wapd (06/24/82)
I agree with GREG of hao that drugs that are presently illegal should be legalized. My rationale for this is given below, and it is based more on practical grounds rather than any good moral argument. Several harmful things are happening today. We have addicts committing crimes to get drugs. We have organized crime making enormous profits from the sale of drugs. We spend lots of money to patrol our borders, and good portion of that is directed at drug-smugglers. One way to reduce or eliminate these problems is to attack the root of the problem. That is, we could eradicate drug use by convincing or forcing people to stop taking drugs. We could convince or force people to stop growing or making drugs. However, the government has tried to do these things and has failed. Another approach is to legalize the drugs. This would eliminate the profits to organized crime and eliminate the drug-smuggling (both depend on assumption that private enterprise is more efficient than organized crime). We would still be left with addicts committing crimes, and hurting innocent people in the process. I am not particularly happy with this solution, but it is probably better than today's state of affairs. Bill Dietrich houxj!wapd
djj (06/25/82)
Why don't we turn the drug industry into another Medicaid and have the government sponsor it??? Anyone who wanted drugs would go to the County/Parish Head Shop and show his/her Drug-Aid card. Of course, he/she would have financed this program through payroll deduction and taxes. Expensive drugs (heroin, lsd) would be available at moderate charge to the addict, with less expensive drugs (pot, valium, airplane glue, mushrooms) being free. The moderate charge for heroin and lsd would offset the higher cost of production and would also generate advertising revenue so that the government could promote its Drug-Aid stores. Enough of that satire (IT WAS SATIRE -- NO FLAMES PLEASE). The basic premise is valid, though a bit farfetched. It is much like the child who is discovered playing with matches. Buy him a BIG box of matches and have him/her light each and every one while you watch. The thrill is gone after a few minutes! If drugs were to be legalized, the serious addicts would either be' identified (or die) and we would be left with only 'recreational' users. I think in time these would also fade out and drugs would return to their place as treatment agents not agents of addiction. dave
laurir (06/26/82)
Once drugs are legalized, we can stop addicts from committing crimes to maintain their habit in the same way that we keep poor food addicts from committing crimes: let the government subsidize the habit. You'll be able to go down to the HHS office and get a week's worth of drug stamps, which you can spend at the neighborhood pharmacy. -- Andrew Klossner