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What a ridiculous take. Giving someone a criminal record for a victimless "crime" and thus making them potentially unemployable is an actual terrible idea. Riv

What a ridiculous take. Giving someone a criminal record for a victimless "crime" and thus making them potentially unemployable is an actual terrible idea. Rivers of ink have been spent dissecting the War on Drugs and now all that is left to do is to end it.

tptacek 4y ago
The alternative to legalization isn't criminalization, it's decriminalization. Legalization, as the term is used in drug policy discussions, implies commercialization and retail access.
- naruhodo 4y ago
  Sure, although I'm not sure why you're telling me. I'm familiar with the distinction. Again, rivers of ink have flowed. Decriminalised drugs are still produced and distributed by "criminals" who are not bound by laws enforcing product safety and who pay no taxes. I personally believe that "soft" drugs with relatively good safety profiles, such as cannabis and some psychedelics should be fully legal and more harmful drugs should be decriminalised and public health measures instituted, similar to Portugal. The police should, to the largest extent possible, butt out. Dr David Nutt is my go to: <https://www.ias.org.uk/uploads/pdf/News%20stories/dnutt-lancet-011110.pdf https://www.ias.org.uk/uploads/pdf/News%20stories/dnutt-lanc...>
  - tptacek 4y ago
    It sounds like we're just struggling to find something to disagree about.
abotsis 4y ago
You beat me to it, and I couldn’t agree more. I’m not sure where I personally stand on legalization of hard drugs, but this idea that its like the economics that’s the issue is absurd. Playing with drugs is risking Groundhog Day and giving addicts a path out is likely what’ll fix things for people /who want help/. Drugs are dangerous and no policy change will ever be a silver bullet; as long as there are drugs there will be addicts who are enslaved to them. We’ve created a society where, like shitty parents of disobedient children, we scold and shame addicts into temporary compliance. But the real way out is to give them the opportunity to create something not that they value more than drugs (let’s be honest, you’ll never do that), but a path that has a better ratio of anxiety to fulfillment than they currently have with drugs, or even fucking alcohol. It’s not easy, and not always possible, and you can’t save everybody, or even most, but it’s pretty widely known that it’s the best we can do.

tptacek 4y ago

The alternative to legalization isn't criminalization, it's decriminalization. Legalization, as the term is used in drug policy discussions, implies commercialization and retail access.

naruhodo 4y ago
Sure, although I'm not sure why you're telling me. I'm familiar with the distinction. Again, rivers of ink have flowed. Decriminalised drugs are still produced and distributed by "criminals" who are not bound by laws enforcing product safety and who pay no taxes. I personally believe that "soft" drugs with relatively good safety profiles, such as cannabis and some psychedelics should be fully legal and more harmful drugs should be decriminalised and public health measures instituted, similar to Portugal. The police should, to the largest extent possible, butt out. Dr David Nutt is my go to: <https://www.ias.org.uk/uploads/pdf/News%20stories/dnutt-lancet-011110.pdf https://www.ias.org.uk/uploads/pdf/News%20stories/dnutt-lanc...>
- tptacek 4y ago
  It sounds like we're just struggling to find something to disagree about.

abotsis 4y ago

You beat me to it, and I couldn’t agree more. I’m not sure where I personally stand on legalization of hard drugs, but this idea that its like the economics that’s the issue is absurd. Playing with drugs is risking Groundhog Day and giving addicts a path out is likely what’ll fix things for people /who want help/. Drugs are dangerous and no policy change will ever be a silver bullet; as long as there are drugs there will be addicts who are enslaved to them. We’ve created a society where, like shitty parents of disobedient children, we scold and shame addicts into temporary compliance. But the real way out is to give them the opportunity to create something not that they value more than drugs (let’s be honest, you’ll never do that), but a path that has a better ratio of anxiety to fulfillment than they currently have with drugs, or even fucking alcohol. It’s not easy, and not always possible, and you can’t save everybody, or even most, but it’s pretty widely known that it’s the best we can do.