3 ms·
Why not? Legalising drugs destroys every single element which supports violent paralegel cartels. 1) It eliminates legal risk, so drug production becomes insta
by nirnira 13y ago
Why not? Legalising drugs destroys every single element which supports violent paralegel cartels.
1) It eliminates legal risk, so drug production becomes instantly a much more lucrative activity, enticing more people to do it.
2) Profits are reduced as the market becomes more competitive.
3) The cartels are unable to pursue their "normal" extralegal means of suppressing competition, because the parties they might seek to suppress now have legal access to state protection.
4) In a competitive, legal market, the successful firms will be the ones which offer the best product - the firms with the best drugs, the highest standards of quality and ethics, the nicest stores, and the best customer service. Why buy from dodgy drug-dealers when you can walk into a beautiful store and get great customer service?
In short term yes, cartels may attempt to protect their monopoly, but in the long term, legalisation dooms them as cultural dinosaurs unable to compete in the new legal, open market.
Edit: This analysis depends upon low taxation. High taxation will still incentivise extralegal selling, but it probably makes the black market a bit safer regardless.
- paulhauggis 13y agoDrug legalization isn't the problem, corruption is. When the cartels can buy any officer and government official in Mexico, legalization will only give them more power. "4) In a competitive, legal market, the successful firms will be the ones which offer the best product - the firms with the best drugs, the highest standards of quality and ethics, the nicest stores, and the best customer service. Why buy from dodgy drug-dealers when you can walk into a beautiful store and get great customer service?" Really? So Walmart and Amazon have the highest standard of quality and customer service..really?????? "Why buy from dodgy drug-dealers when you can walk into a beautiful store and get great customer service" Because money talks. The government will tax and regulate drugs. Many users will not want to pay a higher price for a lower quality product (quality might be THC levels, etc). Why go to dodgy virus-laden websites to download software and music when you can go into a beautiful store with great customer service? I'm all for the legalization of MJ, but I feel like common sense goes out the window in any of these discussions. If the community is all about stopping the violence, why not boycott all cartel grown drugs?
- nirnira 13y agoWalmart and Amazon are hyper-efficient organisations that are able to deliver extremely low-cost goods. Hence their popularity. If ultra low prices are what consumers want, then what's to stop someone attempting to sell marijuana that cheaply? Again, not really a vicious cartel's forte. A cartel's forte is violently excluding competitors to maintain high profit margins in a market hidden from normal legislative balances. As long as all the growing takes place within the legalisation territory (i.e. nothing is sourced from illicit operations in foreign nations) then I see no reason why violent organisations would dominate legal trade of psychoactive substances.
- angersock 13y agowhy not boycott all cartel grown drugs? Because Bayer and Amazon can drive the bastards out of business much faster, simply by being better organized.
- dinkumthinkum 13y agoAre you under the impression that legalizing marijuana means legalizing all drugs? There are many other illegal drugs worth many times their weight in gold. So you get rid of marijuana as a means of income; this is no big deal to cartels.
- nirnira 13y agoI'm not under that impression. But yes legalising all drugs would destroy the cartels. Hopefully one day when society comes to its senses...