Posted on 06/20/2014 9:08:47 AM PDT by xzins
Pope Francis condemned the legalization of recreational drugs as a flawed and failed experiment as he lent his voice Friday to a debate that is raging from the United States to Uruguay.
Francis told delegates attending a Rome drug enforcement conference that even limited steps to legalize recreational drugs "are not only highly questionable from a legislative standpoint, but they fail to produce the desired effects."
Likewise, Francis said, providing addicts with drugs offered only "a veiled means of surrendering to the phenomenon."
"Let me state this in the clearest terms possible," he said. "The problem of drug use is not solved with drugs!"
Francis has described drug addiction as evil and met addicts on several occasions. When he was archbishop of Buenos Aires, he devoted much of his pastoral care to addicts.
To reject illegal drugs, he said, "one has to say 'yes' to life, 'yes' to love, 'yes' to others, 'yes' to education, 'yes' to greater job opportunities.
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
Let’s legalize alcohol for the young before we condemn this moral stand by Francis.
The Roman Catholic segment of the church has long known a close association with the state, and does not always have a good sense of where the sacred church ends and secular Caesar begins.
In the short term, attempting to ban easily-abused items could look helpful. In the long term, even the bible identifies this as a fool’s errand.
As with many other things Francis has said, I do not at all doubt the well intention. I do sometimes doubt their alignment with gospel.
Legalized drugs WILL get in the hands of children/teens in far greater quantities
When states raised the drinking age, they raised it from the age of a college freshman (18) to that of a college senior (21). Although lawsuits have finally caught up to colleges and fraternities, it was amazing how, for about 20 years, fraternities were de-facto exempted from the drinking age. Every single public wall in the entire state university I went to was covered, floor-to-ceiling, with bulletins from fraternities offering beer.
The drinking age was not raised. Rather, what happened was that fraternities and sororities were given the exclusive license to provide alcohol to college-aged students. But in order to secure the alcohol, the “customers” had to allow themselves to be subjected to homosexual and promiscuous heterosexual degradation.
Why?
“The Roman Catholic segment of the church has long known a close association with the state, and does not always have a good sense of where the sacred church ends and secular Caesar begins.”
What does that comment have to do with the topic?
Why didn’t they do so (”it’s for the CHILLUN”) in revolutionary times? Not a lot of talk about child drunkenness, even.
We’ve substituted crutches for fear of the Lord. And it is sad to see a church luminary do that. Jesus challenged the attitude of the paralytic: “Do you want to get well?”
Quite a lot... he does not understand biblical boundaries.
That's what I saw.
I would want to prevent it by the Good Book or by the law book or whatever way I could. Illegalizing it didn't seem to stop it, but legalizing it sure ain't gonna help.
“Quite a lot... he does not understand biblical boundaries.”
Such as?
There was once a societal taboo about drugs and that did more than the law at keeping them at bay. It will return once government gets out of the business.
Furthermore, the solution for folks that do drugs is successful rehab, not prison.
The best reason to avoid drugs is that they are deadly...not that they are illegal.
To open the door and say nothing else amounts to a nod, wink. That is granted. And it’s what Colorado, California, etc. are beginning to do.
But to reveal God to the people and say okay, we aren’t going to give you any more expensive, leaky band-aids for your folly, you now have a Doctor who will give you total healing... that’s QUITE a different story.
God’s alive. We need churches that will act that way.
Quite a lot, if you would research. Rome was handed to the early church on a silver platter. It ought to have refused out of humility.
Our technology is so amazing that production and distribution can make this easily at arm’s reach. That is different than most of recorded history. Our technology is so amazing that NEW compounds have been made/created that when used will totally debilitate a person.
Even those who seek legalization should be forced morally to support CONTROLLED ACCESS and not open access.
The solution to substance abuse does not lie with the government; what the government can do is end the ban that (as you noted) doesn't achieve its putative objective - but does enrich criminals.
There was a greater sense of honor — which in turn came from a greater sense of honoring the good Lord. Not the bad lords.
see #14
I’ve long wanted to see a middle ground where doctors would be charged with the responsibility to choose what medications are appropriate for people, so long as it is not blatantly intended for harm. That would go for things not blessed by the FDA, as well as medicinal uses of things that are street drugs.
But this is details. What is needed in general is a gospel enlightenment.
Not so much for marijuana - plants grow more or less as they have always grown.
Our technology is so amazing that NEW compounds have been made/created that when used will totally debilitate a person.
And the motivation to make and use these new compounds was provided largely by the ban on older substances.
Even those who seek legalization should be forced morally to support CONTROLLED ACCESS and not open access.
That's what I support, for alcohol and other drugs.
Here in Washington State where a few recreational pot stores will open next month, it appears that state-taxed sales will be priced much higher than street drug sales. I think chronic users will stick with their illicit sources and be entirely unaffected by the new law. Sales and possession to/by youth, growing, public smoking/vaping and possession of more than one ounce of dried product per living unit are still illegal.
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