Rating: 
Summary: Three unrelated articles in one book
Review: Let me start by saying I thought Fast Food Nation was great. Reefer Madness ("RM") falls far short of that standard, though.In essence, RM is a collection of what should really be three magazine articles. Further, some examples/stories are stretched out so long that it seems that the author is just trying to fill up space. For example, the longest section of the book is supposedly about the Porn industry. RM spends so much time on the story of a particular Porn businessperson that the book seems more like a bio of his life than a study of the underground Porn economy. RM claims to be about the huge underground/black market economy, but, the three sections (pot, migrant workers & Porn) seem largely unconnected. The book has no cohesive thesis or point. On the plus side, the author is a skilled storyteller and he does a good job of telling the stories of the players in the different industries.
Rating: 
Summary: Insightful And Relvant Today, Of What's Right In Front Of Us
Review: Eric Schlosser returns after "Fast Food Nation" with more interesting and researched material. He has the thoughtfulness of keeping his personal opinions out of his work and presents the facts. The black markets in America today, though a significant part of the economy, functioning in free-market form, exist everywhere. However, they don't seem to get much media coverage. This review is in regards to the portion of the book focusing on Marijuana. For example, the local television media in Seattle has repeatedly stated over the years, though seldom, that Washington state's number one export is not Apples but Marijuana. So, why the hysterical legislation, laws, Feds, and police presence regarding it. It's number 1 because there's a demand, and there will always entrepreneurs to supply a product that people want. Schlosser also examines the War on Drugs. No one can argue today, that it has even been minimally successfully. One example of the failed war on drugs in addition to price increases and violence, is the case of an Ohio man. Mark Young is now serving life in prison without possibility of parole for participating in a minor marijuana deal. In a comparison, you could approach someone, say a mother walking with her children, and blow her head off with a shot-gun and serve less time in America in most states. Whether in a moral, legal, or economic sense, we live in a nation that has simply lost most of its' common sense. One of Schlosser's solutions to reducing the sweepingly negative societal negative effects are decriminalizing marijuana. Interestingly, he doesn't support the government regulating and taxing it. Many proponents of decriminalizing Mary Jane believe they can reduce or retract Marijuana laws by giving the government a motivation to do so: more revenue via taxes, and, allowing the government to regulate it. And, regulation = control. All this would do would give the government the impetus of taking more money out of citizens' pockets. Imagine, how high those taxes would be, considering green-13 is a "sin" and would be under the guise of "sin taxes," like cigarretes and alcohol. The government would also control who gets to grow it, how they can grow it, where they can grow it, where they can sell it, and how much they can sell it for. Like farming in America today, can you imagine large Corporate Marijuana growers? These newly government appointed bureaucratic corporate fat-cats would have lobbyists on their behalf, dig for federal subsidies, loans, federal land, and who knows what else. Schlosser is one of the nation's most insightful and effective writers in contemporary America.
Rating:
Summary: Fast Food Social Commentary
Review: I am somewhat disappointed by this book. Mr. Schlosser approached his first book 'Fast Food Nation' with a clear argument as a thread for his investigations; Fast food is bad for American's health, and undermining to their values. An interesting argument defended with creativity and terrific research. In contrast I can't seem to find the argument behind this book. First, a brief synopsis. 'Reefer Madness' consists of three essays about different elements of America's underground economy, marijuana, migrant labor, and pornography. The central argument of Schlosser's book appears to be that each of these markets are underground, and that they are big - at least I think. He never really tells us. From there it's hard to see what point he's making. In the marijuana piece, Schlosser argues that marijuana is a lucrative business, that the product is in high demand, and that marijuana laws are arbitrary, unfair, illogical, and in many instances inhumanely cruel. All true and well argued, but so what? Schlosser does a good job outlining the scope of the breath of the problem (though, it wouldn't kill him to footnote his facts as he goes along) and then simply stops and writes another essay. A much more interesting piece might have continued the investigation of the marijuana issue asking questions such as who are the users of marijuana, what purposes and whose interests do punative marijuana laws serve, what do marijuana distribution networks look like, not just in the midwest where the product is created, but in central cities where the product is consumed? The second essay is about the use of migrant laborers to grow strawberries. Again, Schlosser does a nice job outlining the size of the problem, but again it's not clear what he is arguing? In the first essay he seemed to be arguing that marijuana is a desired commodity, and that we should decriminalize its production and use and let the 'invisible hand' of the market give consumers what they want. In the migrant labor essay, Schlosser seems to be arguing exactly the opposite. Here the government has essentially decriminalized the use of cheap Mexican labor by California agriculture to deliver strawberries and other labor-intensive crops cheaply to market. Schlosser demonstrates how many domestic growers exploit this labor to increase profits, and indeed they do, but again what's the point. This is essentially the same free market exploitation Schlosser was recommending for a decriminalized marijuana market. Why is the free market good for a product that gets you high, but bad for one that makes a yummy desert? Further, who does Schlosser think is going to do the grunt work of marijuana production in the event it is decriminalized? Isn't it reasonable to assume that some of this work would be done by migrants? I think it is, and I also think it's reasonable to expect Schlosser to make some of these connections between his essays for us. Unfortunately he doesn't, so his book serves more as reference than analysis. The final essay discusses the mainstreaming of pornography, and is out of place against the others. Unlike pot and strawberry picking, porn is neither illegal nor agriculturally based, and the essay suffers for it. An area of strength in each of the prior essays is Schlosser's documentation of laws regarding the subject, as well as fascinating though superficial and entirely too short discussions about the way the products are produced. This essay has neither, and much of its material has been covered better, more fully, and with a more original spin in other sources. The only thing porn possibly has to do with the other essays is that it was once illegal, and that it makes for a titillating subject due to its so-called underground nature. Anyway, you get the picture. This book is thoroughly average and unfinished. Each topic represents an enormous subject area. In 'Fast Food Nation' Schlosser took one subject and covered it comprehensively to great effect. Here he takes three subjects and covers each superficially. Schlosser has the potential to be an important nonfiction writer in our time, but he's just not trying hard enough here. Each of these topics deserves at least the treatment he gave Fast Food, and probably more. As they stand each of these essays leave you sadly unfulfilled, sort of like fast food.
