Drug use and drug related crime decreased in the 80's? News to me. REPORTED LEVELS of both MAY HAVE decreased. But based on the inaccuracies of statistics provided on so many levels in the 80's I'd be skeptical.
Personally, I support legalization for several reasons.
1. Taxes. Take the tax revenue from drug use and use it SOLELY for education and treatment.
2. Reduced crime. Think of the cost savings as we no longer use police, armed forces, INS (yes, they get involved), or DEA to monitor and track drug import and distribution...Think of the saved lives as random and chaotic use of guns is reduced. Think of the increased ability to monitor hard-core abusers and their proclivities (real crime-related - mugging, purse snatching, etc.).
3. Choice. I, for one, was lucky enough to have parents who allowed me to try marijuana, alcohol, tobacco. I used only alcohol to any large degree, and had many friends who moved on to cocaine, LSD, crack, alcoholism, etc. My ability to CHOOSE between using and not using led me to understand the problems inherent in drugs. Now, I'm not saying my experience will be the norm. BUT...most of my friends who are abusers now or wound up in treatment started out REBELLING against their supposed "lack of choice" in the matter. I bet 2 out of 4 would still be in treatment or abusing if they had more freedom, but that is a small number compared to the current realities.
Anyone who is opposed to legalized drugs has merely to look at Prohibition and draw the parallels. It isn't a stretch... |
