More on Rogue's Alleged Green Dragon Takeover

Wow…. You know you F**ked up when the lawyers are contacting ya.. :-O

Attorney General of Rogue Nation is a pretty sweet title.

I obviously didn’t sneak anything in if you are getting it. Seriously, there’s no hate for Rogue, just skepticism of their practices, prices, and intentions. Rogue will not suffer from this enterprise, but their appeal to the type of people who really made Rogue and others what they are will be tarnished. Further, I agree that the Dragon has as much to do with this as Rogue. The way prices at GD have been lately ($6/8oz for stuff that is half that at Bailey’s etc) is reflective of their bottom line attitude as well. And whoever said the good stuff about Rogue, they were right. I am not a Rogue hater. But I am not going to sit back while they rip people off in the name of marketing. Afterall, we live in the land of plenty. We have other choices. Rogue will last as long as they cater to markets like the Pearl District, the Oregon Coast and SF. I will continue to get my free b-day beer, too. Thankfully next year I can do it smokefree.

Owned by the man!!!

Man..pleeeese just leave the Dragon as is and just add a few Rogue beers. If they loose the wonderful beer selection…I’m gone

http://beerdirector.draftmag.com/2008/11/14/green-dragon-and-rogue/

“I went to the green dragon last night and went to the bathroom. I looked up on the chalk board and loved the big “Fuck Rogue in the ass” that someone had wrote on it.”

I guess that sums up the mentality of the average Green Dragon patron/employee. No wonder two sets of owners couldn’t seem to make the place work.

It’s not a hostile takeover–Rogue wouldn’t be buying if GD wasn’t selling–I wonder why that’s so hard for some people to understand.

And I’m no fan of Rogue. In fact, I hate their pubs.

To the people who are commenting with sentiments like, “But it’s not a hostile takeover, it’s just a reality that GD is selling and Rogue is buying, etc., so you shouldn’t be mad about it.”

That’s got nothing to do with it. Here’s how I feel: I hate the Rogue pub, so I never go there. I like Green Dragon, so I do go there. If Rogue buys GD, I won’t go there – not because of any misguided opposition to capitalism or corporate hegemony, but just because I hate Rogue. End of story.

I’ll be at Green Dragon after work today for (probably) the last time. I have no problem sucking down beers at Lucky Lab or Roots or Bailey’s or any number of other beer joints. But Rogue is shit, and would be shit even if they never bought Green Dragon.

Fuck Rogue in the ass indeed.

The Facts are that Ed wants out of the business and only notified after talking to Rogue well beforehand. I just want to make beer and run the place that I built. It’s a rough business so I can see why Ed wants out – but anything worth doing is worth fighting for! There may be a reason rogue hasn’t even contacted me. I know you guys are looking so feel free to call me. My # is 541-350-8864. Cheers, LoLo.

Declaration of War

We the minority owners of The Green Dragon, the little people, the Founders Club, the loyal patrons who love the Dragon so, openly declare war on the oppressive forces of the Rogue Nation. We make this Declaration in response to Rogue’s direct attack upon the Dragon.

For those who do not know, Rogue is seeking to execute a hostile take over of the Dragon. This takeover is against the wishes of the masses. Our pockets may not be deep, but our hearts are, and our numbers many.

I implore you to visit Rogue’s website and read their creed, their declaration of independence and what they believe in. Their creed makes many claims about the beliefs and values of the Nation. If you read the creed you will see that the Nation’s actions are in direct violation of their creed. Due to the Nation’s direct violation of their creed we request that all members of the Nation, who believe in what Rogue allegedly stands for, to stand with us in our new revolution. We encourage you to act in some sort of symbolic protest. Perhaps all members of the Nation who are against the Treasonous acts of their leaders, mail or deliver their Nation ID’s back to Rogue. Ghandi was at the forefront of non-violence protest, the art of Satyagraha—the résistance to tyranny through mass civil disobedience. Join us!

Rogue claims to be a small revolution. They aspire to be a successful organization “without being big.” Rogue claims they will “stand up to the big guy trying to bully his way into whatever business or territory he wants.” They claim Rogue will be “David.” In Rogue’s “Fundamental Agreement” they make many claims such as: “they will be honest on the battlefield, and most important “cut out the BS.”

The Nation further believes as stated in their “Declaration of Independence” that the members of their nation “are endowed with certain unalienable Rights, that among these Freedom of Expression, Absence of Bull Shit, Variety, and the pursuit of Beer with Taste. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituting among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the Consumers: that when any Form of Government becomes destructive to taste, Expression, Quality, or Fun, it is the right of the Consumers to alter or to abolish it and to institute a new Government.” Further, they declare that all members of their Nation shall “of Right ought to be Free and Independent.” Well Rogue, we the Consumers, we the family of Green Dragon, wish to abolish you from our nation.

