Pubdate: Mon, 04 Mar 2002
Source: The Post and Courier (SC)
Copyright: 2002 Evening Post Publishing Co.
Contact:   http://www.charleston.net/index.html
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/567
Author: Barry Waldman

DRUG BUSTS

I hope law enforcement authorities and your editorial staff enjoy gloating 
over the recent drug busts in the city. I regret to inform you that 
contrary to your assertion, occasional law enforcement victories floating 
in a sea of defeats do not send any message to those involved in the drug 
trade.

The so-called war on drugs has been a massacre, with the drugs on the 
winning end. Our senseless crusade against junkies has done nothing to stem 
the supply of drugs, but it has succeeded in diverting tens of billions of 
dollars away from productive uses, like education, to name one. It has also 
helped destroy several developing nations, imprisoned tens of thousands of 
innocent addicts - on our dime - and ruined the lives of millions of Americans.

Trying to prevent the trade of drugs is like trying to catch Saturn in a 
butterfly net. Illicit drugs, like toothpaste and sneakers and broccoli, 
are commodities that adhere to the rock-solid laws of supply and demand. As 
long as there is demand for mind-altering substances, and it has ever been 
thus, someone will be there to fulfill that demand and get rich. By adding 
the risk of prosecution to the drug market, law enforcement succeeds only 
in driving up the price, thereby ensuring the commission of crimes 
attendant to drug use.

I hope Americans come to their senses during my lifetime and make it 
possible for elected officials to publicly denounce the wasteful and 
catastrophic "war on drugs." Only then can we have a serious discussion 
about real solutions to the scourge of drugs in America.

BARRY WALDMAN
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