Prohibition
From RationalWiki
Prohibition, as a sort of term of art, refers to the prohibiting of alcohol and psychoactive drugs. It is generally a political stance taken by people who get more out of their favorite vices when they're forbidden.
In a historical context, Prohibition refers to the period of time in between 1919 and 1931 when it was illegal in the United States to produce, possess, transport, purchase, and consume any alcoholic beverage. when it started, Prohibition was widely popular--in fact, Republicans castigated Democrats as the party of "rum, Romanism, and rebellion." It was not until the Great Depression started that enough public sentiment turned against Prohibition.
The natural consequence of this was that organized crime rapidly increased in order to meet the American demand for black market booze. Since the Mafia now had an extremely lucrative racket, they became very rich and powerful, and the crime rate skyrocketed. Consequently the government responded with the formation of the FBI. Critics of the War on Drugs often point to prohibition as a reason why they believe that the legislation of morality does not work.
For Constitutional historians, it is interesting to note that the amendment authorizing Congress to engage in Prohibition (the 18th) is the only amendment to have been subsequently repealed (the 21st). Considering the extreme difficulty in amending the US Constitution, getting both of these passed in the same time frame is rather remarkable.
