Throughout history, laws of prohibition have existed to protect people
alongside a legitimate, free market; yet illicit markets have developed and
flourished. This book examines historical attempts at prohibition throughout
human history and, relatively more recently, prohibition of alcohol at
the beginning of the twentieth century. With prohibition, many took to
their bathtubs, brewing up concoctions, while others developed sophisticated
supply chains through Canada. While prohibition was designed to
curtail consumption of alcohol to encourage a purer, righteous society, the
result was the reverse. Organized criminal networks increased in strength,
eventually challenging the authority of the state and its institutions
through corruption and violence. Criminal networks became wealthy
because, like good entrepreneurs, they took a risk, invested money, developed
product lines, and expanded the business once challenges, and challengers,
arose. Business quickly spread into other illegal areas such as
prostitution, gambling, extortion, and small arms. The Thompson submachine
gun was the weapon of choice for any up-and-coming gangster.
Weapons were of course necessary to protect your way of life—and life. If
one had a complaint, one could not go to the police; you had to be the
police. Enforcement through violence quickly became the norm and militias,
most notably the soldiers of the Cosa Nostra effectively “ran” the city
usurping the authority of the state.