Ending the “War on Drugs”: The Fierce Urgency of…When?
Sunday, March 1st, 2009 at 6:07 pm | By: MrSpof
Our friend Norm Stamper, Retired Seattle police chief and member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, has an editorial piece up on The Huffington Post entitled Ending the “War on Drugs”: The Fierce Urgency of…When? I don’t believe Mr. Stamper needs me to provide any commentary so here’s a snip.
We’ve arrested tens of millions of Americans for nonviolent drug offenses, most for simple possession of marijuana. We’ve damaged or ruined the lives of countless citizens who’ve lost school loans, publicly subsidized housing, and jobs. And yet, drugs are more readily available–especially to our kids–at lower prices and higher levels of potency than in the history of the drug war. (If you hear some “expert” claim the war is being “won” because cocaine prices are spiking, consider this: prices, like use levels, fluctuate. By way of analogy, think of the economic pain and suffering of those impoverished oil cartels when the cost of a barrel goes up. What never fluctuates, by the way, is the immutable law of supply and demand.) Even the staunchest drug warriors are in agreement: This is one war whose mission remains unaccomplished, a costly battle with no victory in sight.
via – The Huffington Post “Ending the “War on Drugs”: The Fierce Urgency of…When?”
This idea is so painfully obvious and Mr. Stamper spells it out very clearly and concisely. That there are those still stonewalling the idea of ending prohibition just goes to prove the statement “Common sense isn’t common.”
I love this, (modified slightly, I hope I kept the original meaning) “The drug war converts marijuana, cocaine, and opium into car bombs, grenade launchers, and AK-47s”.
And to think that our new Drug Czar was a Seattle Police Chief as well.