Posted on 02/15/2009 2:55:53 PM PST by neverdem
In the story of the emperor with no clothes, it took someone whose observations are rarely heeded -- a child -- to point out the obvious fact that no one else could acknowledge. In the case of drug policy, it takes people who are usually ignored by Washington policymakers -- Latin Americans -- to perform the same invaluable service.
Last week, a commission made up of 17 members, from Peruvian novelist Mario Vargas Llosa to Sonia Picado, the Costa Rican who heads the Inter-American Institute on Human Rights, did nothing but admit the truth: The war on drugs is a failure.
"Prohibitionist policies based on the eradication of production and on the disruption of drug flows as well as on the criminalization of consumption have not yielded the expected results," the panel said in a report (http://drugsanddemocracy.org/files/2009/02/declaracao_ingles_site.pdf). "We are farther than ever from the announced goal of eradicating drugs."
The panel was co-chaired by three former heads of state -- Ernesto Zedillo of Mexico, Cesar Gaviria of Colombia and Fernando Henrique Cardoso of Brazil, all of whom were once leaders in the crusade. In 1996, Zedillo won attention for escalating the crackdown. But they have learned from experience that the old strategy doesn't work...
--snip--
"The enormous capacity of the narcotics trade for violence and corruption can only be effectively countered if its sources of income are substantially weakened," it argues. Unsaid is that the only way to drastically reduce the profitability of drug production and trafficking is to make them legal -- as we did with liquor after Prohibition.
Most people, here or in Latin America, may not be ready for that remedy. But facing the truth about the drug war is a step toward salvation. If you want to change reality, it helps to abandon your fantasies.
(Excerpt) Read more at realclearpolitics.com ...
And in 20 years, the liberal ambulance-chasing lawyers will be droning on and on about the evils of "Big Pot" the way they now do about "Big Tobacco."
I'll get the popcorn.
Cheers!
Will Michael Phelps finally have an endorsement contract he can count on?
Cheers!
It would still beat the way it's regulated now. Money from Big Pot would not be fueling the cartels as it is today.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.