Bush's back door Prohibition.

Thursday

Bush's back door Prohibition.

Just like travelers to Saudi Arabia, Americans and foreigners flying to the United States now find themselves banned from carrying on board the aircraft French brandy, Scotch whiskey, Spanish sherry, Irish cream, and Scandinavian aquavit. That was the situation yesterday at Copenhagen's Kastrup Airport.

There is something incredibly phony and suspicious about the new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) "security" restrictions on items allowed on board airplanes. Although passengers are prohibited from bringing liquids and gels on board aircraft there are no hand searches of carry-on bags to ensure compliance with this rule. But just show a duty free store cashier a boarding pass for the United States and try to buy liquor, wine, or beer, you get a firm "not on flights to the U.S." and you're then shown a DHS warning sign prohibiting all liquids. Shades of the 1920s and the height of Prohibition. But buy cigarettes, of course, and there is no problem. After all, the Virginia and North Carolina tobacco growers and manufacturers are big time donors to and members of the flocks of Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, and the other mega-church used-car salesmen across the tobacco belt.

The no alcohol or liquids (including duty free perfumes and colognes) prohibition does not apply to flights from Europe to Australia, Africa, Asia, or other parts of Asia.

DHS considers bottled or canned spirits sold in the heavily secured, sanitized, and duty free sections of international airports to be potential terrorist weapons. At least those who brought about Prohibition were more original in claiming alcohol was the devil's elixir and would lead to eternal damnation in hell. The only relief yesterday was Scandinavian Airlines showing the film "V for Vendetta," uncut and uncensored. The film, of course, is full of references to the scare tactics of the neo-cons. In the movie, V sums up the current neo-con fright campaign when he states the government controls the people through "coercive conformance." Yes, it is all part of the mix: removing shoes and belts, no liquids or gels, act as though the government is doing you a favor by allowing you to exercise your right of free travel and movement, do exactly as the DHS screeners say or else, in other words: conform!

From Carrie Nation to Michael Chertoff: Religious kook prohibitionists use any excuse to push temperance. Nation attacked saloons with a hatchet. Chertoff attacks duty free shops with idiotic travel restrictions.

No one knows what those who believe that astral beings appearing in some Middle East dust bowl two to four thousand years ago bearing messages from the ether beyond Earth will pull next on the American people, but anything is possible.

Meanwhile, the good people at Jack Daniel's (Jack was a good Democrat), Remy Martin, Campari, Pernod, Jacob's Creek, Sandemans, Stolichnaya, Carlsberg and other distilleries, wineries, and breweries will have to continue to lose U.S. market share because of the influence of the Christian fundie Dapper Dan mega-church ministers, bearded and robed soothsayers, and other delusional crackpots who now dictate policies to the Bush administration.