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Freedom Book of the Month
Email List Archive
Free-Market.Net's Freedom Book of the Month
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Edited by Sunni Maravillosa. To join or leave this and other
lists, click to: http://www.free-market.net/features/lists/
* November, 2003: "A Drug War Carol," by Susan W Wells and
Scott Bieser
* New and notable
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Freedom Book of the Month for November, 2003:
"A Drug War Carol"
by Susan W Wells and Scott Bieser
Big Head press 2003, trade paper, 80 pp.
ISBN: 0-9743814-0-3
Graphic novellas generally don't do much for me. Even if the story
is good, like in "V for Vendetta", I often find the heavy reliance
on illustrations over text ineffective -- I'd rather imagine the
people and settings, and get more details that typical short stories
and novels provide. "A Drug War Carol" may have cured me of this
bias, because a large part of what made the book work so well for me
is Scott Bieser's amazing artwork.
Yes, I know ... this book isn't really new. It's been around online
for quite some time. But it is new in print format (published in
September, 2003), which makes its important message more widely
available, and more credible to those who believe the internet is
nothing but one big conspiracy theory after another.
The premise of "A Drug War Carol" is straightforward: borrowing from
Dickens' "Christmas Carol", Wells and Bieser have a semi-fictitious
drug war czar visited by the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and
Future, showing how the war on drugs began and how it will end for
their main character, whose appearance reminds me a bit of Barry
McCaffrey. That, plus the appearance -- both in name and cartoon
depiction -- of Vin Suprynowicz in the book is just one of the subtle
treats in the book. Bieser (and those who assisted him) have created
a wonderfully rich visual tale, but which is understated enough to
make the book accessible to those normally close-minded to drug
legalization issues. I found myself enjoying the artwork equally with
the text, something that has not happened with a graphic novella
before.
That isn't to suggest the text is somehow flawed. The ghost of
Christmas Past dominates the tale, as the origins of the drug war are
extensively detailed (with footnotes, no less!), but that history is
very important to understanding how thoroughly flawed this war is.
For those who've long wondered if the story about one of Johns
Hopkins' founders being a drug addict is apocryphal, that is
unambiguously addressed. Page after page, the bogus case for drug
regulation is documented beyond any reasonable person's ability to
discount.
That's really what matters most, because once an individual can see
that the war on all drugs has destroyed thousands of lives, cost
fortunes, and created the regulatory burden of so-called
pharmaceutical medications, it's an easy step to understand that
these regulations must be destroyed. How to do that isn't
specifically addressed in the book, and its conclusion is perhaps a
bit anticlimactic after the careful, thorough presentation of the
building of this beast. Even so, "A Drug War Carol" is a powerful
tool for helping individuals understand the necessarily evil nature
of turning private choices into crimes. "A Drug War Carol", coupled
with a good discussion of Rush Limbaugh's recent revelations
regarding his substance use, should open many conservatives' eyes to
the harm these policies -- largely pushed by the right -- have
caused.
"A Drug War Carol" is still available online. The print version
doesn't have the convenience of hyperlinked footnotes, but that's
really the only advantage the online edition has over the physical
book. The Christmas season is upon us, and the drug issue is not
going away -- indeed, the Medicare "reform" boondoggle will result in
even more money being stolen to finance seniors' prescription
medications. These facts make the $5.95 Amazon price for this
compact, information-dense gem an easy, worthwhile investment to make
into supporting an independent, libertarian publisher and its
creative authors. Individuals across the political spectrum, law
enforcement officers, judges, drug rehab counselors, and physicians
who support the status quo view of drug use and abuse can benefit
from "A Drug War Carol".
For those who are interested in obtaining multiple copies of the
book, see the book's web site for multiple-copy discounts, or
procurement for nonprofit drug law reform organizations (for
reselling, premiums, etc.).
Order "A Drug War Carol" from Amazon.com:
http://www.free-market.net/rd/588910638.html, $5.95
Ordering multiple copies and/or nonprofit use:
http://www.free-market.net/rd/591771004.html Price will vary with
quantity.
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New and notable
o "The Poverty of Welfare," by Michael D Tanner
Remember how Clinton claimed to "end welfare as we know it"? Well,
maybe he did (depending on how you define "know"), but there are many
problems with the American welfare system. Tanner documents this and
shows how reform of the welfare mentality as well as the system are
critical to genuinely helping the less fortunate in a civil society.
Order "The Poverty of Welfare" at Amazon.com:
http://www.free-market.net/rd/598462438.html, $11.90
o "Ending Entrenched Power," by Curtis L Harris
What do religion, government, commerce, and power have in common?
Harris presents a compelling argument for spiritual renewal as a key
to ending the state's power in individual lives, relying on general
religious ideals rather than a specific religion's perspective.
Thought provoking work.
Order "Ending Entrenched Power" at Amazon.com:
http://www.free-market.net/rd/604133116.html, $15.95
o "You Can't Say That!," by David E Bernstein
Think speech isn't heavily censored in America? You won't after
reading this. Stories plus extensive research combine to document the
oftentimes unintended role regulations -- especially
antidiscrimination laws -- play in stifling free expression.
Order "You Can't Say That!" from Laissez Faire Books:
http://www.free-market.net/rd/610003815.html, $13.95
If you'd like some suggestions, in addition to these books, for great
presents for libertarian and nonlibertarian readers, please check our
gift ideas page. Orders from that page will help support
Free-Market.Net!
http://www.free-market.net/features/bookofthemonth/giftideas.html
Keep doing freedom,
Sunni Maravillosa
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