Major International Leaders Plead for the US and the World to Get Smart and Stop the War on Drugs

[luckytxn 2,265]

Legalize drugs now.

[scandal 951]

Legalize drugs now.

I agree.

The US needed only 13 years (1919-1932) to realize that Prohibition on alcohol was an insanely stupid idea and only turned average citizens who wanted a social cocktail into criminals, while enriching the mobsters who supplied them. Why are we now into our 4th decade (depending on when you start counting) of this insane War on Drugs? Legalize, regulate, tax. Treat the habitual abusers as a public health concern, not a criminal concern. Prison populations will drop, tax coffers will increase, the quality of the product will improve (fewer ODs), the crime and violence will decrease, the addicts will get care. I see only wins, no losses.

[Peikko 1,575]

Killing people who willfully abuse drugs should be legal. Problem solved.

Really? What method would you advocate? The simple 'overdose'?

Drug addicts are not exactly rational and stable individuals. 'Putting down' people who are basically sick does not seem to me to be the most compassionate thing to preach.

People who advocate 'killing' people to rid themselves of these types of problems do not appear to think it through very thoroughly. If any country was actually to implement a strict 'off with his head' policy to deal with social problems the numbers executed would very soon rival Hitler's Final Solution or Stalin's attempts at political cleansing.

I wonder if anyone knows the real numbers of legally sanctioned executions even in the countries that are the most vigorous users of capital punishment? The numbers are surprisingly small and do not in any way reflect the numbers of people who are accused and convicted of the types of crimes that attract the penalty. It seems to me rather offensive to execute people merely on their inability to pay for a realistic or adequate defense, yet the reality is, that's what happens.

Edited June 9, 2011 by The Truth™

[Peikko 1,575]

I agree.

The US needed only 13 years (1919-1932) to realize that Prohibition on alcohol was an insanely stupid idea and only turned average citizens who wanted a social cocktail into criminals, while enriching the mobsters who supplied them. Why are we now into our 4th decade (depending on when you start counting) of this insane War on Drugs? Legalize, regulate, tax. Treat the habitual abusers as a public health concern, not a criminal concern. Prison populations will drop, tax coffers will increase, the quality of the product will improve (fewer ODs), the crime and violence will decrease, the addicts will get care. I see only wins, no losses.

Indeed. The normal argument is that if it were legal then more people who experiment with them leading to more addicts and exponentially more problems. In reality, I don't think that's very likely to happen and on the plus side even decriminalizing recreational drugs would empty the beleaguered jail system and save trillions in tax dollars. However, it'll never happen because of the puritans.

Edited June 9, 2011 by The Truth™

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Prison populations will drop, tax coffers will increase, the quality of the product will improve (fewer ODs), the crime and violence will decrease, the addicts will get care. I see only wins, no losses.

No losses? But we need growing prison populations. These prison corporations have a responsibility to their shareholders. If we were to legalize drugs, those guys would lose. People would lose their jobs and you'd have current inmates flooding an already oversupplied labor market further depressing already depressed wages on the lower end of the spectrum. And what do you tell the children of the DEA agents that will lose their jobs? And all those families of cops that we would need to downsize?

Edited June 9, 2011 by Mr. Big Dog

[Vi-Jay 218]

No losses? But we need growing prison populations. These prison corporations have a responsibility to their shareholders. If we were to legalize drugs, those guys would lose. People would lose their jobs and you'd have current inmates flooding an already oversupplied labor market further depressing already depressed wages on the lower end of the spectrum. And what do you tell the children of the DEA agents that will lose their jobs? And all those families of cops that we would need to downsize?

They could all be reassigned to the southern border?

[scandal 951]

The Wire rocks. I agree with the assessment that it was the finest thing produced for the small screen in the entire history of television. It is to television what Shakespeare is to literature.

An end to the war on Drugs AND a 6th season of The Wire? Where do I sign up for that?

David Simon Agrees to Make Sixth Season of ‘The Wire’ If U.S. Agrees to End War on Drugs

Posted on Friday, June 10th, 2011 by Germain Lussier

For my money, The Wire is the best show to ever grace a television screen. I’ve watched I Love Lucy, The Honeymooners, Seinfeld, M*A*S*H, The Sopranos, and I still think the The Wire towers above them all. For five amazing seasons, series creator David Simon created an intense, detailed and eye-opening cross-section of Baltimore’s beating heart by focusing on law enforcement, the drug trade, politics, education, shipping and the press. Praise for the show is almost universal, save for the Emmy voters who never gave The Wire a single award. And though it ended in 2008, fans still dream about the unlikely possibility of the show returning.

Among those fans is Attorney General Eric Holder who, last week, demanded that Simon and co-creator Ed Burns make another season. Or at least a movie. Friday, Simon responded to Holder with a simple request. He’ll do it, but first the Department of Justice must “reconsider and address its continuing prosecution of our misguided, destructive and dehumanising drug prohibition.” Point, Simon. Read the full quotes after the break.

