Indeed. If we chose to treat drug addiction as a disease instead of a crime, we could vastly reduce the current prison population levels. We would see an over

Indeed. If we chose to treat drug addiction as a disease instead of a crime, we could vastly reduce the current prison population levels. We would see an overall reduction in violence too. Gangs and organized crime would still exist, but without one of their major funding sources, they would have a dramatically lower impact on our society as a whole. Of course, the law enforcement complex and the prison industrial complex may not like to see their main reason for existence (and funding) reduced, so they are likely to fight changes to the War on Drugs. And if people are smoking more weed, maybe they're drinking less alcohol, so there are other interested parties who, by the way, have lots of money for marketing and lobbying. The sad fact is that the USA isn't really seeing the worst of it. I read stories about the cartels in Mexico and just cringe. We are destabilizing our neighbouring nation, our important trading partner and ally over this issue.