Anniversary of Prohibition

Prohibition Anniversary

https://www.morningbrew.com/daily/stories/2020/01/10/legacy-prohibition-100-years-later

On January 17, 1920, Prohibition began.  

Looking at what happened (from the article) we have:

The idea of "organized crime" in the U.S. can be directly linked to Prohibition. Traditionally acting as musclemen for political bosses, gangsters became savvy operators of interstate, and sometimes international, bootlegging schemes. They made millions and funneled it into secondary businesses like drugs, gambling, and prostitution. 

Prohibition helped start NASCAR.  Drivers would speed up their cars to avoid arrest - and sometimes raced against each other - leading to regular stock car races!!

But, it isn’t all rosy

The Center for Disease Control has these statistics:

“Our national drinking habit costs society $249 billion a year. That cost comes primarily from excessive drinking -- bingeing on four or more drinks per evening or drinking heavily all week long. That total cost manifests itself primarily in things like early mortality due to alcohol ($75 billion of the total), lost productivity and absenteeism at work ($82 billion), health-care costs ($28 billion), crime ($25 billion) and car crashes ($13 billion).

There are also other hidden costs.  I know women whose marriages were cut short by alcoholic husbands who were abusive.  Alcoholism can sometimes go from generation to generation as children of alcoholics have a greater probability of becoming an alcoholic.  There are also driving drunk groups.  MADD and SADD - Mothers against Drunk Driving and Students against Drunk Driving.  I know of a girl whose parents were killed by a drunk driver and eventually went to a foster home.  

The American Addiction Center writes

“Alcohol abuse and alcoholism within a family is a problem that can destroy a marriage or drive a wedge between members. That means people who drink can blow through the family budget, cause fights, ignore children, and otherwise impair the health and happiness of the people they love. Of married couples who get into physical altercations, some 60-70 percent abuse alcohol. In time, family members may even develop symptoms of codependency, inadvertently keeping the addiction alive, even though it harms them. Family therapy and rehab can help.”

The Betty Ford foundation stated:

“Most people with alcohol dependence have experienced memory problems and slowed thinking that comes with alcohol use. While drinking, they may have difficulty recalling memories or remembering new information, such as a person's name. Afterward, they may experience a blackout: an inability to remember entire conversations or events that occurred while they were drinking.”

WebMD adds:

“Thirty seconds after your first sip, alcohol races into your brain. It slows down the chemicals and pathways that your brain cells use to send messages. That alters your mood, slows your reflexes, and throws off your balance.

Alcohol can have other effects on the body - poor sleep, kidney problems, more stomach acid, and even shrinking of your brain!!!

I rarely drink too much.  (The last time I was drunk was about 7 or 8 years ago when I intentionally drank to get drunk).  I did have a little wine and champagne on New Year’s Eve and a beer at my nieces for Christmas. 

For me, on the sidelines, I guess I am a very light social drinker.  I can go weeks and months without an alcoholic drink.  

How about you?  Do you know how your family adjusted to Prohibition?  My grandmother was active in the WCTU - Women’s Christian Temperance Union - and, to my knowledge, my parents would rarely, if ever, have a small sip of wine. 

Hugs!!!

Karen