I popped into iTunes this morning and couldn’t believe that two of my favorite podcasters were TOGETHER on one show.  OMG I thought  it was Christmas early.

Regarding Prohibition, it forced the habit of “binge drinking” that is the characteristic of American drinking today. That is where you drink hard and fast for a quick drunk. If you weren’t making you own booze… uh… I mean fuel… you had to buy it illegally. Once you had it, you could drink it because you were not arrested for DRINKING booze. You were arrested for BUYING, SELLING, or TRANSPORTING booze. Thus, if you found someone to sell it to you, you had to drink it fast before the cops raided the place.You couldn’t take it home. That would be “transporting”.

Binge drinking is often recognized as the hallmark of an alcoholic, but this is not entirely true. There are many other types of alcoholic who do not binge drink. Women alcoholics come to mind. Also, those who are called periodic alcoholics.

In my work a a volunteer chaplain at the county jail, a man told me that he only drank only once a year (predictably New Year’s Eve). He was the type of man you would expect to see dressed in a suit rather than black and white stripes. Yet, he had been arrested two years in a row. He realized with wide-eyed in shock and horror that he could never drink again… not even once. He couldn’t take the chance because it would ruin his career. Was he an alcoholic? In terms of the amount he drank? No. In terms of the impact of drinking on his life? Yes.

I had a friend, Lester, who ran booze during Prohibition. It was an ugly time and he was almost killed. He went to prison and felt ashamed after he finally got out. He petitioned the governor for a pardon in light of his years of community service since then. You never saw a prouder man in your life when he finally received that pardon. When he died we all smiled, joined hands and prayed a joyful prayer. His life was well-lived and I still think of him.

Wait, wait wait, Alex! How old are you? How could you have a friend who lived during the Prohibition era?

Well… I was very young when I knew Lester. Yet, he treated me like an equal. He was a rough man, but a good man. I learned from his example. And I knew he had earned that pardon.

Alex Shrugged