By Edwin T. Scallon, Copyright © 1990, 1995, 2008, 2020 All Rights Reserved
ACCIDENT RECONSTRUCTION AND BAC CALCULATION PROGRAMS
MODERN HISTORY OF ALCOHOL
If you have been following along, we began our discussion of alcohol dating back to 10,000 BC and brought it up to 1933 AD, when the National War Act a/k/a 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution (Volstead Act) was repealed by the Twenty-First Amendment to the United States Constitution. It's repeal again allowed the possession, manufacture and consumption of alcohol in the United States.. So much for the Anti-Saloon league, (Ed. more probably than not they went out that night and got loaded.)
I suppose the utopian idea that people will conform to other's wishes is just that an un-realistic goal.. Rather than correcting the wrongs Congress actually opened Pandora's Box. Congress also missed the bus on another issue, money. Rather than looking at alcohol from a social aspect, I would rather look at alcohol from the financial perspective.
Earlier in the web site, we jumped from the Colonial days to the "roaring twenties". The area we skipped (intentionally) is the Revolutionary War years. The American Revolution was a direct result of taxes being levied by the British Crown on alcohol or its ingredients. The Liberty was a "Rum Running Ship" owned by Alexander Hamilton. He avoided the Crown's taxes by evading the British Revenue Ships. A few years prior to the beginning of the revolution, Hamilton's Liberty Ship was destroyed by the British and several friends died aboard. Hamilton gave a passionate speech at Fanueil Hall in Boston, MA, not far from Hall-Carpenter's Office and stirred up the colonists to rebel. This steamy rhetoric continued until finally the "shot heard 'round the world" was fired in Lexington, MA April 19, 1775, hence the beginning of the Revolutionary War.
This is all very interesting, but what does it have to do with alcohol? The Revolutionary War created great debt close to 80 Million Dollars. The Continental Congress borrowed money from other nations to support the war. Now, back then, people made alcohol in much the same way as it is made today, either by fermentation or distillation. Either way, none of the alcohol produced was taxed. After the end of the Revolutionary War, Washington was faced with enormous debt which had to be paid back to the countries who had loaned it to the colonists. Hamilton suggested a tax on alcohol to raise the money to pay the war debt. We had just finished fighting the British because they were taxing our alcohol. This has never sat right with Americans. lf you are a student of the Law, read the first acts of Congress in 1791. The very first act passed was an Act for the levy of taxes on alcohol.
Not withstanding the millions made by gangsters of the twenties which was not taxed, home grown distillers were making liquor. The alcohol produced by these stills has a rather high alcohol content and is not as pure as the commercially produced spirits. The United States Government had changed the names of the Revenue Department responsible for the collection of taxes and punishment for illegal manufacture, and now day that department it is known as the Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms Division of the Justice Department. Just before and during the great depression of the early 30's. Moon shiners as they are known (because they ran their stills at night under the light of the moon) produced hundreds of gallons of whisky on a daily basis. The ingredients are simple, corn, sugar, water, yeast and heat. Water boils at 212 F. Alcohol boils at 160 F. So the still filled with the ingredients ferment for a while and after the fermentation process ends the vat containing this mixture is heated by flame to approximately 160 F. At that temperature the alcohol vaporizes and is collected in copper tubing bent into a series of concentric circles resembling a coiled up snake, hence the name for the apparatus, the snake. The steamy alcohol travels through the coils which are cooled by cold water which condenses the steam alcohol and renders it back to liquid state. The result alcohol of differing proof. Most notably the proof from these stills is normally between 120 to 180 proof or fluid containing 60 to 90 percent alcohol, (Ed note: most moon shine stills were constructed near running streams for a supply of cold water which was directed over the snakes for cooling, not too tough for the revenue agents to find. . . )
Each gallon sells for a fraction of the commercially produced whisky which must be cured in wooden vats for several years before it is ready for sale. Moonshine, a/k/a White Lightning is ready for consumption immediately.
During the depression, several less than honorable distillers would cut the Moonshine with other chemicals like embalming fluid, anti-freeze from auto engines and the like to get more sales for the same yield. This caused many deaths. But many families survived the depression by having members of the family make moonshine and sell it. Actually the delivery system of the bottles of moonshine was accomplished by runners with very fast automobiles and eventually gave rise to what is now NASCAR.
The sale and distribution of alcohol in the United States is strictly controlled by both the State and Federal authorities. The tax on alcohol accounts for just about half the cost of a particular beverage but only the alcohol that is taxed. The tax is based upon the percentage of alcohol by volume of the beverage.
The tax on alcohol is only one portion of the treasure trove. Lest us not forget the manufacturer, the distributor, the warehouse, the local package store, the taverns. Each must have a license and conform to the health requirements established by the state or federal government.
Lastly, regulation as to consumption of alcohol creates a cottage industry for law enforcement, the courts, lawyers, judges, experts, doctors, hospitals and insurance companies. Unlike the Volstead Act of the '20's possession and its consumption are controlled by state laws. One need only to have reached a certain age and that person can purchase, possess and consume alcohol. But the state can and does regulate the operation of motor vehicles, boats and air craft by a person who has consumed alcohol. In the late 40's up to and including the mid 70's driving under the influence was not an "in crime" and unless the operator was involved in a collision, law enforcement rarely did anything to the offender. The only offenders who would be arrested were those who could not stand or even know where they were.
Today, beginning in the mid 70's the Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) in a person's body is of great concern. Originally in the mid 70's it was thought that a BAC of .10 was the maximum one could safely drive. Now, that number has been changed in most states to .08. Even further, drivers in some states under 21 can have no greater percentage than .04 and some have even considered Zero tolerance for minors under the age of 21 who operate a motor vehicle.
Penalties for drunk driving have grown so large that the number of "hit and Run" accidents have risen by 300% in many metropolitan areas.
Voluntary intoxication by a person in the general public has changed twice. Originally, drunk and disorderly was a crime in most cities. Then the law changed and public intoxication was viewed as a medical problem and the public intoxicant was taken to a detoxification center or hospital where he might be involuntarily committed for up to 90 days. The pendulum has swung back to the middle and rarely will a person be arrested merely for being intoxicated in public unless he is creating a disturbance or some other disorderly conduct.
The penalties for driving while under the influence has created a number of financially strapped drivers and alternatively produced some very rich attorneys. Alcohol is also responsible for hospitalization for acute or chronic alcoholism. The cost of medical care for the patient who is acutely intoxicated or chronic alcohol abuser, is growing at leaps and bounds.
So alcohol is expensive on many levels