Has anyone read the book called 'Reefer Madness'?

[Dark]

Not seen the movie, read the book. I found it at a bookstore and was considering purchasing it. Just wanted to know if it was any good, or just an asinine rant with disputed facts.

[thoughtanarchist]

1. far from a rant...

it's a well documented look at the black market economy in the US.

Not just covering the black market under which the drug trade continues to flourish, but also (and largely) covering black market employment in the form of exploiting illegal immigrant labor.

A good read as far as an information resource, but be warned: it does NOT read like a novel; more like a series of expose articles.

[wtbymark]

2. it's 1950's propoganda- should be a hoot

if you would like a real book, The Emporer Wears no Clothes, by Jack Herer(sp?), has transcripts of the 1932 congressional hearings, and a whole bunch of 1970's and early 80's studies done at UCLA med cntr, also has a report on Henry Fords Hemp prototype car (circa1927). The congressional hearings are quite revealing - let's you know the real dope (pun intended)

[Village Idiot]

4. Definitely the best pro-marijuana/hemp book...

that I have ever read!

[WhatHappenedToTheGOP]

13. its online !

http://www.jackherer.com/chapters.html

[yurbud]

3. if you mean schlosser's book, it's great on illegal immigration

he brings up a scam farmers do where they set up illegals as sharecroppers, so they end up owing money instead of making it.

When the INS shows up at a farm or sweatshop, they should leave the workers and drive the boss to Mexico.

[Syrinx]

5. I've read two books by that title

One, that came out in the eighties was exclusively about marijuana.

The more recent one is about the black market in general, and that's probably the one you're talking about.

I thought they were both good books. Of the recent one, my favorite section was about pornography. (The other sections were about drugs and illegal immigration.)

[mcscajun]

6. The movie was 50's propaganda. The books are current stuff.

Yes, books.

What's the subtitle on the one you're considering?

Here are two:

Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market
by Eric Schlosser

Reefer Madness : A History of Marijuana (This one's a classic.)

There may be others, I think they're out of print, but these are only ones I know.

[Dark]

7. The one I'm talking about is the first one. I couldn't remember the

author's name. Thanks.

BTW, did you like that book?

[mcscajun]

8. Haven't read it. He's preaching to the choir If I Do.

The War on Drugs is a War on People. I've been reading stuff on it for years. I want to see marijuana legalized.

All that said, let me know after you read it: do you think I should read it anyway?

[Dark]

It's really interesting. It doesn't just go after marijuana laws,

but porn and illegal immigration too. Also, his afterword absolutely slams libertarian capitalism.

It is actually a book on the American black market, using the above three issues to explore it. He also goes through the economics of it.

[Dark]

10. It's really interesting. It doesn't just go after marijuana laws,

but porn and illegal immigration too. Also, his afterword absolutely slams libertarian capitalism.

It is actually a book on the American black market, using the above three issues to explore it. He also goes through the economics of it.

[RumpusCat]

12. Author is the same guy who wrote Fast Food Nation

They're both awesome books. I liked FFN better because it's a coherent argument, and RM is more like three vignettes about the black market. IMHO they're not tied together that well but they're each interesting in their own right.

[Wizard777]

9. No

But I saw the movie. It was pretty funny. I almost laughed as hard as the people in the movie.

[Pizza]

11. Yep...

So So nuttin special...