READING IS FUCKINMENTAL / Jason Matthew Smith

VARIATIONS ON A THEME

What do a bag of crack, an expertly scripted porn flick and a strawberry shortcake have in common?

Last week, I recommended Under the Influence, a look at the “war on drugs” from 30,000 feet. Want to get down to ground level and get a sense for what the “war” does to people? Check out Eric Schlosser’s Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market (Mariner Books, 2004). Granted, the whole book is not dedicated to the topic, but the section of the book Schlosser dedicates to the legal, political, and judicial twists of dope enforcement will make your skin crawl. Schlosser is a top-notch journalist—and he gets down and dirty with folks whose lives have been seriously fucked by a legal system gone haywire. The rest of the book—with sections on immigrant farm workers and the porn industry—makes for compelling reading as well. Schlosser chronicles the lives of real people caught up in each of these facets of an underground economy that is more far-reaching, profitable, and stable than today’s politicos would dare admit. Hell, with drugs, sex, and strawberry pickers in one book, how could you go wrong? I know I’ll never look at a bag o’ crack, an expertly scripted porn flick, or a strawberry shortcake the same way again. (P.S.: I’m combining all three in a special Schlosser-themed party at my house next Saturday. Come on over.)

Jason Matthew Smith is a Texan who never developed an accent, thanks to a steady diet of television reruns during his formative years. He now lives in Utah, where everyone thinks he sounds just like John Astin, the original Gomez Addams.