For the last four decades, the government has been waging a "war on drugs". They have spent more than a trillion dollars doing this and filled our prisons with non-violent offenders, but the so-called war has been an abysmal failure. Drugs are just as plentiful (if not more so).
We have wasted that money while accomplishing nothing, and the American people know it. About 77% (nearly 8 out of 10) of Americans say the war on drugs has been a failure. And throwing more money at the problem won't help. We have turned a social and medical problem into a criminal one, and that has been a serious mistake.
It is time to rethink the drug problem. We must realize that it cannot be solved by throwing people in jail. It can only be solved through education (telling the truth, not propaganda) and providing rehabilitation (for those ready for it). And we should at least consider the solution that Portugal is trying. They have legalized the possession of drugs, and it is working. Drug use is down sharply in that country.
The chart above is made from information in a new Rasmussen Poll -- done between November 5th and 8th of a random national sample of 1,000 adults, with a margin of error of 3 points.
The reason drugs are really dangerous is because they are illegal!!
ReplyDeleteIt is NOT my place to tell you how to abuse your body or life. If you want drugs for fun then do so under the same restrictions for alcohol ((which is a drug!!!)). So if you drink booze and do so to excess, then stop being a hypocrite and let others do as they wish!!!!
I've always preferred the term "war on people who use drugs." The government has never done much to stop the flow of drugs. And when they do temporarily succeed, it simply moves the price on the supply curve up, thus incentivizing more suppliers to enter the market. Long term effect: drug prices go down. In the late 1960s, the average purity level of heroin in New York was 3%. In the early 1990s, it was right around 90% and the cost per gram was lower (inflation adjusted). I haven't looked at the data recently, but I doubt it has changed.
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