Was the Prohibition 1919 - 1933 a complete failure?

Or can you find any positive aspects about it?
Was the Prohibition 1919 - 1933 a complete failure?
YES.. it was a complete failure... it made very wealthy people for those willing to break the law... just like all these stupid %26#039;wars%26#039; on drugs, crime etc... AmeriKans don%26#039;t KNOW HISTORY... their own or anyone elses... PROHIBITION DIDN%26#039;T WORK... so WHY do the politicians thing the war on DRUGS will work?... IT WON%26#039;T AND IT CAN%26#039;T.
Was the Prohibition 1919 - 1933 a complete failure?
Yes. most people just went to clubs and stuff to drink anyway. most clubs were never stopped even if caught. Prohibition also caused crimes to increase. the government thought it was a great thing to do but obviously they made a mistake.
Reply:Prohibition was a disaster in pretty much every conceivable sense. It led to a boom in violent organized crime. You know those gangsters, like Al Capone, you hear about? Prohibition is the biggest factor that let them rise to power. VAST amounts of money were made from illegal bootlegging, and law enforcement faced huge problems as well, because officers were bribed very often. Drinking suddenly became fashionable, especially in demographics where it was almost taboo before. Namely, women suddenly started visiting speak easies (illegal bars) and drinking, where they didn%26#039;t do so before, or at least to the same extent. In short, it didn%26#039;t stop people from drinking, and just allowed all kinds of other crime.
Reply:I think it was an outright and total failure. Some have pointed out that the reported levels of alcoholism in the country dropped, and perhaps that%26#039;s a positive effect, but the murder rate and the rate of people dying from consuming %26quot;bathtub gin%26quot; skyrocketted. In addition, the Mafia and the black markets were expanded hugely during this period, and the average Americans respect for the law was deeply eroded. My Grandfather, a good man, a law abiding citize (mostly) and a veteran of WWII and Korea said that the problem with prohibition was that almost nobody actually gave up drinking, they just had to break the law to do it, and that any law passed which is broken by most law abiding citizens is a law which undercuts all others.
Reply:it was a collossal failure. it never once did anything that it was supposed to do which was to outlaw alcohol. all it did was make people like al capone and joe kennedy very rich. it increased the crime rates, and did nothing to stem the flow or the manufacturing of whiskey, beer or anything else with alcohol.
Reply:I can%26#039;t think of any positive aspect that in anyway balanced out the damage.


There is some speculation that Prohibition may not have been a complete failure if it had only targeted hard liquor. By prohibiting beer and wine which are so fundamental to so many cultures, it created a nation of criminals, and the underground economy to feed it.


More importantly it raised some serious questions about using the constitution to control vice. None of the last 6 amendments ratified after the repeal of prohibition have anything directly to do with a social behavior.