Pubdate: Sat, 21 Jan 2012
Source: Wall Street Journal (US)
Copyright: 2012 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Contact:  http://www.wsj.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/487
Author: Terry Nelson
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v12/n048/a09.html

THE DRUG WAR IS LONGER THAN IRAQ OR AFGHANISTAN WARS

The article illustrates what I learned over my 30-year career as a 
federal agent: Cracking down in one place doesn't make drugs 
disappear, it only moves the trade elsewhere. This so-called "balloon 
effect," combined with the insatiable demand for drugs across the 
globe, means that no level of law-enforcement skill or dedication can 
make a significant dent.

The only way to pop the proverbial balloon is to legalize and 
regulate the drug trade, which would eliminate the opportunity to 
make enormous black-market profits. It wasn't easy for me to come to 
this revelation after dedicating so many years to enforcing drug 
laws, but it is common sense. Law-enforcement officers don't have to 
chase gangsters selling booze from town to town because we ended the 
failed experiment of alcohol prohibition decades ago. It is time we 
do the same for other drugs.

Terry Nelson

Executive Board Member

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition

Granbury, Texas
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom