CHEERS!
Today is the 75th anniversary of the repeal of the failed social program known as prohibition!
In 1919, with the 18th Amendment to the Constitution, the government outlawed the manufacture, sale, and transportation of "intoxicating liquors." By 1933 however (ratified on Dec. 5), the government was forced into submission, thereby passing the 21st Amendment to the Constitution, which repealed Amendment Eighteen.
The classical liberal tradition of self-government, rule by law instead of man, has been relegated to but mere fantasy over the past 100 years. Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, wrote in his Kentucky Resolutions:
"In questions of power, then, let no more be heard about confidence in man, but bind him down from mischief with the chains of the Constitution."
Concurring, James Madison in The Federalist stated:
"All men having power ought to be distrusted to a certain degree."
The classical liberal spirit of America, that held superior the liberty of individuals and communities to control their own lives, and who learned the valuable lessons of history, holding an inherent distrust of government and its politicians ... has slowly given way to the myth of government as the Supreme Authority.
The United States of America, now having the largest government on the planet, has all but thrown our Declaration of Independence in the garbage, making Washington D.C. our new King.
With the ever-expanding the powers of the executive branch, along with the refusal of Congress to even consider the law of the land - the Constitution of the United States of America - it is no longer debatable ... we are officially traveling the Road to Serfdom.
So tonight, gather up your family and friends, and together enjoy the drink of your choice! Talk about the implications of liberty lost, and then commit to each other to take positive action in the fight to restore liberty once again!
But don't forget to beware those pesky Neo-Prohibitionists!
The well-organized efforts by activists, politicians, government officials, and law enforcement have created a new, "back-door" approach against the "evils" of alcohol. Little by little, they continue to peck away our liberties in the name of a failed policy - prohibition.
"Five years of Prohibition have had, at least, this one benign effect: they have completely disposed of all the favorite arguments of the Prohibitionists. None of the great boons and usufructs that were to follow the passage of the Eighteenth Amendment has come to pass. There is not less drunkenness in the Republic, but more. There is not less crime, but more. There is not less insanity, but more. The cost of government is not smaller, but vastly greater. Respect for law has not increased, but diminished." - H.L. Mencken, 1925
You Drink & Drive, You Lose!
Today, a person should be nervous after enjoying a single beer with a full dinner!
The society and government "do-gooders" are on a mission to prohibit alcohol once again. This time, instead of a straight-forward approach like the 18th Amendment, they are now using the Fabian approach of small, incremental change.
Attacks on free speech via advertising restrictions, violation of the 4th Amendment via roadblocks, and the arbitrary .08 blood alcohol concentration (BAC), the "new drunk" ... have accomplished nothing but the increase in growth of government, and continuance of the never-ending march to take away your inalienable right to enjoy liberty.
In reality, you are more impaired by fumbling with your CD player, talking on the phone, or eating a hamburger than you are with a .08 BAC. So let's address this "back-door" movement, and fight for our right to liberty!
The founder of Mother's Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Candace Lightner, who has since left the organization in opposition to the organizations new extremism, told the Los Angeles Times (December 2002):
"I thought the emphasis on .08 laws was not where the emphasis should have been placed. The majority of crashes occur with high blood-alcohol levels, the .15, .18 and .25 drinkers. Lowering the blood-alcohol concentration was not a solution to the alcohol problem." - Candace Lightner, Los Angeles Times, December 2002
In 1999, the United States General Accounting Office Report to Congressional Committees - HIGHWAY SAFETY Effectiveness of State .08 Blood Alcohol Laws concluded:
" ... that 500 to 600 fewer fatal crashes would occur annually if all states had .08 BAC laws is unfounded."
Regardless of what the alcohol-Nazi's wish to impose on our lives ... I again say cheers! It's a happy anniversary!
Neo-Prohibition Resources:
- The traffic safety community on the real drunk driving problem - and its solutions (PDF).
- Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) becomes the latest victim of government censorship.
- When Drunk Driving Deterrence Becomes Neo-Prohibition.
Take Action! Sign the petition to repeal today's failed prohibition right now!
