How true, and perfectly illustrated by the kid-glove handling received by Noelle Bush as opposed to the kind received by your average victim of the DrugWar. Which often leads to this.

13 years ago, Professor Charles Whitebread spelled out his “Iron Law of Prohibition” quite plainly: a substance prohibition is enacted by a clearly identifiable “Us” to be used against a clearly identifiable “Them”. When the laws begin ensnaring “Us” they are done away with. As he put it:

Now, all you need, and here is my formula, for a new prohibition every time is what? We need an intractable, difficult, social, economic, or medical problem. But that is not enough. There has to be another thing. It has to divide by class — by social or economic class, between US and THEM.

You know the Federal Government has been spending a lot of money since 1968 trying to persuade us not to smoke. And, indeed, the absolute numbers on smoking have declined very little. But, you know who has quit smoking, don’t you? In gigantic numbers? The college-educated, that’s who. The college-educated, that’s who doesn’t smoke. Who are they? Tomorrow’s what? Movers and kickers, that’s who. Tomorrow’s movers and kickers don’t smoke. Who does smoke? Oh, you know who smokes out of all proportion to their numbers in the society — it is the people standing in your criminal courtrooms, that’s who. Who are they? Tomorrow’s moved and kicked, that’s who.” (Emphasis mine – k.)

And that’s what its’ always been about; the ‘moved and kicked’. But they and those who do the moving and kicking are both heading towards Perdition and dragging the rest of us along, ostensibly (what else?) ‘for our own good’.

We’re coming, we’re coming, our brave little band
On the right side of temperance we do take our stand
We don’t use tobacco, because we do think
The people who use it are likely to drink

(Chorus)
Away, away with rum by gum, with rum by gum, with rum by gum
Away, away with rum by gum, the song of the temperance union

We never eat fruit cake because it has rum
And one little taste turns a man to a bum
Oh, can you imagine a sorrier sight
Than a man eating fruit cake until he gets tight

We never eat cookies because they have yeast
And one little bite turns a man to a beast
Oh, can you imagine a sadder disgrace
Than a man in the gutter with crumbs on his face

If you wash your hair, never rinse it with beer
Because if you do, you’ll get foam in your ear
And if there’s one thing a young man must dread
It’s dating a girl with a head on her head

If you pick your navel, don’t do it with a knife
Because if you do you’ll get the shock of your life
Oh, can you imagine a site quite a horrid
As a man pulling out his umbilical cord

We never eat peaches, because peaches ferment
And peaches ferment at the least little dent
Oh can you imagine a sorrier sight
Than a man drunk on peaches he thought were alright

We never eat oatmeal, because oatmeal is mush
And one little bite turns a man to a lush
Oh can you imagine the pain of a ma
To watch little junior act just like his pa

We never chew toothpicks because we recall
That wood ferments into wood alcohol
Oh can you imagine a sorrier sight
Than a man chewing toothpicks until he gets tight

We never drink water, they put it in gin
One little sip and a man starts to grin
Oh can you imagine the horrible sight
Of a man drinking water and singing all night