What did the failure of prohibition in America give us?

Based on the similar characteristics of alcohol and tobacco's harm to human health, hobbies and rapid consumption, this paper analyzes the background, legislative effect and the reasons for the ultimate failure of the American prohibition of alcohol, and draws lessons from it, which can provide useful reference for China's tobacco control legislation.

The revelation is that

Under the background that China's tobacco consumption and demand are relatively strong, tobacco has made a great contribution to the national economy, and the voice of tobacco control at home and abroad is getting stronger and stronger, and the introduction of tobacco control legislation is imminent, how to implement tobacco control legislation is a new topic. In view of the similar consumption characteristics of alcohol and tobacco, this paper analyzes the success or failure of alcohol prohibition in the United States, trying to provide some useful experiences and lessons for China's tobacco control legislation.

First, cigarettes and alcohol have similar consumption characteristics.

Tobacco and alcohol are similar in their effects on human health, hobbies, rapid consumption characteristics and so on. Drinking or smoking for a long time will make people dependent on their hobbies. Tobacco and alcohol are important sources of national fiscal revenue. The consumption of tobacco and alcohol is large and the demand elasticity is small. The demand for tobacco and alcohol will not change because of the change of its price, and there is generally no positive correlation between the consumption of tobacco and alcohol and the income of consumers. Based on the above factors, many countries basically implement quantitative taxation on tobacco and alcohol, and implement business license system or monopoly management.

Second, the background of prohibition of alcohol in the United States

From the late18th century, American society began to brew and had the bud of prohibition of alcohol, and laws and regulations to increase alcohol consumption tax were introduced to limit or reduce alcohol consumption. When World War I broke out, there was a shortage of food in America. Abstainers strongly call for prohibition of alcohol to reduce the food loss caused by wine-making, which has won unprecedented support from most people in society. States that ban alcohol also require a national prohibition law. The American people have a deeper understanding of the harm of alcohol to health and social and economic development, and the National Prohibition Act came into being.

Third, the main contents of the American Prohibition Act

1 91712 18. The US Congress passed the "Amendment to Article18", which has three paragraphs: "Paragraph1prohibits the brewing, sale and transportation of alcohol in the United States and all the territories under its jurisdiction. It is prohibited to import or export such liquor to the United States and all territories under its jurisdiction; Section 2: Congress and the states have the right to implement this article through appropriate legislation; Paragraph 3: This article shall not come into force unless it is approved as a constitutional amendment by the legislatures of each state in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution within seven years from the date when Congress submits it to each state. " In order to effectively promote the implementation of the law, the federal government of the United States has established the Prohibition Bureau, which is responsible for supervising and inspecting the implementation of the prohibition.

Fourth, the consequences of America's prohibition.

After the implementation of prohibition, although severe, American society did not say goodbye to alcohol as the advocates of prohibition hoped. On the contrary, the prohibition law failed to meet the market demand, neglected the desires of some people, and it was difficult to enforce the law, which eventually backfired and brought many negative effects to society. Wine and drinks are rare in America. In order to make huge profits, fake wine and smuggled wine are getting worse. Because the vast majority of bootlegging wines have not passed the quality inspection of social management institutions and do not need to obtain quality certificates, the quality of bootlegging wines cannot be guaranteed. In the absence of supervision, some unscrupulous traders and wine makers blended alcohol with methanol, resulting in a sharp increase in the number of people who were poisoned, blind, disabled and killed. Black-market transactions have strengthened the gang forces, and the crime phenomenon in society has not declined, but the crime rate has soared, which has not really improved the social atmosphere.

