The "War On Drugs" is 40 years old and an abject failure.

Does this mean that we can also expect an endless increase in terrorism and "terrorism related offenses" in america (and america-affected countries) for the next half a century+ with the war on terror?

Thanks a lot, federal government! What kind of problems would we be able to build up and harden 'our' police forces for if it wasn't for you?

Every day it's thread after thread of "where are our civil liberties and freedom going/where'd they go/how'd we lose them?" and it's so simple what needs to be done...

Drug Czar Admits War on Drugs Failure

The head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy has admitted that the war on drugs is a failure:

After 40 years, the United States' war on drugs has cost $1 trillion and hundreds of thousands of lives, and for what? Drug use is rampant and violence even more brutal and widespread.

Even U.S. drug czar Gil Kerlikowske concedes the strategy hasn't worked.

"In the grand scheme, it has not been successful," Kerlikowske told The Associated Press. "Forty years later, the concern about drugs and drug problems is, if anything, magnified, intensified."

If anything, he understates it. It isn't just that the war on drugs has failed; it's that the war on drugs creates many, if not most, of the very problems used to justify the war in the first place.

The zealous drug warriors justify the war by pointing out the existence of violent gangs that run drugs -- but those drug gangs only exist because drugs are illegal. You don't see violent turf wars between Stolichnaya and Skyy, or between Miller and Budweiser because they compete the way all legitimate corporations do.

They justify the war on drugs by pointing to the amount of crime that takes place by those who are addicted and need the money to buy drugs. But prohibition artificially inflates the price and only makes that crime more common than it otherwise would be...

Stop the process that took them away in the first place!

I know that article is from last year, but I just heard that it's been forty years today and this thread popped into my head.

This is just crazy. When will it stop?

There is no war on drugs, its a myth. Drugs is the second biggest economy behind war and is sort trillions of pounds to governments around the world. They don't legalize drugs because it would hand to much profit to separate companies and drive down the price on the street. Bottom line is all countries need the drug trade to survive economically.

Just my view on the world.

Helgas

reply to post by Helgas2011

Drugs is the second biggest economy behind war

Why do you think we're in Afghanistan (at least one of the reasons)? Drugs. Opium. The Taliban almost eradicated the poppy in Afghanistan in 2000. September 11 2001, and bam, we're in Afghanistan in 2002 when the poppy almost completely popped back. One of the same reasons for Viet Nam. Air America shipped a lot of poppy out of that golden triangle.

As to the OP, it depends on how you look at it. For some the war on drugs have been very successful.

1) You get a reason to lock up a disproportionate amount of the poor and minority populations
2) Excellent mechanism of social control
3) Seized drug arrest assets help to pad the budget of a strapped police force.
4) Great way to keep prices fixed and use as a fundraiser for the black budget.

So while I agree that for all the important reasons, the war on drugs has been a failure, it has been successful as well, just not necessarily for we the people.

Hillary said theres too much money in it. I wonder if she was talking about that guy her husband pardoned after he left office. Some cocain dealer.....

Regardless of your personal feelings about drugs prohibition never works. We learned this with alcohol prohibition yet sustain drug prohibition. I won't even get into the numerous problems with drug prohibition as I don't need writer's cramp.

reply to post by coyotepoet


The taliban didnt wipe it out. Thanks to tim osman aka bin ladin (bushs heroin dealer) The taliban started to flood europe with cheap heroin. It was a kind of jihad. He cut bush out of the deal so thats no doubt, the reason he was blamed for 911.

After looking at the history of the war on drugs, it can be concluded, that it is a failure on several different fronts that can ultimately be traced back to the federal government. The first part is that, the federal government, fails to prevent the flow of illegal narcotics into the country. The federal government knows how such substances are getting into the country, yet does nothing to stem the tide or how to prevent such from getting in. In the process, they leave gaps in the security of the country, cause if illegal narcotics can get in, then so too can other things, that the federal government should be worried about.
Another part is how people are getting hooked on such substances. Part of them did not start out to become hooked on such, rather it started out with going to the doctor and getting prescribed these substances, to help them in one way or another. There is an entire generation of people who were given these substances, that are now having to deal with the choices that were made for them. Children, who are given riddlen and other psychotropic drugs to help deal with behavioral issues, are often the victims in these cases, due to the good intentions of their parents and doctors, yet no study has been conducted about the long term care for such individuals after being on what is considered a class 4 narcotic.
Then there are the users, and how they are handled by the justice system. The solution that was come up with is to put them in jail, yet very little funding goes into a viable treatment to help them overcome their addiction. Billions are spent on advertisement and keeping the addicts in jail, yet very little of that money is spent on the means and facilities to help them overcome their problem. The ultimate shame of it all, is that the United States would rather lock a person up, and forget about them, putting them into a facility where they can get the harder stuff, than take the time to help them, or even fund programs for the treatment of those who desire to get off of the substances, that would be effective. They came up with a drug that prevents a person from drinking alcohol, yet does nothing to help those who are addicted to say coc aine.
The government would get more for their money, if instead of putting people in jail for such, building a rehab clinic and putting people in there, that way the person can overcome the addiction and detox, instead of incarciration.