Rating: 
Summary: Old water in a new bottle
Review: Mr. Schlosser has republished his magazine articles which, as to strawberries, contain factual errors. The California Court of Appeal has specifically held that Growers of strawberries for most Shipper/Packers are independent contractors, see Zendejas v. Kirk Produce (1998) 2d Civil B110632 and Herrera v. Kirk Produce (1998)2d B103704 and not sharecroppers. His work while interesting reading is misleading and factually inaccurate as to the matters I discussed with him some years ago. Connecting strawberries with pornography and marijuana is a non sequitur.
Rating:
Summary: This book rocks!
Review: I am a literature snob; nothing gets my thumbs up. (This book is lucky it's non-fiction.) The subjects of the book are of ubiquitous items and the economies behind them. It highlights some incredible stories, commentary from notable people, and great fortunes with Eric's supremely enjoyable understatements and images. What could be more tantalizing than reading about great fortunes made from dealing material that is barely beyond "coffee table" acceptable? It is one of the few books that gets me excited! Eric, you can be proud of your work -- live long and prosper (and write more books).
Rating:
Summary: Fact-based reporting shows pervasiveness of the black market
Review: Eric Schlosser's Reefer Madness is an excellent follow-up to his first book-length investigative journalism masterpiece, Fast Food Nation. Reefer Madness shows the breadth and depth of the American black market. He shows how trade in marijuana, migrant workers, and pornography is affected by the extent to which each is affected by the underground economy. His recommended solutions do not go as far as I would like in eliminating the black market. For example, he would decriminalize marijuana rather than regulating and taxing it. This being said, everyone should read this book. It will open your eyes to the reality of the massive underground economy we have in the United States -- nearly all of it created by restrictive government policies.
Rating:
Summary: Very Enlightening
Review: This book should be required reading for all the law and policy makers in this country. In plain, simple language, the author puts forth scathing attack on the wars on drugs and porn, and informs us of the often-ignored plight of migrant workers. He also gives the reader an idea of the immense size and scope of the underground economy in this country. An excellent book.
Rating:
Summary: Changed my perspective!
Review: Eric has done it again. I read his last book Fast Food Nation, and was impressed with his depth and skill at writing. This book was even better. Eric sets up the book with a discussion on the U.S. Drug war on Marijuana. He unpacks several cases where the government has spent millions of dollars to stop something that has never proven to be lethal or dangerous to ones health. Then, he steps into the world of the migrant worker, especially those in the strawberry fields of California. Eric raises the question: Why does the government do so little for these people who are being used and abused for their cheap labor? Schlosser ends with a discussion on the pornography industry. He again refers to how the government spends billions of dollars attempting to limit something that is a freedom this country was fought to defend. I am an evangelical pastor with a conservative, republican upbringing. This book raises major questions for some of the verbal stances I take against things such as Marijuana and pornography - which I believe are both wrong - and do and say nothing about the plight of the migrant workers and the injustice they receive every day. I don't see the justification of spending so much money trying to eliminate products of capitalism and a free nation. Even though I think that getting high and the obscene are horrible for ones life...so are cigarettes, eating too much fast food, being lazy - but those are choices that individuals have to make, not be forced upon by a large government. Especially when women and children cannot eat because the same government will not protect the rights of these workers. As you can see this book grabbed me. It will grab and challenge you to!
