New Mexican Drug Policy

Today Mexico is looking to decriminalize the possession of certain drugs. I think it's a good idea. Just like prohibition in the past, drug laws have created a black market that is riddled with violence and pollutes the quality of the drugs consumed. While some may say "who cares about the quality?" one must understand why a standardized form of the drugs available must be maintained. Imagine a heroin user, used to the diesel he's been getting that's been cut many times before he ever gets it, then one day a purer batch comes in, he measures out the amount that he's used to and WHAM!, OD. Perhaps that's the price you pay for being a drug user, but I'd prefer to think that if drug use was a more socially or legally accepted form of recreation, then those that had difficulty with said use could more easily be diagnosed and treated. The US has criminalized an entire segment of its population as around 50% of inmates are in on drug charges.

The US consumes 86% of the world's illicit drugs. Marijuana is Alabama's #1 cash crop. If we continue to have the same stance toward drug use and possession that we have today, our ever present and increasing "war on drugs" will continue to increase. Just remember that only the end of prohibition brought about the end of the violence of gangsters like the Purple Gang and others. Why don't we learn from our past? Gangs and other organized crime groups are primarily responsible for a lot of our drug and violence problems. I propose that the end of drug prohibition will see a stark decrease in both deaths from drugs and the violence associated with it. Alcoholism is rampant in the US. It is a drug that kills just like any other. Tobacco use is still steady and, although becoming less accepted, is still a socially acceptable drug to use. Tobacco use takes almost as many lives as heart attacks in the US, and I'll bet a good chunk of those can be related to cigarettes as well. Drugs that kill are all around us, and these other, illicit drugs, are no exception. So why are these drugs legal and others not? We can save more lives if we regulate how these drugs are dispersed and used. Imagine the money that could be saved by keeping petty drug users out of jail. Jail isn't going to fix their problem, only education and rehabilitation will (both of which are way cheaper).

And I'm not even going to get into the idea that these Federal drug laws are most likely unconstitutional. That's another debate.