The laws concerning drugs are ridiculous and uneffective.
There is not one substance unavailable because it's illegal.
I'm 38y old and no one has the right to tell me what and whatnot I'm allowed to put into my body.

Failed policy, abject failure, smokescreen for a profitable business and political front. All of the above.

The best way we can help, aside from keeping the pressure on elected officials, is to support organizations like LEAP (with their heroes like this man) and the ACLU, who can quantify the failures for us, speak to the realities, and address civil liberties ramifications.

The "war on drugs" is both a failure and success. If it was meant to stop the flow of drugs into our countries and onto the streets of our cities, then it's an absolute failure! The fact that it was used by the C.I.A. in order to finance operations in certain countries, including dealing in weapons, makes it a success!

reply to post by illuminnaughty

The taliban didnt wipe it out. Thanks to tim osman aka bin ladin (bushs heroin dealer) The taliban started to flood europe with cheap heroin. It was a kind of jihad. He cut bush out of the deal so thats no doubt, the reason he was blamed for 911

From Wiki

en.wikipedia.org...

During the Taliban rule, Afghanistan saw a bumper opium crop of 4,500 metric tons in 1999,.[12] However, in July 2000, Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar, collaborating with the United Nations to eradicate heroin production in Afghanistan, declared that growing poppies was un-Islamic, resulting in one of the world's most successful anti-drug campaigns. As a result of this ban, opium poppy cultivation was reduced by 91% from the previous year's estimate of 82,172 hectares. The ban was so effective that Helmand Province, which had accounted for more than half of this area, recorded no poppy cultivation during the 2001 season.[13]

Just ask yourself,
"Qui bono?" or
"Who benefits?"

reply to post by alaskan


THE WAR ON DRUGS IS FAKE BECAUSE THERE ARE CERTAIN AGENCIES WHO ASSIST THEM. AGENCIES HIGH RANKS MAY OR MAY NOT KNOW THEIR EMPLOYEES ARE HUSTLIN. BUT IF THERE WAS NO HOLES IN THE SYSTEM THE DRUG CZARS WOULDNT BE ABLE TO THRIVE...BUT SINCE $$$$$$$$ RULES AND GANGSTAZ MAKE THE WORLD GO ROUND ITS A EVOL JOKE. TOOO MUCH MONEY INVOLVED FOR IT TO BE OVERLOOKED.

EXCUSE THE CAPS MAKING A POINT LOL

WE ON OUR OWN

I propose a revolution.

A social media revolution.

A group protest at the White House.

To repeal current drug laws and come up with a new plan of legalization for our country and our economy.

Isn't this America, the land of the Free?

Why does the government continue to think they need to save us from ourselves? No wonder this economy is in the toilet.

Oh, thats right... I forgot...the alcohol and drug companys are in our politicians back pockets.

But... we have seen the affects in "power of the people" lately haven't we?

Could it work?

there was a comedian talking about this a few years ago, he said, there a two sides fighting, and one side is on drugs.....AND THEY ARE WINNING!!!

reply to post by coyotepoet


Thanks, how ever I was speaking to some students of Omar in London, a couple of years ago. Friends of one of my old friends. A guy that I grew up with and who is from that part of the world. Borders of the Afghan and Pakistan. I`ve known him for 20 yrs. Now these Taliban, did inform me that they had cut back the cultivation. But that they had stock piled lots of the opium, to sell for weapons. To fund their war against any one who invaded their land. Knowing the damage that heroin use can cause. To soceitys /familys and life in general. They had tried to halt the use of the drug in the Afghan, as its a very big problem for their own young people. They informed me, that it was all part of the plan/jihad to destroy us. Flooding our country with heroin and also funding their weapons.
I believe my friend and I believe those Taliban refugees that I met in London. Told from the horses mouth as far as Im concerned.

Makes me sick! I hate living in this damn country!

We could fix so much if we PRESSURED those in charge, or replaced them with smart people - but the citizens here are too damn busy watching American Idol and being just plain moronic.

I am on probation for marijuana use and breach of related conditions, and I completely agree. It has been proven over and over again that prohibition is a failed policy, I believe the DEA should be rounded up on an island and nuked.
I think the fact that an approach that has been demonstrated to be completely ineffective so many times in recent years still exists shows that maybe the governments of the world have bigger things to worry about. What could be bigger than the well-being of your entire populace, as well as a huge part of the national budget and (possibly in the future) of the economy? Iunno, but I think this may be proof they know # we don't

reply to post by illuminnaughty

They informed me, that it was all part of the plan/jihad to destroy us. Flooding our country with heroin and also funding their weapons.

Makes a lot of sense. I never heard that perspective of things. You connect Bush into things, which as far as I can tell is accurate. Either way, opium played a role in why we ended up in Afghanistan. Thanks for the new perspective on the topic.

It is a failure... but NOT to those who pocketed the $1 trillion. That's $1,000,000,000,000 (one million million; 1012; SI prefix: tera-)

For some reason, and this is pure opinion (I have no sources to back this up!), this number seems like a gross understatement.

the Billmeister