the world is what we make it
Judges Against The Drug War
Once again, just to show I haven't fallen off my rocker, check out the above link.
From the main page:
"For the past thirty years Judges have looked on as America’s War on Drugs has played itself out before their eyes. They have seen the inevitable increase in police powers and erosion of civil rights needed to facilitate the investigation of drug offenses. They have witnessed the widespread, unprecedented use of asset forfeiture. And they have been forced to impose unjust mandatory minimum sentences."
This is definitely worth a read.
2 Comments:
Dear Sourmonkey,
I found your link interesting. I believe there are many negative consequences to mandatory minimum sentences. I think one can find a number of cases where these laws have resulted in very unjust sentences. I also believe that some of the forfeiture laws have disportionately affected the poor, however I also think drug abuse, and the drug trade has diporportionately affected the poor. I do not believe that legalizing pot would drastically change this fact. At least in my experience most of the drug traffic that really messes communities up deals with drugs that you agree should be prohibited. At least it is my understanding that you do not argue for the legalization of crack, heroine, or other mixtures. Even if all drugs were legalized there would still be a black market. The problem with drugs is the underlying problem, that is in my opinion relates to God. Will laws address the underlying problem? You speak of education as a major component. Do you mean programs like dare? Are you talking about social engineering? What is the good life that should be taught in schools? What is healthy living? Why do some young people who have all the advantages of wealth, priviledge and education still succomb to addiction, while others do not. Can that all be attributed to capitalism?
Luke
Well, as a byproduct of addiction, the problem comes down to consumption. This is a very far reaching problem, and I mention capitalism because it promotes consumption. As you mentioned, even the wealthy have problems with drugs. A "drug problem" is a human problem regardless of socio-economic class.
I'm going to stop here to say that, obviously, the "problem" with drug use is bigger than any one thing. Honestly, I think it represents an ontological problem within the boundaries conscious identity. We don't know enough about the construction of our minds, and therefore, we can't effectively treat the problems of the mind (without using drugs). For this reason, drug abuse within society establishes a conundrum with no apparent humanitarian solution. This is one of the reasons why I started this collection of ideas, and I hope others join in the discussion. Luke, thank you for contributing!
I'll stop here to save time for another post.
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