The Plague Of Public Health Part 1 - The Black Market

Following on from yesterday’s blog entry, I have decided to look deeper into the consequences  of the Prohibition Era that we are entering.

This blog entry is the first of (probably) three entries that will look at different aspects and consequences of Prohibition over the course of the next 3 days. We start today with 'The Black Market'.

The Black Market

One of the first things to happen when we enter in to a Prohibitionist world is that the amount of illicit activity greatly ramps up. It was most obvious during the American Prohibition Experiment during the early 20^th Century. In America, there suddenly emerged huge swathes of bootleggers feeding the hunger for alcohol both directly to the masses and indeed to the numerous speakeasy premises that sprung up all over the country. Of course, the people who controlled all this illicit booze was the criminal element, often the organised crime syndicates popularised as Gangsters. Huge amounts of money was simply waiting to be made and these people filled the void that was opened up by the Government and made absolute fortunes from the illicit trade. The other people that made large amounts of money were the corrupt politicians who were paid off to turn a blind eye to the criminal enterprises, or indeed may actually have been directly involved themselves.

The point is that what the American experiment proved is that prohibition fails. The free market and the very citizens that public health are trying to protect,  rebel against such nanny-state policies. Human beings are not programmed to simply accept such subjugation. Indeed, human beings are actually programmed to resist. But of course, the prohibitionists cannot see this. They believe that their conditioning and brainwashing can overcome human nature. It cannot. The whole principle of Darwin’s theory of evolution is that the human race shall overcome. That all animals adapt to overcome any barrier that is put up before their evolution. The human race only evolved to the current state because of this. Those that cannot adapt become extinct. Those that can adapt survive .... and the human race has proved time and time again that it is built to survive.

Something strange is now happening in the UK. The very same circumstances we saw from our colonial cousins back at the start of the 20^th century,  are starting to appear in this country as Tobacco Control spreads its tentacles in an ever wider in search of funding. It is as if the powers that be cannot learn the lessons of history and are determined to repeat them.

Who is benefitting from this prohibition ? Who is making oodles of money from the illicit black market trade ?

Granted, there is a criminal element making money from such an enterprise. But given that the prohibitionists have driven the current situation, I would be staggered to find out that they also are not making something from this situation. They certainly make money from the excessive taxes exerted upon anyone who dares to enjoy the benefits of such pleasures as smoking or drinking through the taxes exerted. It maybe that Government get the main benefit, but that same Government then ‘spread the wealth’ by investing those taxes in the Prohibitionist agenda. But I have to be honest and admit that I have often wondered if the alcohol temperance or tobacco control bodies that have been instrumental in exerting such pressures cannot also be benefitting financially in some more direct way. After all, we all realise that they certainly do not have our best interests in mind and are more interested in what it can do for them.

We have already seen what the prohibitionists can do through their ever excessive penalties on the simple crime of smoking. The premise of Government should not be that of controlling what habits the general population may or may not indulge in. The purpose of Government is to protect its citizens, not coerce it. When a Government is in the business of coercion, then it ceases to be a Government and becomes a dictatorship. But this is exactly what we are seeing in our current Governments, aided, abetted and encouraged by the prohibitionists in our society. More and more, we are seeing the vision of George Orwell’s 1984 coming to fruition. It would seem that George was not wrong about what lies in our future, he just got the dates wrong.

Already we are seeing restrictions on where you can and cannot smoke – a scope that is broadening all the time. We also see the slow march of prohibitionism slowly passing its tentacles out to envelop alcohol. Even now we are seeing those tentacles trying to spread outwards to restrict how we might enjoy sugar, salt and any number of other things that may be involved in providing pleasure to the masses.

It is not so much that we are seeing Orwell’s dystopian future coming to fruition, it is that we are witnessing it’s very evolution into society. Over the last 50 years we have already seen the persecution against drug use reach its nadir and then fall back as the authorities realised they are fighting a losing battle. But does this mean that they admit that their methods are wrong ? Does it hell. They have continued to repeat the exact same mistakes in their so-called 'war' against tobacco.

Just imagine this future Britain:

The pub has ceased to exist as we currently know it. Pubs are now more akin to restaurants in that they mainly cater to serving food, but have a sideline of alcohol. The problem is that the pubs have been nationalised in the name of public health. Where you can buy booze, you find that the pubs can only sell state-approved alcohol. That alcohol will be limited to a certain strength and will also only be allowed to be brewed in a particular way and with state-approved ingredients (to ensure that nothing harmful enters our bodies). Of course, all such alcohol will be served in glasses/packaging that clearly states and warns against the potential health threats contained within. The glasses/packaging must be plain – and that includes any pump from which the alcohol in dispensed. That results in a very bland taste and sense of enjoyment. If you do not like it then you are out of luck as all differing brands/brews/ingredients/brewing processes have been outlawed. The same will be true of the any liquors and spirits. Everything can and will taste exactly the same.

Even the food you eat at these places will be strictly regulated. You will not be able to order any meal that is not on the approved list for ingredients. For example, anything fried is banned. Salt and sugar will be banned from any table, as will any sauces such as mayonnaise, tomato ketchup, brown sauce, mustard, tartare sauce etc – all because they might contain hidden dangers of salt and sugar.

Of course, smoking and vaping is banned completely and utterly. People who indulge in such habits will be forced to deal on street corners with shady characters and then indulge in their habit by gathering together in illicit ‘parties’ – much like people who enjoy recreational drugs have to now. Obviously, there will be no control over the contents of such products as they have long since passed away from the control of the authorities and consequently you will have no idea what you are inhaling. The same will be true of any illicit ‘proper’ alcoholic beverages you may be successful in acquiring through the flourishing black market.

But what of the latest ‘threats’ to public health, that of the fast food and fizzy drinks industry ?

Well, for one thing, when you meet a shifty character on a darkened street corner or alleyway, he/she will still offer you a ‘shot of coke’. The difference this time is that you will NOT be buying cocaine, but instead you will be buying a genuine sugar-loaded bottle of Coca-Cola – putting your life at severe risk of obesity and heart disease.

Want A Big Mac Meal ?

That will likely also be available through shifty characters hiding in darkened street corners. Perhaps they will exploit the irony and sell it to you dressed in a dirty ‘Columbo’ outsized Mac. Nothing would surprise me in this future dystopia.

So you fancy a pizza ?

Well, you will need to flag down a dodgy looking moped rider on a darkened back-street where you can indulge yourself by ordering  the full-works pizza containing every topping imaginable, all prepared in a non-descript back-street kitchen. All you need to know is the phone number to call and you can only get that number by talking to a friend of a friend of a friend who happens to know how such illicit material can be acquired.

Think this is all pie-in-the-sky and that it cannot happen ?

Time to wake up sheeple. It is already happening. Our current society is sleepwalking into such a dystopian vision. Of course it will not affect those in authority, nor will it affect the prohibitionist charities and public health bodies. They will still have their access to duty-free products from around the world because of their ‘special’ status and because unlike the general public, they can be trusted to handle and be responsible with such products. It is only us 'proles' who cannot be trusted to9 make the correct choices in our lifestyle.

If such a scary dystopian future scares the shit out of you (as it should), then the time to act is now. There is little point in declaring that you do not drink/smoke/vape and therefore it will not affect you. The point is, they are coming for us. ALL OF US. Let’s assume they actually manage to eliminate drinking/smoking/vaping. Who do you think they are going to be coming for next ?  Can you be sure it is not you ?