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Politics : American Presidential Politics and foreign affairs -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Geoff Altman who wrote (2000)	10/26/2005 2:31:08 PM
From: Peter Dierks	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 71588

The inelasticity Becker is describing is the short term inelasticity. He did not seem to cover the long term effects of higher prices or lower prices. The lower the price, the more (price) accessible drugs are to younger people. At $10 for a high, there is lots of long term demand. At $100 for a high, the demand is much lower in the long run. In describing short term inelasticity, Becker fails to discuss physical or emotional addiction. People who are already hooked will do anything to get their next high. Also there is the glamour effect. If kids see druggies as cool people with cool cars, hair and cloths, it is going to be more glamorous. If druggies are strung out car less criminal bums it will decrease the likelihood of individual choices. Collectively individual choices affect demand. It is unlikely if there are any excise taxes currently in effect as high as alcohol. There is a large potential tax revenue stream from excise taxes approximating the interdiction avoidance costs. It still remains unanswered what percentage of people convicted and jail for "non-violent" drug crimes would end up in jail for other crimes if drugs were legalized. I for one do not discount that criminals flock to the easy money. Certainly there are some people who would not otherwise be involved in criminal activity if not for their proclivity for drugs, and their illegality.

To: Geoff Altman who wrote (2000)	10/27/2005 12:38:26 PM
From: Peter Dierks	Respond to of 71588

Nice Grub. 2000th post.

To: Geoff Altman who wrote (2000)	4/30/2009 8:45:57 AM
From: Peter Dierks	2 Recommendations Respond to of 71588

Drug Decriminalization in Portugal: Lessons for Creating Fair and Successful Drug Policies by Glenn Greenwald On July 1, 2001, a nationwide law in Portugal took effect that decriminalized all drugs, including cocaine and heroin. Under the new legal framework, all drugs were "decriminalized," not "legalized." Thus, drug possession for personal use and drug usage itself are still legally prohibited, but violations of those prohibitions are deemed to be exclusively administrative violations and are removed completely from the criminal realm. Drug trafficking continues to be prosecuted as a criminal offense. While other states in the European Union have developed various forms of de facto decriminalization — whereby substances perceived to be less serious (such as cannabis) rarely lead to criminal prosecution — Portugal remains the only EU member state with a law explicitly declaring drugs to be "decriminalized." Because more than seven years have now elapsed since enactment of Portugal's decriminalization system, there are ample data enabling its effects to be assessed. Notably, decriminalization has become increasingly popular in Portugal since 2001. Except for some far-right politicians, very few domestic political factions are agitating for a repeal of the 2001 law. And while there is a widespread perception that bureaucratic changes need to be made to Portugal's decriminalization framework to make it more efficient and effective, there is no real debate about whether drugs should once again be criminalized. More significantly, none of the nightmare scenarios touted by preenactment decriminalization opponents — from rampant increases in drug usage among the young to the transformation of Lisbon into a haven for "drug tourists" — has occurred. The political consensus in favor of decriminalization is unsurprising in light of the relevant empirical data. Those data indicate that decriminalization has had no adverse effect on drug usage rates in Portugal, which, in numerous categories, are now among the lowest in the EU, particularly when compared with states with stringent criminalization regimes. Although postdecriminalization usage rates have remained roughly the same or even decreased slightly when compared with other EU states, drug-related pathologies — such as sexually transmitted diseases and deaths due to drug usage — have decreased dramatically. Drug policy experts attribute those positive trends to the enhanced ability of the Portuguese government to offer treatment programs to its citizens — enhancements made possible, for numerous reasons, by decriminalization. This report will begin with an examination of the Portuguese decriminalization framework as set forth in law and in terms of how it functions in practice. Also examined is the political climate in Portugal both pre- and postdecriminalization with regard to drug policy, and the impetus that led that nation to adopt decriminalization. Glenn Greenwald is a constitutional lawyer and a contributing writer at Salon. He has authored several books, including A Tragic Legacy (2007) and How Would a Patriot Act? (2006). The report then assesses Portuguese drug policy in the context of the EU's approach to drugs. The varying legal frameworks, as well as the overall trend toward liberalization, are examined to enable a meaningful comparative assessment between Portuguese data and data from other EU states. The report also sets forth the data concerning drug-related trends in Portugal both pre- and postdecriminalization. The effects of decriminalization in Portugal are examined both in absolute terms and in comparisons with other states that continue to criminalize drugs, particularly within the EU. The data show that, judged by virtually every metric, the Portuguese decriminalization framework has been a resounding success. Within this success lie self-evident lessons that should guide drug policy debates around the world. cato.org Geoff, yes I know you posted it elsewhere. I thought it was relevant to the subject so I copied it over here. As I usually try to do, I found a relevant older post so that the discussion is threaded. Hat Tip to Geoff who credits LindyBill