
An illegal substance sold legally. - mattmaroon
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/may/16/opinion/la-oe-0516-okrent-prohibition-20100516
======
mortenjorck
Good thing they didn't have network TV in 1933. Can you imagine the attack ads
against supporters of the 21st Amendment? $congressman is _soft on booze!_ He
supports _drunkards_ who destroy families and abuse _your_ children! THINK OF
THE CHILDREN!

~~~
enjo
Those type of widespread attack ads certainly existed in 1933. Candidates
would often run grass roots mobs (for lack of a better word) that would spread
that type of dirt (and some occasional violence). I've some some interesting
pictures of presidential campaigns in Denver in the 20's and 30's that look
suspiciously like a modern day attack ad (with less mushroom clouds).

Politics seems not to have changed much I reckon:)

~~~
mattmaroon
Yeah, it's not that political tactics have gotten dirtier, it's just that
distribution has gotten easier.

~~~
smallblacksun
I would argue that politics have actually gotten cleaner (in the US). Violence
used to be commonplace in political races, and now are virtually unheard of.

~~~
electromagnetic
Physical violence has, but I've still heard all too many reports of vandalism
in political races and not just from the US media. I'm a brit living in Canada
and I've heard reports of vandalism in political races in the UK, CA and US;
incidentally I've only heard it being committed on left wing supporters.

~~~
nitrogen
_incidentally I've only heard it being committed on left wing supporters._

I don't know why that is, because I've heard of plenty of harassment and
vandalism against conservative supporters (or were they opposed?) of
California's Prop 8 as well, but it didn't get much media coverage. I don't
believe one can say that either liberals or conservatives are more
"enlightened" overall, at least in matters of raw politics.

------
m0th87
This article is based on Okrent's "Last Call: The Rise and Fall of
Prohibition". There's a fascinating interview with the author on NPR:
[http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1266133...](http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=126613316)

Specifically, the commentary on the prohibition for racial profiling was
especially interesting. With 9% of black adults under correctional supervision
[1], a significant portion of whom are there for drug-related charges [2], one
might argue that the War on Drugs is even closer to the prohibition than this
article suggests.

1: <http://www.hrw.org/reports/2000/usa/Rcedrg00-01.htm> 2:
<http://www.drugwarfacts.org/cms/node/64>

------
sosuke
I had to double check which site I was at, those pages look remarkably similar
to most made for AdSense fluff content sites. I wonder just how profitable
those pages are.

~~~
pavel_lishin
I actually disabled ad-block out of curiosity.

I don't understand how people browse without it, now.

~~~
scott_s
Most sites don't have ads placed and sized in this obnoxious a manner.

------
btilly
The author of that wrote [http://www.amazon.com/Last-Call-Rise-Fall-
Prohibition/dp/074...](http://www.amazon.com/Last-Call-Rise-Fall-
Prohibition/dp/0743277023) which I heard an interesting interview about on
NPR.

From that interview I learned that there is a lot about the politics of the
day that I didn't know. For instance did you know that the KKK supported the
Suffrage movement (giving women the vote) because they believed women would
vote for Prohibition, which could be used to target Catholic immigrant groups?
(Immigrants were a major target of the KKK at that time.)

I haven't gotten around to getting that book yet, but it is on my list of
books to read.

------
edw519
_Then as now, the adaptability of the medical profession was impressive._

To provide better care or to make more money?

~~~
pchristensen
Yes.

~~~
CoryMathews
You must be a programmer.

~~~
pchristensen
Guilty as charged.

------
japaget
Link is down. Here's another URL that works for me:
[http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-
oe-0516-ok...](http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-
oe-0516-okrent-prohibition-20100516,0,3951629.story)

------
DanielBMarkham
"Take three ounces every hour for stimulant until stimulated."

This is a great story.

Considering how everything you ingest is a drug (affects you both in mind and
body) it's interesting how various substances become "dangerous" over time --
and how that can be reversed.

~~~
scott_s
That's a tempting definition of _drug_ , but it's easy to dismiss because then
the word would have no meaning. The accepted definition, from m-w.com: _a
substance other than food intended to affect the structure or function of the
body_.

Also, I'm not sure what your overall point is. Alcohol abuse still is
considered dangerous now. (I say this as someone who drinks socially.) If you
want to point out how cultural attitudes change how various substances are
regulated, I don't think just "dangerous" expresses that.

~~~
ajscherer
That is a problematic definition as well. First, intended by whom? Is alcohol
a drug if I drink it to get hammered, and not a drug if I drink it because I'm
thirsty? Or is it the intention of the producer that matters, in which case
how can any naturally occurring substance be a drug?

Looking past that, wouldn't hair gel or plaster used to make a cast for a
broken bone qualify as a drug under that definition?

Maybe the word actually does have less meaning than you suggest. I would
suggest the following definition: _any substance included on Schedules I
through V of the Controlled Substances Act_.

~~~
scott_s
Dictionary definitions are typically not scientific definitions in that they
are colloquial and potentially ambiguous.

The definition implies that the substance has to enter the body somehow, so
hair gel and plaster are out. As for intention, there's potential ambiguity,
but for the most part we know what it means. Word definitions aren't programs,
we can settle for "good enough." But the parents definition was, to me,
obviously too inclusive.

------
stcredzero
Actually, alcohol has therapeutic value for angina.

------
gcb
that's why you guys have 5Liter bottles of booze on walgreens and CVS then.

------
gcb
that's why you guys have 5Liter bottles of booze on walgreens and CVS then.

~~~
gcb
ops, that comment belongs <http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1358144>

