I never used to understand the argument for decrimnalising drugs. In the last few years I have begun to do so. AS a Christian I'm not sre that in principle coacaine use is different to tobacco or alcohol, the only morally cogent issue is about the effects of use individually and on society and I'm not sure that alcohol and tobacco which are legal really deserve their pre-eminent position in respect of the other drugs: "But it is the war itself that is the problem. The politicians rightly warn that demand will go up if it is legalised. Not good but not the nightmare they summon up. Neither cocaine or heroin is a cancer. In quantities it destroys your nose and is bad for your brain, but it very rarely kills - unlike that other addictive plant we can use legally: tobacco. Nor is it a direct cause of violence, like alcohol. Let's be honest. People try drugs, whether in the form of alcohol or pills, because they are fun. Tens of thousands of UK citizens regularly consume cocaine; hundreds of thousands more use other illegal drugs, completely discrediting the law. In his book Cocaine, Dominic Streatfield quotes the monetarist Milton Friedman: 'I do not think you can eradicate demand. The lesson we have failed to learn is that prohibition never works. It makes things worse not better.'"
The Observer | Review | The white stuff:
No comments:
Post a Comment