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Neither Singapore nor China allows drugs, yet their crime rate is much lower and their prisons much less crowded. Most European countries also outlaw drugs.

xiaoma 17y ago
They don't have a "war on drugs", either. Here in Taiwan, there are some very strict drug laws on the books, and yet weed and club drugs are pretty common, as they are in Singapore. Unlike the US, though, enforcement of drug laws isn't a high priority. There are people in jail for drug selling and production, but very few for casual use.
- bokonist 17y ago
  There are people in jail for drug selling and production, but very few for casual use. The U.S. is the same way: http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/demand/speakout/10so.htm http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/demand/speakout/10so.htm "The Michigan Department of Corrections just finished a study of their inmate population. They discovered that out of 47,000 inmates, only 15 people were incarcerated on first-time drug possession charges."
  - xiaoma 17y ago
    No, it's not the same. Even a cursory look at the issue shows that much of the US prison population is due to "3 strikes" laws. By looking only at first time possession charges, that entire group is missed. Furthermore, police in the US have the power to seize cars, seize money, and quite number of other things without warrant, based upon the suspicion of drugs being involved. They can't do that here.
gnaritas 17y ago
That doesn't even negate my point. The point is we're declaring a class of people criminals because we don't like them, rather than because they've harmed anyone. This creates a black market for goods which then attracts even more crime and creates more serious criminals. If you want to see less criminals, start requiring that crimes have actual victims. Consenting adults trading goods and services, whether they be drugs, sex, or anything else, should not simply be declared criminals. How Singapore and China deals with the issue isn't even slightly relevant to the issue. Imagine the crime rates if we declared coffee drinkers criminals. We'd have to jail a lot more people and build a lot more prisons because you cannot stop people from engaging in victim-less behavior that they enjoy.
- deleted 17y ago
  [deleted]

xiaoma 17y ago

They don't have a "war on drugs", either. Here in Taiwan, there are some very strict drug laws on the books, and yet weed and club drugs are pretty common, as they are in Singapore. Unlike the US, though, enforcement of drug laws isn't a high priority. There are people in jail for drug selling and production, but very few for casual use.

bokonist 17y ago
There are people in jail for drug selling and production, but very few for casual use. The U.S. is the same way: http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/demand/speakout/10so.htm http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/demand/speakout/10so.htm "The Michigan Department of Corrections just finished a study of their inmate population. They discovered that out of 47,000 inmates, only 15 people were incarcerated on first-time drug possession charges."
- xiaoma 17y ago
  No, it's not the same. Even a cursory look at the issue shows that much of the US prison population is due to "3 strikes" laws. By looking only at first time possession charges, that entire group is missed. Furthermore, police in the US have the power to seize cars, seize money, and quite number of other things without warrant, based upon the suspicion of drugs being involved. They can't do that here.

gnaritas 17y ago

That doesn't even negate my point. The point is we're declaring a class of people criminals because we don't like them, rather than because they've harmed anyone. This creates a black market for goods which then attracts even more crime and creates more serious criminals. If you want to see less criminals, start requiring that crimes have actual victims. Consenting adults trading goods and services, whether they be drugs, sex, or anything else, should not simply be declared criminals. How Singapore and China deals with the issue isn't even slightly relevant to the issue. Imagine the crime rates if we declared coffee drinkers criminals. We'd have to jail a lot more people and build a lot more prisons because you cannot stop people from engaging in victim-less behavior that they enjoy.

deleted 17y ago
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