American Brewer Spring 2012 : Page 26

open. Canada had implemented national prohibition in 1918, two years before America. But the temperance movement was never as strong in Britain as it was in the U.S. Prohibitionists had been active in Britain for over a century, and one of the many explanations for where the word “teetotaler” came from involves a man named The Art of Suppression: Pleasure, Panic, Richard Turner. A stammerer, and Prohibition Since 1800 he reportedly told the Preston By Christopher Snowden Temperance Society in 1833 Little Dice 246 pp $19.99 that he would give up booze and be “reet down out-and-out t-t-ne of the lessons learned from Prohibition is that while t-total for ever and ever.” But a total ban on alcohol sales might never happen again, temperance never had the support prohibitionists are still out there thinking up new ways to of the Church of England, and block our right to drink. That’s why it’s always valuable British aristocrats liked drinking to study the history of Prohibition, because the arguments too much to demand that workers give up beer. As Lord Randolph made in the past will inevitably come up in the future, and the better Churchill once said, “The aristocracy and the working class are united we know prohibitionist arguments the better we are able to refute them. in the indissoluble bonds of a common immorality.” Christopher Snowdon, a British author whose previous books American prohibitionists sent William “Pussyfoot” Johnson include a history of the war against smoking, has written a short book to Britain to lobby. He was confronted by some medical students who that is not only a history of Prohibition but a history of efforts to prohibit captured him, covered him with flour, put him on a stretcher and shouted, other drugs, including opium; legal designer drugs tweaked from banned “What won the war? Rum!” Britain imposed no further prohibitionist products; “date-rape drugs” such as Rohypnol; and snus, a Swedish restrictions, and wets narrowly won prohibitionist referenda in Sweden form of smokeless tobacco. and New Zealand. While Snowdon’s book is very some Canadian provinces But temperance never had the similar to Stuart Weston’s stayed dry, Quebec legalized Out of It, the difference support of the Church of England, alcohol by 1920. By 1925, being that Weston was prohibitionists were too and British aristocrats liked looking at the effects of busy keeping restrictions different kinds of drugs and in place in America to drinking too much to demand that Snowdon is largely writing worry about making other workers give up beer. history. countries ban alcohol. About half of The Art As for the $50 million of Suppression is about the World League allegedly alcohol and half about other products. Snowdon conclusively shows that had, Snowdon notes that the annual budget of the organization never the effort to ban snus was misguided, since there’s no credible evidence exceeded $77,000. that low-nicotine snus cause cancer. The effect of blocking snus sales Can prohibition come back? Snowdon shows that a lot of public was to force users to smoke cigarettes, which are far more carcinogenic. health officials in Britain are eager to impose such restrictions as banning Snowdon also shows that the number of date rapes resulting solely from pub games, tripling the price of beer and imposing a minimum drinking the use of drugs is minuscule. age of 21. He describes the career of David Nutt, who was sacked as Snowdon’s history of Prohibition is accurate, but readers seeking a head of a British scientific advisory committee on drug use after he more thorough look at Prohibition history should read Daniel Okrent’s called for Ecstasy to be Last Call. Snowdon, partially decriminalized. however, takes a global response was to What, one might ask, would not be Nutt’s view, and looks at the demand that alcohol be reasons why Prohibition made a “Class A” drug banned if it were invented today? did not become a the most restrictive Tobacco, butter, chocolate, caffeine, -worldwide crusade. classification Britain has. On January 4, 1920, Nutt argued that alcohol, hamburgers and Coca Cola would the New York Times ran were it discovered today, struggle on health grounds. a story with the headline would be highly illegal. “Now for a World War, Nutt’s argument, Waged Against Demon Snowdon writes, “is more a reflection of the risk-averse times we live in Rum”. The story said that the World League Against Alcoholism than an indictment of alcohol itself. What, one might ask, would not be had a $50 million war chest with a goal of implementing worldwide banned if it were invented today? Tobacco, butter, chocolate, caffeine, prohibition by 1930. hamburgers and Coca-Cola would struggle on health grounds.” The dries could look to many small victories and one large one. Both The Art of Suppression is an interesting book by a forceful and Britain and Australia had imposed wartime restrictions on the strength persuasive writer who reminds us that eternal vigilance is the price of beer and had also severely limited the number of hours pubs could be drinkers must pay to ensure that our right to drink remains secure. O 26 American Brewer Spring 2012

