Our Drug War Next Door

[Comrade Tovya]

akuma587 said:
The marijuana market would be HUGE if it was legal. You underestimate how many people smoke it already and how many more would do it if it was legal. Plus you don't need that much to get high, so they could charge relatively high prices (much less than street value now), plus the quality would be so much better.

But that is beside the point. It doesn't have to be a huge industry to help the economy. No one is suggesting it would be a panacea, but why keep something that is 1) not dangerous and 2) for which there is a high demand off the market? That completely goes against free market principles (though ironically you will have many people praise the free market out one side of their mouth and criticize marijuana out the other side).

@Comrade:

No one is advocating legalizing narcotics like cocaine and opium. But drug lords make more money off marijuana than everything else. Marijuana is like the Wal-Mart of drugs. Its just a money making business because of volume. It would cripple many drug cartels if they lost that source of revenue. Even a lot of gangs thrive off the drug trade as it is such easy money (built-in demand). The war on drugs has made the world a much more dangerous place.

What you are suggesting is like trying to wage a war against terrorists. Its difficult if not impossible. There is simply too much money involved. You dethrone one drug cartel and another will rise in its place because you are essentially fighting a war against demand. Its like declaring war on restaurant owners for trying to serve people food. They will serve people food one way or another. What I am suggesting is like preventing the terrorists from being able to support themselves in the first place.

Furthermore, there are very few sociological or scientific arguments that someone can articulate for why marijuana should be illegal that wouldn't also suggest that alcohol should be illegal. If you have any, I would love to hear them.

 

In principal, I agree with you.  I'd rather be riding with a "high" driver than a "drunk" driver any day of the week.

But from experience, I know that smoking a little bud is a lot more intoxicating per se than drinking a few beers.

So, what I am saying is, then in both of their worst states, being "high" is better.  But assuming that both are used in moderation, I feel much better about alcohol.

As for the cartels, I have always advocated violent opposition.  I don't think the US government should sit back idly and wait for foreign governments to crack down on the cartels.  I think the US armed forces should go to defcon 1 against them.  We've jacked with the cartels long enough.  The Mexican and Columbian governments have had problems fighting them because of corruption.  More often than not, these governments armed forces are being bought of by the cartels.  And the CIA is almost as bad as them.  The CIA is the most corrupt and disgusting agency in the United States.

That's why I say we try something completely new.  Treat the war on drugs like the war on terror.  Send in the armed forces, full force and annihilate the cartels.

The cartels are not in hiding by any means.  The drug lords have mansions/compounds whose locations are well known.  In the past we've just respected the sovereignty of the nations that host the cartels.  I say forget that, and literally invade the cartels' safe zones, clean them out, and then leave.