Please tell me we're well stocked, barkeep!



http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/2010012...08599195467500

If there's one thing Belgium is known for above all else - more than Tintin, chocolate and female tennis stars - it's beer. The Belgians have a rich beer-making tradition dating back to the Middle Ages and more than 125 breweries today; beer, it is said, is the very lifeblood of the country. But trouble is, literally, brewing. Supplies of Belgium's top brands - Stella Artois, Hoegaarden and Leffe - are rapidly running low in bars and supermarkets as unions have set up blockades outside the country's largest breweries to protest proposed job cuts.


For nearly two weeks, picketers have stacked crates and set fires to block the entrances to the headquarters of Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world's largest brewer, in the city of Leuven, as well as other plants. The protesters have not only prevented any beer from leaving the breweries, they've also stopped the raw ingredients and packaging materials from getting in. At one point, workers at the Jupille plant near LiÈge even took their managers hostage for 11 hours, demanding to speak to the company's top officials, before finally letting them go the following morning. A few days later, the picketers tried a different approach, handing out free beer to passersby. (See pictures of Anheuser-Busch and St. Louis.)


We're RUNNING OUT OF BEER!!!!!