The war on drugs is "obsolete" (or some other variant of fail) only insofar as we assume that the purpose of the war on drugs is to reduce or eliminate drug use

The war on drugs is "obsolete" (or some other variant of fail) only insofar as we assume that the purpose of the war on drugs is to reduce or eliminate drug use. But if you put its purpose into indirect terms - enforcing class distinctions, providing minor harassment charges to apply to social undesirables, encouraging the militarization of police forces, providing a funding firehose for certain government agencies, and making a convenient and simplistic boogieman for cheap politicians - it's a spectacular success.