Prohibition Chic

With its gangsters, carnage, and deco backdrops, Prohibition is an enduring popular culture theme. We've recently seen the publication of Daniel Okrent's Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition, and a new HBO "epic drama," Boardwalk Empire, debuts in September. Ken Burns weighs in with a documentary, Prohibition, that will be broadcast on PBS stations in 2011.

The distance of some 90 years makes it seem like good fun. But as Mike Gray reminds us in Drug Crazy, Prohibition let loose a string of horrors—primarily crime and addiction—that continue to plague us and suck up billions in profoundly misspent public resources. The War on Drugs is a tragedy that we can trace directly to this era. Read about it on Libertary and join an informed discussion.