Verb (abbreviation of verb) An analysis of the failure of prohibition in the United States

The rise and development of prohibition in the United States has its immigrant social and cultural background, but the reasons for the failure of prohibition are relatively more complicated, including social and cultural changes, human hobbies, economic development and other factors, but to sum up, there are mainly the following reasons: First, the positive social benefits brought by prohibition have not reached the expectations of the people. Everything has positive and negative effects, and America's prohibition of alcohol is no exception. Through the implementation of the prohibition of alcohol, the positive effects outweigh the negative effects in a certain historical period, especially at the beginning of the total prohibition of alcohol, the number of alcoholics decreased significantly, and the trade and production of alcohol were also strictly controlled, which was strongly supported and supported by the people. However, in the subsequent development process, the production and illegal trading of underground wine seriously interfered with the normal social order and people's lives, which made the society dissatisfied with the implementation of the prohibition of alcohol and promoted the pace of lifting the ban. Second, the goal and means of prohibition are out of line, the enforcement of prohibition is not in place, and the law enforcement is weak, which is another reason for the invalidation of prohibition. Prohibition of alcohol conforms to public opinion and is supported by public opinion. However, due to the high cost of law enforcement, the number of law enforcement teams is unbearable, and it is difficult to maintain the support of people, money and materials needed to ensure the implementation of the prohibition. Third, the prohibition of alcohol deviates from the social needs of the United States and deviates from American values in the process of law enforcement. With the development of American economy, the cultural level and moral quality of residents have improved, and the understanding of alcohol has also changed, and the social foundation on which prohibition of alcohol originally existed has been shaken. Forcibly changing drinkers' habits is to curb their demand, not to ban alcohol by persuading them, which will inevitably be strongly resisted and opposed by alcohol producers and demanders.

6. Enlightenment of American Prohibition on China's tobacco control legislation.

First of all, tobacco control legislation should adapt to economic and social life. Through the analysis of the history of prohibition in the United States, the introduction of any laws and regulations is in line with national politics, economy and culture. China's tobacco control legislation should fully consider the reality that China's economy is underdeveloped and the tobacco industry is still a pillar industry of national fiscal revenue. Tobacco still plays a huge role in the national economy and infrastructure construction, which is helpful to solve the employment population and other aspects. Market mechanism should be introduced to adjust the interests of all parties and end the trend of tobacco expansion. Second, tobacco control legislation should consider the market demand of China and the background of economic globalization. A serious consequence of the failure of prohibition in the United States is the deviation between prohibition and demand. At present, the number of smokers in China is as high as 350 million, and cigarette sales account for 35% of the total global cigarette sales. It is the country with the largest smoking population and the largest market demand in the world. From a global perspective, developed countries have a tendency to further explore the tobacco market in developing countries. China's tobacco control legislation must give consideration to market demand and demand substitution, and prevent the resurgence of smuggling and illegal manufacturing and selling dens while prohibiting or controlling domestic tobacco production and sales, which will cause more serious harm to the country and society. Third, tobacco control legislation should take into account the rights of smokers and passive smokers. Tobacco control legislation should protect and standardize people's freedom and respect the interests and rights of all parties. First, it is necessary to protect the free right of passive smokers not to accept passive smoking and protect the health of passive smokers; The second is to regulate the freedom of smokers in order to protect the health of passive smokers to the maximum extent. Tobacco control legislation should restrict smokers from smoking in public places and other behaviors that endanger others' health, publicize the harm of smoking in family and private space to their own health, and give support and help to quit smoking. Fourth, tobacco control legislation should fully consider the cost of law enforcement. In China, the means to ban smoking and the social resources needed are enormous. If the means of smoking control or law enforcement can't keep up with the requirements of the law, there will inevitably be an embarrassing situation in the prohibition of alcohol in the United States-the goal and means of alcohol prohibition are out of line, which will lead to the failure of tobacco control, but it may be more rampant. Judging from the experience of tobacco control legislation and law enforcement in various parts of China, there have always been problems of non-compliance with laws and difficulty in law enforcement. For example, Shanghai and other places have introduced regulations prohibiting smoking in public places. However, in the process of law enforcement in these cities, the common difficulties are unclear law enforcers, lack of law enforcement departments or units, lack of law enforcement funds and personnel, and ineffective law enforcement. The law prohibiting smoking in public places has become a dead letter.

To sum up, the prohibition of alcohol in the United States experienced a tortuous process of brewing, development and failure. China's tobacco control legislation should fully draw lessons from the failure of the American smoking ban, fully consider the market demand, humanities, customs, economy and social background of China tobacco, and introduce tobacco control laws and regulations that can adapt to China's national conditions, protect people's health, avoid negative social impact and promote harmonious social development.

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