Rating:
Summary: more, please
Review: I now know more about drug and obscenity laws than I ever imagined I'd need the brain cell storage to accommodate ... and that's a peculiarly good thing. I came out of this book with a new set of unlikely personal heroes - men and women who first challenged the absurdly restrictive obscenity laws in order to make health and birth control information legal to ship through the US mail ... and even folks like the irrepressibly obnoxious Larry Flynt, who is in some respects our nation's last defense against enforced, legislated morality. Read about the bizarre, inconsistent and patently ridiculous drug laws that keep marijuana users under a heavier legal boot than convicted child rapists. Find out why I will never again, so long as I live, spend money at a Taco Bell. If this seems like a broad spread to cover in one book, that's because part of the beauty of Schlosser is his ability to ferret out the very real connections between legitimate business and the black markets that we (as the blindly consuming public) may never suspect. In our present culture of conspicuous censorship and our lamely moral-high-ground-napping political climate, this is a highly instructive read. GO AND GET IT. Consider it your civic duty to educate yourself on what your government and its corporate cohorts are really up to while you're not watching.
Rating:
Summary: An Informative Potpouri of Topics
Review: Having read the author's previous book, and holding the same reservations that anyone would have about follow-ups (that it won't be nearly as good as the first outing), I picked up this book and set it aside for a quiet time. When I finally got around to reading Reefer Madness, I found I could not put it down. Time literally stopped, and some passages merited second and third readings. On his second try, Schlosser delivered big-time, and while more of an academic essay and an ad populum appeal to values than hard-hitting investigative journalism, it still manages to uphold the tradition of excellence in muckraking journalism. The book consists of three extended essays on such diverse but inter-linked topics as pornography, marijuana and migrant, specifically illegal agricultural, labor. The subjects are inter-linked because first they are part of a vibrant, free-wheeling and dynamic underground economy in America, and second there have been some rather unusual linkages between the two. One colorful example of such linkages is the fact that many enterprising drug producers have on occasion used illegal migrant labor to tend to marijuana crops in out of the way places. Another very colorful (or disturbing, depending on your point of view) example is the prolific use of marijuana and other illegal drugs as inducements to get participants to perform certain acts in the pornography industry or as a means of obtaining such drugs (which for some reason, the author fails to mention, even though numerous anecdotal affirmations of this are available). Nonetheless, each activity represents Big Business in America. One of the three, pornography, has made the transition from the fringe to mainstream business, and because of this, does not really count as a true underground activity, at least in my mind. The problem of illegal migrant labor has been knowingly overlooked as a result of a gentlemen's agreement between corporations (which would not be nearly as profitable without it) and the government (which would prefer to use as little of its resources as possible policing this problem). On the other hand, the marijuana trade has been and is patently illegal, and the author suspects that this state of affairs will change, moving towards that of pornography, or that of illegal migrant labor. The situation for each of these industries, beginning with their history, the extent of activity currently in each sphere, and the impact each has had, particularly on those who participate in each sphere, is covered in a fair amount of detail. The book exposes how We The People really get what we want, and reveals an undisclosed truth as to how our economic and social order really maintains itself. For example, food has become cheaper over time in no small part because of our government's stance on migrant labor. Of course, there are the occasional crackdowns and sensational raids, but that merely goes through the motions and panders to the Press and flag-waving conservatives. As such, more than a few adherents of the Back to the Land Movement and Ecological Farming ideologies should take note. It also reveals the gross double standard we apply to those who are governed and those who do the governing. American Express, I believe, once advertised its credit with the phrase 'Membership has its Priviledges'. Something similar can be said about our ruling elite, who overturn drug (and other) convictions on their relatives and cronies, but throw the book at the average wage earning schmuck. Granted, the second chapter, In the Strawberry Fields, covers not only illegal farm labor but also the California agricultural industry. However, the industry as a whole is totally dependent on either illegal migrant labor or laborers who receive neither a living wage nor health benefits. The third chapter, An Empire of the Obscene, intertwines the growth of pornography with the exploits of perhaps the most famous elder statesman of smut, Reuben Sturman. Mr. Sturman was the most successful entrepreneur of porn, whose marketing skills and innovative insights literally formed the modern day adult industry. He also proved himself to be a very interesting character study, being an unusual blend of savvy salesman, entrepreneur, flag-waving patriot and conservative family-man. Mr. Sturman also took on the formidable federal government by becoming a most unlikely champion of first amendent rights, and won while simultaneously dodging his taxes and thumbing his nose at the IRS. This colorful character alone would make for very interesting reading in a separate book. As a whole, the book takes a Progressive stance towards each of these activities, focusing on the effects each has on the people directly involved in the particular activity. While there exists some grousing about the free market and capitalism, particularly in the preface, The Underground, and the epilogue, Out of the Underground, the content, I believe, will provide positive reinforcement for many that are for social justice (and Pro-Pot and Pro-Porn) and will spark some heated debates. Reefer Madness definitely makes for good, fascinating reading, and I bet that if one were to lend his or her copy to a friend, he or she would never see the book again.
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