It's time to legalize drugs

America has had some success in slowing down the distribution of illegal drugs, however, this is a war that cannot be won. How long have we been fighting this battle? How much money have we spent on this war? Let's just take a look at what happened in Rio de Janeiro after winning the bid for the summer Olympics in 2016. The New York Times reported that just one mile from Maracana Stadium an anti-aircraft gun shot down a police helicopter. We hardly have a clue of how much violence there constantly is, especially in Latin and South America. The gang violence that takes place in Brazil is almost unbelievable; there were approximately 5,000 people murdered last year alone. Paramilitary gangs are assaulting the state itself and the police. Our demand for narcotics is responsible for many of these crimes. Even Brazil's former president Fernando Henrique Cardoso has declared prohibition a failure.

Unfortunately, we are still many years away from decriminalization of these drugs. Do we have a moral obligation to keep these drugs illegal? Or should we take a rational approach and end prohibition? While it's true, that many of these narcotics are extremely harmful, wouldn't it be a better idea if the Government had oversight? They could control the way the market (s) operates and in doing so it could also collect more tax dollars. The problems that we face domestically are nothing compared to the destruction it is wreaking in South America. Rio de Janeiro alone has at least 100,000 people working in the drug trade.

The answer to this old question of legalization or prohibition certainly isn't an easy one. Yes, drugs are harmful, but we must weigh the pros and cons. Regardless of our decision, there will be drugs and they will be used; so why not have them regulated by the Government. It will be interesting to see how this all unfolds during the Olympics of 2016.

--P

I do not know what happened to this post. But I do not see it on the blog. One thing I would like to add is that the drug trade and our anti drug efforts are responsible for funding and creating sympathy for the Taliban.

--TWM