Atlas Brew Works is suing the federal government (and taking donations to buy beers for government workers)

Deep in the heart of inaction, the Washington, D.C.-based brewery Atlas Brew Works is getting to work as much as it can. The headline grabber is its lawsuit against the federal government, claiming that the shutdown, which is preventing TTB approval of its seasonal IPA, is violating its first amendment rights — not being permitted to sell beer to its out-of-state customers (60 percent of its sales are out-of-state) means it’s not being allowed to speak with them.

This doesn’t feel like a winning argument, but with all of the beers sitting unsellable around the country, and with breweries — small business owners and entrepreneurs — unable to even launch because of permits in limbo, I mean, something here should be suable. So, why not. Good luck Atlas.

But that’s just the big headline. On a smaller but more tangible scale, Atlas has also teamed up to launch PayitFurloughed where people can buy a beer for government workers:

Beer makes everything better, so we’re buying local craft brews for federal employeesi mpacted by the government shutdown.
We need your help!
Donate to the beer fund now. Stressed out federal employees and contractors, who are furloughed or working without pay, score free liquid therapy. Small businesses hit hard by the shutdown get some relief. And you feel awesome. It’s a win-win-win.

As of me writing this, 3,789 beers have been donated. A nice reminder that most people out there are still looking out for each other.