OTOT
Well Dave, prohibition did not work for alcohol.
It does not work for drugs either.
Both legal efforts created an economically and politically powerful criminal class. That should tell you that there is something seriously wrong with our drug laws and policies. We are losing the war on drugs. It is ineffective and expensive.
The prison system and law enforcement agencies should not be running public policy in drug matters. They should not be lobbying congress for bigger budgets. It is a intrinsic conflict of interest.
Unfortunately, neither Bush nor Gore have anything to say on this matter despite both of them acknowledging that they have used and in some cases abused drugs. The American public needs to grow up and face the facts of human nature.
Cocaine comes from the Cocoa plant. The processing of it into cocaine and crack is relatively simple and inexpensive. So as a crop it is not a whole lot different than sugar and the processing done to sugar. The point is it is inexpensive to grow and process.
So how are the drug lords getting so wealthy and powerful selling it? The substances(heroin, cocaine, speed, crystal, etc.) are so addictive they create and hold new customers.
These customers are willing to pay high prices for the stuff. When the addicts do not have the money or income to supply their own needs they may sell enough at a profit to buy what they need. This leads also to drug related crimes like robbery, break ins, muggings, etc.
It is well known that the war on drugs has not affected the supply of the hard drugs for more than a brief period of time. It has been ineffective and costly. It is not working now.
The use of clinics for adult users would have many benefits:
1)The addicts would need to get the stuff from the clinic. In order to do this they would have to qualify as an addict.
2) The clinics would sell this stuff at cost + to the addicts and eliminate the sky high street prices which are supporting the criminal drug cartels.
3) The clinics may require addicts to undergo drug education and should be able to divert many into treatment programs.
4) Death and injuries due to tainted drugs and overdoses would no doubt be reduced. The spread of Aids, hepatitis C , venereal diseases and contagious needle diseases.
5) This is more a public health problem than it is a criminal problem. I include in public health both physical and psychiatric illnesses.
6)Police would continue to take away drivers licenses of anyone driving under the influence and would arrest anyone "drunken" in a public place. But these people would be required to undergo drug treatment programs.
7)Sales of drugs at schools and the office would not be profitable because the drugs could be gotten at cost + from a clinic.
8) People registering at clinics would remain anonymous as is usually done in public health setting unless they were arrested for a drug related offense ( Driving while under the influence).
9)Children should never be put in a clinic with adults.
Incidently, marijuana is not in the same addiction league as the more serious drugs. Pot users are not likely to be robbing banks to supply a habit. Pot is more psychologically addicting than it is physiologically addicting. People on pot are not drunk like those on alcohol. This can vary a lot for different people.
One thing is clear about pot, it does not help teenagers deal with the problems of growing up. But it not even close to being as detrimental as alcohol. Sending someone to jail for pot and not alcohol use is one of the great inconsistencies in our laws. By the way, there is no data that backs up your fear that pot usage leads to more auto accidents. In fact, pot users are likely to be pretty inactive people.
Your points on alcohol and tobacco are well founded. They are a much more serious problem than abuse of hard drugs. The irony is they are legal. Our laws are inconsistent with reason.
I would like to see a task force of public health personel and drug treatment experts to outline an effective public health program for the reduction of drug abuse in this country for both adults and children.
I would also like to see a task force of economists and business leaders to to figure out a method to take the profit out of drugs and put the drug cartel out of its misery.
I know the problem seems so obnoxious and difficult that there is a tendency on the part of people to say "to hell with them all" but that is not really a responsible attitude. Sure we can put the dealers away when we catch them but as long as the money is as good as it is there will be plenty of replacements. Like the fox they will just get smarter about not getting caught (natural selection).
I ran into businessman who teenage daughter was deep into
hard drugs. He went down to one of the dealers and threatened to kill him. He actually picked him up over his head in a bathroom and I do not know what stopped him.
In the end, the only thing that helped his daughter was getting her into a treatment program that actually works.
This could happen to almost anyone's children under the wrong circumstances. It merits serious attention.
JMO |
