Pirates regulated drinking, smoking, and gambling not out of morality but because these behaviors generated severe negative externalities on a crowded, highly flammable wooden ship—smoking risked igniting gunpowder, and drinking and gambling could spark conflict among men crammed together for long periods.
causalpending
Speaker
Peter LeesonEvidence Quote
“it was important for pirates not it turns out to prohibit smoking in general but to prohibit areas of smoking so you weren't supposed to smoke your pipe or dump it for example in the hold which is where the gunpowder would be”
Created: 6/17/2026, 10:31:31 AM
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