Before the laws came in, there was a perception that they would, among other things, lead to a drastic decrease in domestic violence--most advocates were pushing them for that reason, not a dislike of alcohol qua alcohol. During, it became increasingly clear that they were selectively enforceable at best, and a boon to organized crime (sound familiar?). After, there was a collective "remember that weird time we tried to make booze illegal? What were we thinking?!"