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submitted 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) by NightOwl@lemmy.ca to c/upliftingnews@lemmy.world

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[-] VinegarChunks@lemmus.org 3 points 15 hours ago* (last edited 15 hours ago)

Prohibition of any item, meaning, making the item illegal to make or possess anywhere, is a stronger infringement on personal freedom and often leads to organized crime stepping in to provide the prohibited item, both of which make it unpopular.

Popular smoking bans generally ban smoking in certain public areas. This does not promote organized crime to sell the banned product, and is less of an infringement on personal freedom.

The proposal to “ban cigarettes” sounds like it would fall under the former category .

[-] Digit@lemmy.wtf 1 points 14 hours ago

Yep.

Prohibition does not prevent. Prohibition makes the good things bad and the bad things worse.

"Controlled substance" they say. How Orwellian. Handing it over to the black market, with no control but [criminal] market forces. How controlled.

"We said don't do it.", like that works. Generally, good people do not obey bad rules, and bad people do not obey rules either.

Then there's the forbidden fruit effect. Then the profiteering and price-hike for risk, and in absence of regulation oft coming in the most harmful polluted forms of whatever's been turned into contraband. Dangerous combination.

Normalisation of controlling people's behaviour's an even deeper bag of rant bait yet, than just via banning substances, slippery sloping via banning delivery methods.

Funny how prohibition and "public relations" [e.g. as per Ed Bernay's Crystallising Public Opinion] came into being at around the same time. Prohibition wouldn't work without the accompanying psyop? Due reconsideration of the popularity of bans. ... Especially in light of realising "Prohibition does not prevent. Prohibition makes the good things bad and the bad things worse."

this post was submitted on 25 May 2026
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