Do you ever take a moment to think about the fact that Americans, the people of the land of the free, spent 13 years under Prohibition? Did you know that Americans used to seriously “drink like a fish”? And no, I’m not talking about fraternity men in college. I’m talking about everyone, everywhere, from George Washington’s parties to lunchtimes in the manufacturing factories (until Henry Ford put a stop to it, you know, for efficiency purposes). Then Prohibition happened.
What were the forces that drove Prohibition into existence? Our first and only constitutional amendment to be repealed, what was so severe about America under prohibition that it only lasted 13 years? How did a guy smuggle whiskey into America in an egg carton?
All that and more on this episode with Wabash College Professor Nicholas Snow. Tune in!
Want to explore more?
- Read John Alcorn's 2019 series on prohibition of all kinds at EconLog.
- Daniel Okrent on Prohibition and his Book, Last Call, an EconTalk podcast.
- Lysander Spooner, Vices are Not Crimes. A Vindication of Moral Liberty, at the Online Library of Liberty.
- Randy Simmons on Public Choice, a Great Antidote podcast.
- Sandra Peart on Ethical Quandaries and Politics Without Romance, a Great Antidote podcast.
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