Why Did Prohibition Require a Constitutional Amendment?

[Maceman]

I have been wondering lately how come the US Government needed a constitutional amendment to outlaw alcohol, but did not need one to outlaw marijuana and other drugs.

Can any scholarly Freepers explain this to me? As always, your briliant insights, cogent reasoning, encyclopedic historical knowledge and smart-assed remarks wlil be eagerly appreciated.

[umgud]

I this day and time, the constitution doesn't matter if the gov't wants to do social engineering.

Can't ban guns? Make them very costly and hard to get, sue the manufacturers, work toward banning all but gov't approved firearms, throw up every roadblock you can.

Don't want smokers? Raise taxes, sue the tobacco makers, vilify and belittle smokers.........

Don't want SUV's?.............

[ken5050]

When did Coca Cola take the "coke" out of Coke?

[bassmaner]

bump

[AdA$tra]

It appears I may have been more right than wrong. The Boggs Act of 1951 and the Daniels Act of 1956 were where MJ use was criminalized. From '37-'51 you merely needed tax stamps to posess it.

[AdA$tra]

posess = possess: There is your spelling error

[Wolfie]

1903

[WindMinstrel]

NOOOOOOOO! It doesn't count if you find the spelling error! I have to find it and loudly denounce you for it!

[Wolfie]

Nit wit, there's only one "O" in "NO".

[FreeTally]

LOL!!

[sawsalimb]

Thanks,and a very good question. I'm looking forward to this thread,since accurate and cogent knowledge is always useful.

[WindMinstrel]

You hurt my feelings! You made me sad. Don't you know I have a right to not be sad? Fie on you.

[Semper Paratus]

MaryJane is legal under certain conditions in Alaska.
Where does the federal law kick in?

[brityank]

Because back then we still had a valid Constitution.

[steve50]

http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/index.HTM

Lot of good info at schaffer if you want some reading

[Wolfie]

Fie on you

Sicking those bastards on me, are you? Now I have to constantly keep watch for Frenchman with epees. I swear, I'll get you for this.

[Desdemona]

Just a guess...

Because the teetotalers were getting nowhere at the local level?

[11th Commandment]

You can add the 19th ammendment to the list- Women's sufferage. Many States and Counties already gave women the right to vote before the ammendment was passed.

I also have questions about the need for the 24th. Preventing a poll tax could have been done via federal law.

Also the 26th, lower the voting age to 18. Not because federal law could have allowed this, it justed turned out to be a stupid idea.

[weikel]

After FDR the government decided it didn't need to amend the constitution every time it wanted to make a stupid socialistic expansion of the government. With the recent revealation that even Reagan raised taxes I must conclude we haven't had a conservative President since Coolidge.

[weikel]

The thing is you needed the marijuana in hand to get the stamps thus you were already breaking the law.

[sawsalimb]

Thanks-need to do some research.