The leaders of the Nation need to take a long look in the mirror. There they will find a bunch of hypocrites. They are a large multi-national corporation, seeking to take down the little guy. I am certain this backdoor sneak attack, an undercover theft of the Dragon, is not “honesty on the battlefield.” The Dragon’s alleged crime: trying to build a place for the neighborhood, a place where friends and family can drink good beer and food at reasonable prices. We the family of the Dragon truly represent David and we will take down the Goliath known as Rogue. If they truly believe the claims they make on their website, they will lay their arms down and leave the battlefield. If you, the leaders of the Nation surrender now, we many revolutionaries will take no further action, you will be allowed to return to your homes. However, you will get no spoils of war from us.

Just like the founding fathers based at the Original Green Dragon, who formed a revolution to crush the British, we also will spill Rogue’s Tea. The Founding Fathers of the United States wrote in their Declaration of Independence: “When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal stationed to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the cause which impel them to separation.” (July 4, 1776). We, the many of the Dragon, are equally stationed, our opinions dictate and require that you remain separate. Two separate nations free to do what they desire.

This aggression will not stand….man (“The Dude”)

“Let us cry havoc and release the [dragons] of war.” (William Shakespeare and his dogs)

Signed—

The Many. The Proud. The family of the Dragon.

I am employed by a company that is owned by my sister in law. I suppose you could consider me the S.A.B.I.L. (sorry assed brother in law). Most (not all) of my fellow employees are nearly half my age, yet I feel that the work I do is done well as efficiently. The pay is adequate. The job requires that I travel all over the U.S. and sometimes even into Canada, I usually stay just less than a week in each work location.
I like beer and especially micro brewed beer. In addition I love collecting beer shirts and caps. So trips to Portland, Or. are especially anticipated. Recently I was assigned to a job in Vancouver, Wa. I arrived a few days earlier and had planned a two day “pub crawl” I plotted out numerous pubs to visit. Essentially, my first afternoon was spent on the West side of the river and the next day on the East. One of my favorite beers is made by Deschutes, so my first stop was the new location in the Pearl District. I then went to the Rogue location and then to Bridgeport. I have been to the later location before and I was in awe of the massive sized urinals. Finally I arrived at the New Old Lompoc location and had a quick pint. My (sober) driver then took me to my motel over across the Columbia. As I estimated, I was not able to visit all of the pubs I had planned to visit on my first day. Regardless, I feel I accomplished what I set out to do and I really looked forward to the following day.
The next day started with my third attempt to find Hair of the Dog brewery actually opened. Once again it appeared closed so I drove away. I called the brewery as I was leaving and luckily Alan answered and informed me that he was, in fact, there in the brewery. I turned around and spent about an hour chatting and helping to place bottles into boxes. I purchased a tee shirt (Fred) and a sampler six-pack. My next stop was Hopworks Urban Brewery. I was very impressed. Then I went Root’s and then the Lucky Lab. I was disappointed with the Lucky Lab. Actually I was turned off by the people working there. Everywhere I went the people were truly hospitable and friendly. Usually they would ask what sort of beer I liked and to be honest I find that a difficult question to answer. Most provided multiple samplers until I found one I liked. While I was at the Root’s location the young lady at the bar recommended that I visit the Green Dragon. It was not on my list and I had determined by that time that I would never make all of the pubs on my list. I had planned to visit the Horse Brass Pub (which happened to be my last stop) but as I was leaving I passed the Green Dragon so I decided to go off of he list and try it out.
This turned out to be a wise choice. The staff was so friendly and helpful. The bartender gave me a “blind taste” sample of a beer and I think I may have impressed him when I identified it. I loved the tee shirt with their logo. But I was sad to find that they did not have one in my size (XXL). I keep hoping one may be available I hated to leave the Green Dragon but I had to move on.
I have read that the Green Dragon may be purchased by Rogue and some of it “essence” by be lost. I suppose that is true. I probably never will be able to get a Green Dragon tee shirt either. But this is America, the land of free enterprise. Where Portland’s largest brewery is 39% owned by AB Inbev a European company and both Miller and Coors are owned by the government of South Africa (SAB). Texas’ beloved Lone Star ( the national beer of Texas) and Pearl (three X’s for Texas) are owned by Pabst Brewing and Shiner Beer and Bridgeport Beers are owned by the same company that imports Corona. Craft brews have made their case and they are here to stay. Persons from Portland should be especially proud of that. I live in Central Texas and the availably of some of my favorite beers is limited. (Rogue does have some here). I live about 60 miles from Austin, Texas. Austin is the closest thing I have found to Portland. But their Brew Pub scene is microscopic compared to Portland’s.
In a way I am sorry about the Green Dragon losing it’s individuality, but I would be willing to suggest that the owners of same will make a healthy profit on their venture and after all is not that the American Way?

I normally do not write as much as I do and probably no one will read this. But I will list my top five beers.

1. Red Seal Ale
2. Magic Hat # 9
3 Harpoon I.P.A.
4. Deschute’s Black Butte Porter
5. New Glarus Brewery “Fat Squirrel”