Book Reviews

Morse Wooster

The Art of Suppression: Pleasure, Panic, and Prohibition Since 1800 One of the lessons learned from Prohibition is that while a total ban on alcohol sales might never happen again, prohibitionists are still out there thinking up new ways to block our right to drink. That’s why it’s always valuable to study the history of Prohibition, because the arguments made in the past will inevitably come up in the future, and the better we know prohibitionist arguments the better we are able to refute them. Christopher Snowdon, a British author whose previous books include a history of the war against smoking, has written a short book that is not only a history of Prohibition but a history of efforts to prohibit other drugs, including opium; legal designer drugs tweaked from banned products; “date-rape drugs” such as Rohypnol; and snus, a Swedish form of smokeless tobacco. Snowdon’s book is very similar to Stuart Weston’s Out of It, the difference being that Weston was looking at the effects of different kinds of drugs and Snowdon is largely writing history. About half of The Art of Suppression is about alcohol and half about other products. Snowdon conclusively shows that the effort to ban snus was misguided, since there’s no credible evidence that low-nicotine snus cause cancer. The effect of blocking snus sales was to force users to smoke cigarettes, which are far more carcinogenic. Snowdon also shows that the number of date rapes resulting solely from the use of drugs is minuscule. Snowdon’s history of Prohibition is accurate, but readers seeking a more thorough look at Prohibition history should read Daniel Okrent’s Last Call. Snowdon, however, takes a global view, and looks at the reasons why Prohibition did not become a worldwide crusade. On January 4, 1920, the New York Times ran a story with the headline “Now for a World War, Waged Against Demon Rum”. The story said that the World League Against Alcoholism had a $50 million war chest with a goal of implementing worldwide prohibition by 1930. The dries could look to many small victories and one large one. Both Britain and Australia had imposed wartime restrictions on the strength of beer and had also severely limited the number of hours pubs could be open. Canada had implemented national prohibition in 1918, two years before America. But the temperance movement was never as strong in Britain as it was in the U.S. Prohibitionists had been active in Britain for over a century, and one of the many explanations for where the word “teetotaler” came from involves a man named Richard Turner. A stammerer, he reportedly told the Preston Temperance Society in 1833 that he would give up booze and be “reet down out-and-out t-tt- total for ever and ever.” But temperance never had the support of the Church of England, and British aristocrats liked drinking too much to demand that workers give up beer. As Lord Randolph Churchill once said, “The aristocracy and the working class are united in the indissoluble bonds of a common immorality.” American prohibitionists sent William “Pussyfoot” Johnson to Britain to lobby. He was confronted by some medical students who captured him, covered him with flour, put him on a stretcher and shouted, “What won the war? Rum!” Britain imposed no further prohibitionist restrictions, and wets narrowly won prohibitionist referenda in Sweden and New Zealand. While some Canadian provinces stayed dry, Quebec legalized alcohol by 1920. By 1925, prohibitionists were too busy keeping restrictions in place in America to worry about making other countries ban alcohol. As for the $50 million the World League allegedly had, Snowdon notes that the annual budget of the organization never exceeded $77,000. Can prohibition come back? Snowdon shows that a lot of public health officials in Britain are eager to impose such restrictions as banning pub games, tripling the price of beer and imposing a minimum drinking age of 21. He describes the career of David Nutt, who was sacked as head of a British scientific advisory committee on drug use after he called for Ecstasy to be partially decriminalized. Nutt’s response was to demand that alcohol be made a “Class A” drug - the most restrictive classification Britain has. Nutt argued that alcohol, were it discovered today, would be highly illegal. Nutt’s argument, Snowdon writes, “is more a reflection of the risk-averse times we live in than an indictment of alcohol itself. What, one might ask, would not be banned if it were invented today? Tobacco, butter, chocolate, caffeine, hamburgers and Coca-Cola would struggle on health grounds.” The Art of Suppression is an interesting book by a forceful and persuasive writer who reminds us that eternal vigilance is the price drinkers must pay to ensure that our right to drink remains secure.

Previous Page Next Page

Publication List
Using a screen reader? Click Here