WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024, PROHIBITION AND ALCOHOL - 1

 WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024, PROHIBITION REMEMBRANCE DAY

“Prohibition Remembrance Day is on January 16 annually. Did you know that one of the groups instrumental in the passage of the 18th Amendment was the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU)? They believed an amendment would protect children, women, and families from the effects of alcohol abuse by reducing social problems such as poverty, crime, mental illness, and drunkenness. Prohibition affected society but isn’t as straightforward as it might seem!

I’ve read that if alcohol was a new product, it would not get approval. (I’m not sure about that).  

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Some ONLINE comments on alcohol:

What if there was no alcohol in the world?

If all alcohol disappeared tomorrow, there definitely would be a global drop in deaths and violence. On the other hand, a complete lack of alcohol probably wouldn’t solve all of our substance abuse problems.

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Even now, the debate continues on whether alcohol consumption is good for your health or bad. Even though there is no solid evidence, current reports suggest that moderate drinkers have a longer lifespan than both nondrinkers and heavy drinkers.

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Over time, excessive alcohol use can lead to the development of chronic diseases and other severe problems, including High blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, liver disease, and digestive issues. Cancer of the breast, mouth, throat, esophagus, voice box, liver, colon, and rectum.

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Maybe one of the better sources:

“Nature created both to kill creatures much smaller than us — plants evolved caffeine to poison insect predators, and yeasts produce ethanol (alcohol) to destroy competing microbes.

True to its toxic origins, alcohol kills 3.3 million people each year, bringing about 5.9% of all deaths and 25% of deaths among people aged 20 to 39. Alcohol causes liver disease, many cancers, and other devastating health and social issues.

The article from the Cato Institute suggests that both alcohol and caffeine are powerful drugs that have changed the world. (https://www.cato.org/commentary/alcohol-caffeine-created-civilization)

Early man was dying off from “bad water,” and alcohol killed off many organisms in the water so we could drink it.  

(Aside - Most Americans, Europeans, and others - get water from “good” sources - properly filtered, with some chemicals to treat it. Even on a camping trip, drinking water from a stream can be deadly - with cow and other animals’ waste runoff getting into the water.

I didn’t grow up on a farm but have had well water. 

A government agency says:

“The “National Ground Water Association has determined that 49% of the US population depends on groundwater for its drinking water supply from either a public source or a private well. Groundwater from a properly constructed and maintained well is usually high-quality and safe for drinking.

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Alcohol kills - and yet alcohol entertains. I fit the category of a social drinker. I was trying to remember the last time I had an alcoholic beverage - maybe three weeks ago - and then only one beer. I have a twelve-pack of beer in my kitchen (that I brought for Friendsgiving back in November), and it is unopened. I can remember only two times I intentionally got drunk. (And, neither time involved driving).  

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But, my thoughts today go another way.  

Prohibition banned alcohol (with a few minor exceptions), and it really sparked lots of illegal alcohol production - and even the growth of organized crime with rum runners, moonshine, bathtub gin, and other potables that could be deadly.

American society attempted to legalize morality by making alcohol illegal. The goal was good - the solution was terrible.  

More tomorrow

LOVE WINS

LOVE TRANSFORMS

ALCOHOL CAN KILL 

GOD LOVES US

Karen Anne White, © January 17, 2024