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You're not the only one. These services have destroyed peoples' lives by providing them easy access to coke, meth, and heroin. Contrary to opinion, the vast maj

You're not the only one. These services have destroyed peoples' lives by providing them easy access to coke, meth, and heroin. Contrary to opinion, the vast majority of these people would not have found those drugs in the streets. There are no easy solutions here, but it's false to claim that these services are inherently better than what came before. They may make it safer to acquire the drugs, but they also make it much easier to do so. I don't think we should lock people up for possessing these drugs, but an unregulated marketplace with easy access to a Willy Wonka factory of narcotics is deeply troubling.

jstanley 9y ago
OpenBazaar isn't a darknet market. It's a decentralised peer-to-peer market.
- sillysaurus3 9y ago
  If people are getting crack from it, does it matter what type of market it is? People are saying this is where the drug trade might migrate: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14828864 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14828864 I think it's scary that (a) these markets are here to stay, and (b) anyone with a computer and the most basic technology skills will be able to get any hard drug they can imagine delivered right to their doorstep. Again, there's nothing to be done, really. That's just the way the world is now. But it's unfortunate.
  - jstanley 9y ago
    Firstly, there are absolutely no illegal drugs currently being sold on OpenBazaar. It's almost exclusively novelty items at the moment. Secondly, if Alice wants to sell crack, and Bob wants to buy it, I don't see why you or I or anybody else has the right to stand in the middle and say that's not allowed. I accept that you think it's not good for Alice and Bob to be able to transact however they like, but you must accept that lots of people do not agree.
    - sillysaurus3 9y ago
      No one is arguing that Alice and Bob should be prevented from engaging in good ol' American trade. We're arguing that when drugs are ubiquitous -- as easy to access as pushing a button -- you'll spawn far more addicts than would have otherwise been created. When an addict's life is destroyed by these horrific tools of pleasure we've created, are they going to take solace in the fact that they were able to use technology to enable their habit? People become addicts for many reasons. One of the main ways is by being at a party among friends. No one expects to be addicted to this stuff, so they try a bit. In the old days, they had one option: Get more from their friend, which may not work forever. In modern times, they can get as much as they want from the darknet markets. Bitcoin ATMs make it trivial, too. You don't even need to be vetted by Coinbase. It's not just theoretical. People have witnessed the markets causing this.
      - k__ 9y ago
        I thought it was known today that drugs aren't a problem, but people to whom drugs are the only relieve and the criminalisation of those.
        avip 9y ago
        Absolutely. It's well established that drugs aren't a problem. I mean, it's only the leading death cause of young Americans. Nothing to see here folks.
        thaumasiotes 9y ago
        Leading cause of death in a group with an ultra-low death rate? You could make the case that it's a problem, but that's not enough by itself.
      - StavrosK 9y ago
        Doesn't that mean we should also shut down casinos, for example? I don't think the answer has ever been "make it so people can't buy the stuff", because that can't work. Instead, I believe that education, quality control, and help towards addicts would work much better.
  - urza 9y ago
    No, what is unfortunate is that we are living in a world where you can be persecuted for handling your own body and mind as you, and not some bureaucrat, see fit. What is unfortunate is that people are put daily in jail for actions where there is no victim. What is unfortunate is that people who create safe environment for drug users to buy clean hihq quality drugs from rated sellers, are serving double life or committing suicides. What is unfortunate is that majority of society thinks like you do.
c0nducktr 9y ago
> Contrary to opinion, the vast majority of these people would not have found those drugs in the streets. [citation needed]

jstanley 9y ago

OpenBazaar isn't a darknet market. It's a decentralised peer-to-peer market.

sillysaurus3 9y ago
If people are getting crack from it, does it matter what type of market it is? People are saying this is where the drug trade might migrate: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14828864 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14828864 I think it's scary that (a) these markets are here to stay, and (b) anyone with a computer and the most basic technology skills will be able to get any hard drug they can imagine delivered right to their doorstep. Again, there's nothing to be done, really. That's just the way the world is now. But it's unfortunate.
- jstanley 9y ago
  Firstly, there are absolutely no illegal drugs currently being sold on OpenBazaar. It's almost exclusively novelty items at the moment. Secondly, if Alice wants to sell crack, and Bob wants to buy it, I don't see why you or I or anybody else has the right to stand in the middle and say that's not allowed. I accept that you think it's not good for Alice and Bob to be able to transact however they like, but you must accept that lots of people do not agree.
  - sillysaurus3 9y ago
    No one is arguing that Alice and Bob should be prevented from engaging in good ol' American trade. We're arguing that when drugs are ubiquitous -- as easy to access as pushing a button -- you'll spawn far more addicts than would have otherwise been created. When an addict's life is destroyed by these horrific tools of pleasure we've created, are they going to take solace in the fact that they were able to use technology to enable their habit? People become addicts for many reasons. One of the main ways is by being at a party among friends. No one expects to be addicted to this stuff, so they try a bit. In the old days, they had one option: Get more from their friend, which may not work forever. In modern times, they can get as much as they want from the darknet markets. Bitcoin ATMs make it trivial, too. You don't even need to be vetted by Coinbase. It's not just theoretical. People have witnessed the markets causing this.
    - k__ 9y ago
      I thought it was known today that drugs aren't a problem, but people to whom drugs are the only relieve and the criminalisation of those.
      - avip 9y ago
        Absolutely. It's well established that drugs aren't a problem. I mean, it's only the leading death cause of young Americans. Nothing to see here folks.
        thaumasiotes 9y ago
        Leading cause of death in a group with an ultra-low death rate? You could make the case that it's a problem, but that's not enough by itself.
    - StavrosK 9y ago
      Doesn't that mean we should also shut down casinos, for example? I don't think the answer has ever been "make it so people can't buy the stuff", because that can't work. Instead, I believe that education, quality control, and help towards addicts would work much better.
- urza 9y ago
  No, what is unfortunate is that we are living in a world where you can be persecuted for handling your own body and mind as you, and not some bureaucrat, see fit. What is unfortunate is that people are put daily in jail for actions where there is no victim. What is unfortunate is that people who create safe environment for drug users to buy clean hihq quality drugs from rated sellers, are serving double life or committing suicides. What is unfortunate is that majority of society thinks like you do.

c0nducktr 9y ago

> Contrary to opinion, the vast majority of these people would not have found those drugs in the streets. [citation needed]