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pawelk1986
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11 Sep 2014, 7:28 pm

I recently watched tv documentary about raise and fall of prohibition.

Apparently some Americans opposed to repealing infamous 18 amendment, not because they think prohibition is good, but because they feared that repealing amendment to American Constitution create bad precedent, i just wondering what is bad in annulling faulty law?



naturalplastic
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11 Sep 2014, 8:14 pm

Constitutional Amendments are more than just garden variety statutes. They part of the constitution- part of the foundation of the laws of the land. So you're NOT supposed to take them lightly and mess around with them at every whim- like you're not supposed to impeach every president whom you dont like.

So I suppose that was the reasoning behind the opinion of those folks. But the nation and the Constitution survived the repeal of Prohibition.



Last edited by naturalplastic on 12 Sep 2014, 4:56 am, edited 2 times in total.

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11 Sep 2014, 8:21 pm

You could say that it could potentially set a precedence and I tend to agree.
On the other hand, the 18th was against the spirit of the bill of rights in the first place. The only people that would want to keep prohibition are bible thumpers and health nazis.


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Kraichgauer
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11 Sep 2014, 8:56 pm

Raptor wrote:
You could say that it could potentially set a precedence and I tend to agree.
On the other hand, the 18th was against the spirit of the bill of rights in the first place. The only people that would want to keep prohibition are bible thumpers and health nazis.


There must be a blue moon, as I'm in agreement with you about the types who wanted to keep prohibition. :lol:


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12 Sep 2014, 12:06 pm

Pitty your government doesn't seem to follow the rest of the amendments much. Certainly when it comes to dealing with others in the world, even your most loyal allies.



SignOfLazarus
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12 Sep 2014, 12:36 pm

Verax wrote:
Pitty your government doesn't seem to follow the rest of the amendments much. Certainly when it comes to dealing with others in the world, even your most loyal allies.


And... this contributes to the thread, how?


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ZenDen
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12 Sep 2014, 12:59 pm

Kraichgauer wrote:
Raptor wrote:
You could say that it could potentially set a precedence and I tend to agree.
On the other hand, the 18th was against the spirit of the bill of rights in the first place. The only people that would want to keep prohibition are bible thumpers and health nazis.


There must be a blue moon, as I'm in agreement with you about the types who wanted to keep prohibition. :lol:


Actually all of the criminal element and public that depended on illegal hooch and the associated bribery and ETC., and the politicians that got fat on illegal money were in favor of and promoted Prohibition. These same criminal politicians were probably the ones trying to frighten people with the "precedence" phrase.



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13 Sep 2014, 1:54 am

The film maker Ken Burns created an excellent documentary about the 18th Amendment and the Prohibition years.
First of all, it isn't easy to add an amendment to the US Constitution. A proposed amendment must be passed by a 75% vote in both houses of Congress. The amendment then goes to the states for ratification. When 75% of the states ratify the proposed amendment, it officially becomes part of the Constitution.
I agree that Prohibition was a bad idea. However, that was a different time under different circumstances. Alcoholism was a serious public health crisis at the beginning of the 20th century. Workers were often intoxicated at work at a time when basic safety standards didn't exist. Industrial accidents killed and maimed workers at a time when workers compensation was nonexistent. Prohibition was a desperate attempt to end the destruction caused by alcohol. By no means was it a law forced upon the United States by evangelicals and teetotalers.



Kraichgauer
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13 Sep 2014, 2:22 am

Danimal wrote:
The film maker Ken Burns created an excellent documentary about the 18th Amendment and the Prohibition years.
First of all, it isn't easy to add an amendment to the US Constitution. A proposed amendment must be passed by a 75% vote in both houses of Congress. The amendment then goes to the states for ratification. When 75% of the states ratify the proposed amendment, it officially becomes part of the Constitution.
I agree that Prohibition was a bad idea. However, that was a different time under different circumstances. Alcoholism was a serious public health crisis at the beginning of the 20th century. Workers were often intoxicated at work at a time when basic safety standards didn't exist. Industrial accidents killed and maimed workers at a time when workers compensation was nonexistent. Prohibition was a desperate attempt to end the destruction caused by alcohol. By no means was it a law forced upon the United States by evangelicals and teetotalers.


To be sure, a big part of prohibition had grown out of so called medicines that were mostly alcohol, and which caused children to literally become alcoholics. Such abuses of alcohol had played a major role in the rise of prohibition, though at the end when such spurious medications based on alcohol had been eradicated, it was primarily fundies, teetotalers, and Al Capone and company who opposed legalization of alcohol.


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13 Sep 2014, 3:51 pm

it was the only amendment that was prohibitory in nature, restricting rights rather than expanding them. like the OP said, faulty law; nothing at all wrong with repealing it.



0_equals_true
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13 Sep 2014, 4:15 pm

Kraichgauer wrote:
To be sure, a big part of prohibition had grown out of so called medicines that were mostly alcohol, and which caused children to literally become alcoholics. Such abuses of alcohol had played a major role in the rise of prohibition, though at the end when such spurious medications based on alcohol had been eradicated, it was primarily fundies, teetotalers, and Al Capone and company who opposed legalization of alcohol.


Also a big part was also based on hysteria.

A good example of an a Act based on hysteria was the Garotters' Act of 1863.

A agree the temperance moment did come out of Christian group, but it was a different group of fundies than the current bible belt, a different brand of Christianity.



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13 Sep 2014, 4:48 pm

0_equals_true wrote:
Kraichgauer wrote:
To be sure, a big part of prohibition had grown out of so called medicines that were mostly alcohol, and which caused children to literally become alcoholics. Such abuses of alcohol had played a major role in the rise of prohibition, though at the end when such spurious medications based on alcohol had been eradicated, it was primarily fundies, teetotalers, and Al Capone and company who opposed legalization of alcohol.


Also a big part was also based on hysteria.

A good example of an a Act based on hysteria was the Garotters' Act of 1863.

A agree the temperance moment did come out of Christian group, but it was a different group of fundies than the current bible belt, a different brand of Christianity.


That is absolutely true.


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0_equals_true
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13 Sep 2014, 5:47 pm

Weird, I had no idea this fountain nr where I grew up in London was originally a temperance fountain

Image

I mean it was not anything you would actually drink from, but I know it.



0_equals_true
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13 Sep 2014, 5:52 pm

Now that I look at it, seems bloody obvious
Image


It is actually not far from the church of William Wilberforce the key figure of the Abolitionist (slavery) movement.



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13 Sep 2014, 7:04 pm

pawelk1986 wrote:
I recently watched tv documentary about raise and fall of prohibition.

Apparently some Americans opposed to repealing infamous 18 amendment, not because they think prohibition is good, but because they feared that repealing amendment to American Constitution create bad precedent, i just wondering what is bad in annulling faulty law?


I'm sure that a once little known group of Italian immigrants and their hang-ons were dead set against the repeal of the 18th amendment as running and selling liquor brought them great profits as well as household name notoriety. -- They would have continued to make money selling and running liquor.

There is nothing bad at all with annulling or otherwise repealing bad laws.


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