A political candidate talked about how tough he'd be on those who traffic in drugs. Long prison terms. Tougher penalties. Blah, blah, blah.
I've been listening to this war talk since the mid - 50s. And one would think that after half a century there might be a little progress in this so-called "war."
But the reality is that no one is serious about stopping drugs. Arresting drug dealers and punishing users is big business.
If we make drugs legal we would kill the profit motive. Without a profit, the criminal element withers away. Street gangs would have to find something else to fight over. The murder rate would drop. Prisons would empty out because more than half the prisoners are there for drug charges.
Prison guards could become drug counselors. Prisons converted to treatment centers.
Those who favor punishment, the Moral Right, claim that legalizing encourages drug use. And that's because they'd be more available. But there's not a place in Arizona where you can't buy drugs. All you need do is spend 10-15 minutes and a few dollars and you have drugs - just take your choice.
I'm not in favor of drug or alcohol use. But I do advocate that we live in a society governed by the reality that whatever we're doing now is not working. What we're doing now is failing and our youngsters are dying.
