With a university campus that claims more than 40,000 bodies and a Capitol that employs government officials from the state over, Madison’s population is about as socially diverse as one could imagine. But politicos and students alike have long been able to put their work behind and unify over one powerful force come nightfall: alcohol.

With a plethora of watering holes — from The Public House, where Peg Lautenschlager downed a few before hitting the road, to State Street Brats, where painted faces are acceptable on game days — the city plays host to numerous bars, each with its own flavor and each contributing to the isthmus’ magnificent aura.

But thanks to an arcane 20th-century state law that caps the distribution of hard liquor licenses, Madison is now staring down at least seven new restaurant/bar owners who would like to serve the good stuff, while only able to furnish six with permits. That the city seems to have been totally unaware of this collision-course with dryness should come as a surprise, but reflecting on the City Council’s strong anti-business attitude of late, such an ignorance-laced slap to the face of potential restaurant and bar owners really shouldn’t come as a surprise.

The new year looks to furnish Madison entrepreneurs with the least economic freedom yet, especially those in the speakeasy business. Jan. 1 saw the first increment of a multi-phase minimum-wage hike hit payrolls, with business owners now being forced to give certain employees mandatory raises. With Middleton, Verona and other surrounding areas entirely unbound by this ordinance, the competitive advantage to non-Madison businesses has now officially been ceded, and the price of doing business within city limits is skyrocketing.

Worse yet for the local bar scene, this summer will see an end to alcohol’s best friend: tobacco. Cigarettes, cigars, pipes, hookahs and all other forms of paraphernalia will be banned from saloons, and business owners who have already dished out bundles of money for liquor licenses and quality locales will suddenly see their appeal decline to countless clients.

To be sure, Madison didn’t need to regulate a smokeless bar scene; laissez-faire forces had already given local asthmatics Dotty Dumpling’s Dowry and Crave, among other pubs and restaurants. But the City Council clearly thinks so poorly of its constituency that some level of parenting had to be introduced, lest Joe Camel ever surface near a handle of whiskey.

Of course, the smoking ban may just be enough to put the necessary number of bars out of business so their licenses will be ripe for the picking by new applicants. The irony is astounding.

The good news is that it’s not too late. With spring elections around the corner, we can send a clear message to our representatives that Madison should be a friendly environment for business, not a quasi-Orwellian daycare center for the rich who can afford it. And this board will not rest until we can all take to the bar of our choice and tip a bartender making standard wage for emptying our ashtrays.