At this point, American craft is as well-known around the world for its IPA as it is its revolutionary rhetoric. And that’s a bit of a shame because that propaganda is now filtering in to countries where it's not necessary. A craft revolution in the Czech Republic? In Germany? Good lord.

Big vs. small, craft vs. crafty, or whatever the fresh new posturing is amongst our smaller—and sometimes surprisingly large—brewers, the old tricks continue to play pretty well with the populace. At least until the next generation of drinkers turns of age and literally has no idea what the fuss is all about.

But the past couple years saw a different kind of rhetoric coming from “the other side.” That is, the weird obfuscation of terms like “joint ventures,” “partnerships,” and “selling in.” Sometimes it feels like the entire U.S. beer industry is afraid of its own shadow.

The truth is that everyone’s got an angle, and they use whatever language they feel they need to stay in the good graces of their customers. Sometimes that gets us the flame-war stump speeches of aging revolutionaries, and sometimes that gets us the smoke and mirrors of newly hired PR professionals trying to land a scary message with an emotional fan base. Both sides are dishonest in their own way, but both want the same thing: Do you like me? Please circle “yes.”

Just as the PR angles on acquisitions reached a sort of boredom-inducing breaking point this past year, Modern Times Founder, Jacob McKean, formerly a social media coordinator in Stone’s marketing department—Isn’t that supposed to not exist?—wrote what became the loudest and most organized pushback on all the fluff with his blog post: What ‘Selling Out’ is Actually About.

Rather than sling his typically hot subtweeted arrows, he instead took a step back and patiently countered the repeated claims that “selling out” is a good thing, step-by-step. And it was because of his thorough analysis based on personal experience and his own business trajectory that it resonated with me so much. Here was an actual opinion based on experience, not just scripture.

That’s not to say I agreed with everything he said. I think there’s plenty in there open to debate (his comment about distribution and access to market is looking more and more naive by the day), and his language falls into political traps at times, but it was the first time I’d seen someone more prone to 140-character rallying cries actually take the time to step back, articulate a bigger-picture argument, and back it up with personal business experiences. It was a wholly welcome voice in the ongoing debate about how small breweries can grow, what they’re up against, and how maybe—just maybe—the things we’re being told about acquisitions are more about trying to resolve the cognitive dissonance of those being acquired than they are about winning anyone over with the idea that it’s all pros and no cons.

And honest critiques like Jacob’s will go a long way toward making a smarter beer drinker who can engage in a debate rather than simply hate. Less reactionary Twitter eggs and more participating citizens. And that’s an investment in everyone’s future, because when it comes to the beer business, there’s are only compromises to be made, I don’t care who you are. And you don’t want to be on the receiving end of a raging horde you helped create on your way to the big time when your own business decisions inevitably become open to question. Train ‘em young. Thanks, Jacob.

—Michael Kiser, GBH