Demon Drug Propaganda Doesn't Cut It Anymore

[Urdedpal]

America's war on drugs is actually a Raid on Taxpayers. The war costs an estimated $70 billion a year to prosecute, and the drugs keep pouring in. But while the War on Drugs may have failed its official mission, it is a great success as a job-creation program.
Thousands of drug agents, police, detectives, prosecutors, judges, anti-drug activists, prison guards and their support staffs can thank the program for their daily bread and health benefits.

The American people are clearly not ready to decriminalize *******, ******e or other hard drugs, but they're well on their way to easing up on marijuana. A Zogby poll found that nearly half of Americans now want pot legal and regulated, like alcohol. Few buy into the "demon drug" propaganda anymore, and for a simple reason: Several countries have decriminalized marijuana with little effect on public health.

Americans could save a ton of money doing the same. The taxpayers spend almost $8 billion a year enforcing the ban on marijuana, according to a report by visiting Harvard economist Jeffrey A. Miron. State and local governments consume about $5 billion of the total.

The war on pot fills our jails. America arrests 755,000 people every year for marijuana infractions -- the vast majority for possession, not dealing. An estimated 80,000 people now sit behind bars on marijuana offenses.

The Bush administration stoutly supports the campaign against marijuana, which others think is crazy. Compare the Canadian and American approach to medical marijuana: The Canadian Postal Service delivers it right into the mailboxes of Canadian cancer patients. The U.S. Justice Department invades the patients' backyards and rips out cannabis plants, even those grown with a state's blessing.

The Bush administration isn't going to last forever, nor is the patience of Americans paying for and suffering under the ludicrous war on marijuana. Surely letting sick people smoke marijuana to ease their discomfort -- 11 states have approved such, including Rhode Island -- would be a good start for a more enlightened drug policy.

For the drug warriors, however, this toe in the water seems a foot in the door for eventual decriminalization of pot. That's understandable. Relaxing the rules on marijuana would greatly reduce the need for their services.

Remember the Supreme Court case two years ago, when Justice Stephen Breyer innocently suggested that the federal Food and Drug Administration be asked to rule on whether marijuana had an accepted medical use? Well, the FDA has just ruled. In a total lie, the FDA said that no scientific studies back the use of marijuana for medical purposes. Actually, the prestigious Institute of Medicine issued its findings in 1999 that marijuana helped patients for pain and for the relief of nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy.

The federal government "loves to ignore our report," John Benson, a professor of medicine at the University of Nebraska and co-chairman of the committee that wrote the Institute of Medicine" study, said after the FDA issued its "advisory."

The Drug Enforcement Administration, which feeds off the drug war, plays a big part in stopping this and all future efforts to reach educated opinions on marijuana. Lyle Craker, a University of Massachusetts authority on medicinal plants, wanted to grow marijuana for the purpose of evaluating its possible medical uses. The DEA said no, insisting that he use marijuana from a University of Mississippi lab. The DEA knows full well that the UMiss pot is low-quality and therefore useless for study.

The drug warriors' incentive to keep the game going is pretty obvious. But what's in it for taxpayers?

Miron's Harvard study looked beyond what the public pays to enforce the marijuana laws. It also investigated how much money would roll in if marijuana were legal and taxed like alcohol. The answer was over $6 billion in annual tax revenues. Do the math: If government stopped outlawing marijuana and started taxing it, its coffers would be $14 billion richer every year.

We could use that money. For example, $14 billion could pay for all the anti-terrorism port-security measures required in the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002.

More than 500 economists of every political stripe have endorsed the Miron study. Growing numbers of Americans are beginning to agree with them: The war against marijuana is an expensive failure -- and pointless, too.

Froma Harrop is a Journal editorial writer and syndicated columnist.

Newshawk: Urdedpal -420 Magazine
Source: Providence Journal, The (RI)
Author: Froma Harrop
Published: Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Copyright: 2006 The Providence Journal Company

[ChesterO]

Originally Posted by Urdedpal

......
Miron's Harvard study looked beyond what the public pays to enforce the marijuana laws. It also investigated how much money would roll in if marijuana were legal and taxed like alcohol. The answer was over $6 billion in annual tax revenues. Do the math: If government stopped outlawing marijuana and started taxing it, its coffers would be $14 billion richer every year.

.........

Froma Harrop is a Journal editorial writer and syndicated columnist.

That math neglects the most critical facet of DC politics.... The lobbiests with the most bucks can buy all the senators and representatives they need to get the laws they want...

Who stands to gain if Cannabis is illegal??

1) The Drug War industry. DEA, drug test labs, local law enforcement and the extra funds they get to pay for "puppy patrols", prisons for profit, etc. It's easy money being a professional parasite on society, and it will be very difficult to wean law enforcement off of this fountain of money.

2) The Pharmecutical industry. If cannabis were inexpensive and legal, then many of their "lifestyle" drugs would see a drop in sales (anti-depressants, tranquilizers, pain killers, etc.) There is no money in a remedy that cannot be patented. So they will attempt to keep it off of the market to protect their profit margins on other patented and profitable drugs.

3) The Alcohol industry. Inexpensive and legal cannabis would have a drastic impact on their bottom line. Gettin a buzz without the requisite hangover would encourage a large number of drinkers to switch. On the other hand, Budwieser already has the correct advertising slogan to move into herb sales.... (This bud's for you )

4) The tobacco industry might see a drop in sales. Fear of any loss of sales would have them purchasing a few senators...

5) The illegal drug industry would suffer the most. The risk factor (risk of jail) is acting as a price support to keep cannabis prices high. Those high prices more than any other factor is what encourages people to try the other "hard" drugs (Meth, *******, ******, oxycotin, etc.). If the prices for legal cannabis fall, then the insane profit margins for the "hard" stuff will fall as well. And if Cannabis were available everywhere, there might not be much interest in the "hard" stuff either.

So, reguardless of what the people want, these special interest groups will purchase (via campaign contributions, bribes, favors, hookers, trips, etc.) enough senators and representatives to block legalization for as long as they can hold out. And since there is a lot of money at stake, they will hold out for a long time...

I'm being a pessimist, but with these special interests backing the prohibition on cannabis, I do not expect to see it legalized in my lifetime...



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[Pinch]

I'm being a pessimist, but with these special interests backing the prohibition on cannabis, I do not expect to see it legalized in my lifetime..

Correct, my friend! I'm 54 now and I've seen changes over my lifetime especially with medical cannabis but legalization? No way, another lifetime, perhaps your grandkids might see it.

The initial decision to prohibit cannabis's use was racist and it's continued prohibition is racist.

[ScottyBThatIsMe]

Originally Posted by Pinch

Correct, my friend! I'm 54 now and I've seen changes over my lifetime especially with medical cannabis but legalization? No way, another lifetime, perhaps your grandkids might see it.

The initial decision to prohibit cannabis's use was racist and it's continued prohibition is racist.

While I find myself agreeing with you, Pinch, I do have hope that it will be sooner than that. For now, those in power are still from a very conservative era (actually, yourself included :P), and as we slowly move towards having more progressive poloticians (such as when MY generation comes of age and takes control) I think there will be much more support for it in government.

Right now, along with alcohol/tobacco businesses, pharmecutical companies, and our out-dated drug war machine, the DEA, having people in power with strong conservative backgrounds is probably the straw that brakes the camel's back when it comes to making marijuana legit. These are new times, however, and I sense a much more liberal vibe coming from younger generations. Just give it a while longer and I think we'll start to see big changes.

[Pinch]

Agreed.. my generation has done it's part.. almost time to pass the torch.