that I am not forced to promote their products, I hope they are here to stay. Where freedom exists, so too does love.
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