Question

1. why did the great depression turn the tide of public opinion against (make people not support) prohibition?
2. what lessons do you think should be learned from the failures of prohibition?

Explanation:

Question 3

During the Great Depression, the government needed revenue. Prohibition led to illegal alcohol trade, reducing tax income. Also, people wanted jobs; legalizing alcohol could create jobs in production, distribution, and sales. Additionally, Prohibition was ineffective (crime, corruption from bootlegging), so public saw it as a failed policy amid economic crisis.

From Prohibition’s failure, lessons include: Banning popular goods/services (without public support) leads to black markets/crime. Policy should balance moral goals with practicality (enforceability, public acceptance). Government should consider economic impacts (lost tax revenue, job loss from illegalization). Public opinion and consent matter for policy success—policies ignoring public will fail. Also, prohibition of vices (like alcohol) is hard to enforce; regulation (e.g., age limits, taxes) is better than outright ban.

Answer:

The Great Depression turned public opinion against Prohibition for several reasons: First, the government needed revenue—legalizing alcohol would generate tax income (from sales/taxes on alcohol) to help with economic struggles. Second, job creation: legal alcohol production, distribution, and sales could create jobs during high unemployment. Third, Prohibition’s failures (rise of organized crime, corruption, ineffective enforcement) were more apparent amid crisis, making people view it as a flawed policy that wasted resources and didn’t work, so they wanted its repeal.

Question 4