Judge — September 2, 1922 — page 1: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis This is a Judge magazine cover from September 2, 1922, featuring a beer mug overflowing with foam as the central image. The caption reads "EVENTUALLY—why not Now?" **Context:** This is clearly a Prohibition-era satire. The 18th Amendment (ratified 1919) banned alcohol production and sale in the United States. The cartoon mocks the inevitable failure of Prohibition by depicting beer—the forbidden beverage—suggesting that despite the law's enforcement, Americans will eventually drink again anyway. The tagline's rhetorical question ("why not Now?") ironically argues for immediate repeal rather than waiting for Prohibition's predicted collapse. This reflects widespread public skepticism about the amendment's viability and growing calls for its repeal, which would ultimately succeed in 1933. The cartoon represents Judge's satirical stance against Prohibition policy.