This all started last week when Holder invited several former cast members to Washington to take part in the announcement of an anti-drug public relations campaign he’s running through the Department of Justice. Here’s what he said about The Wire:

I want to speak directly to [Co-creator Ed] Burns and Mr. Simon: Do another season of The Wire. That’s actually at a minimum. … If you don’t do a season, do a movie. We’ve done HBO movies, this is a series that deserves a movie. I want another season or I want a movie. I have a lot of power Mr. Burns and Mr. Simon.

Of course, Holder’s statement was mostly a joke. But Simon, never one to give up the opportunity to tell people how he feels, released the following response:

The Attorney-General’s kind remarks are noted and appreciated. I’ve spoken to Ed Burns and we are prepared to go to work on season six of The Wire if the Department of Justice is equally ready to reconsider and address its continuing prosecution of our misguided, destructive and dehumanising drug prohibition.

Wait, so Simon wants the DoJ to stop fighting the war drugs? Basically, yes. One of the main points made with The Wire is that the war on drugs is unwinnable. There’s too much demand, too many people who make money and too many people willing to step into their places. It’s an unbeatable beast. That’s not to say David Simon wants everyone to shoot up and throw their life away either. He’d just like people to look at things a bit more outside of the box. Like Bunny Colvin does in Season 3.

In the end, Simon obviously doesn’t think this will happen because, if it actually did, he’d probably be more than happy to make a sixth season of The Wire.

[lostinblue 1,989]

Legalize drugs now.

My thoughts drift to china and its opium

http://american_almanac.tripod.com/opium.htm

Throughout the early 20th century, Japan, which was the British Empire's key ally in Asia, launched repeated attacks on China. The Japanese used British methods, including the bombing of civilians in Shanghai in 1932, and the use of dope. The Japanese ran huge amounts of drugs, including heroin, into occupied Manchuria, and by 1944, opium addicts there were estimated around 13 million, or one-third of the population.

If you legalized drugs would the United States become like china of years past?

[one...two...tree 2,762]

My thoughts drift to china and its opium

Drifting thoughts can be a sign that you might have a drug problem. Have you considered detox?

[웃 910]

No losses? But we need growing prison populations. These prison corporations have a responsibility to their shareholders. If we were to legalize drugs, those guys would lose. People would lose their jobs and you'd have current inmates flooding an already oversupplied labor market further depressing already depressed wages on the lower end of the spectrum. And what do you tell the children of the DEA agents that will lose their jobs? And all those families of cops that we would need to downsize?

Every inmate rotting in prison is given 'free' housing, food, utilities, cable, newspapers, activities center, recreation center, and healthcare. All paid for by the taxpayer.

Most spend $0 and pay no taxes.

If the non-violent and non-sex offenders are released at least they are spending money each day and paying into our tax system, instead of just receiving.

I think it is even a better investment (for the taxpayer) for an inmate released and on welfare than sitting/rotting in prison.

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

Really? What method would you advocate? The simple 'overdose'?

Drug addicts are not exactly rational and stable individuals. 'Putting down' people who are basically sick does not seem to me to be the most compassionate thing to preach.

People who advocate 'killing' people to rid themselves of these types of problems do not appear to think it through very thoroughly. If any country was actually to implement a strict 'off with his head' policy to deal with social problems the numbers executed would very soon rival Hitler's Final Solution or Stalin's attempts at political cleansing.

I wonder if anyone knows the real numbers of legally sanctioned executions even in the countries that are the most vigorous users of capital punishment? The numbers are surprisingly small and do not in any way reflect the numbers of people who are accused and convicted of the types of crimes that attract the penalty. It seems to me rather offensive to execute people merely on their inability to pay for a realistic or adequate defense, yet the reality is, that's what happens.

I have zero sympathy for drunks and drug addicts. Like Soffyia posted...get rid of them and it's problem solved.

[SuperDuper! 230]

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Every inmate rotting in prison is given 'free' housing, food, utilities, cable, newspapers, activities center, recreation center, and healthcare. All paid for by the taxpayer.

Most spend $0 and pay no taxes.

If the non-violent and non-sex offenders are released at least they are spending money each day and paying into our tax system, instead of just receiving.

I think it is even a better investment (for the taxpayer) for an inmate released and on welfare than sitting/rotting in prison.

Corporate interests are growing our prison populations. Plain and simple. Since when does the interest of the taxpayer matter anymore?

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Corporate interests are growing our prison populations. Plain and simple. Since when does the interest of the taxpayer matter anymore?

Private prisons wouldn't exist without tax money. It is one of the biggest corporate welfare schemes today.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Private prisons wouldn't exist without tax money. It is one of the biggest corporate welfare schemes today.

And it's getting bigger.