John once again puts forth a killer argument for his point of view. Read the article, I agree with it whole heartedly. But my favorite part I have posted in quotes below.
Myth No. 1: Heroin and cocaine have a permanent effect.
Truth: There is no evidence of that.
In the 1980s, the press reported that "crack babies" were "permanently damaged." Rolling Stone, citing one study of just 23 babies, claimed that crack babies "were oblivious to affection, automatons."
It simply wasn't true . There is no proof that crack babies do worse than anyone else in later life.
Myth No. 2: If you do crack once, you are hooked.
Truth: Look at the numbers -- 15 percent of young adults have tried crack, but only 2 percent used it in the last month. If crack is so addictive, why do most people who've tried it no longer use it?
People once said heroin was nearly impossible to quit, but during the Vietnam War, thousands of soldiers became addicted, and when they returned home, 85 percent quit within one year.
People have free will. Most who use drugs eventually wise up and stop.
And most people who use drugs habitually live perfectly responsible lives, as Jacob Sullum pointed out in "Saying Yes".
Myth No. 3: Drugs cause crime.
Truth: The drug war causes the crime.
Few drug users hurt or rob people because they are high. Most of the crime occurs because the drugs are illegal and available only through a black market. Drug sellers arm themselves and form gangs because they cannot ask the police to protect their persons and property.
In turn, some buyers steal to pay the high black-market prices. The government says heroin, cocaine and nicotine are similarly addictive, and about half the people who both smoke cigarettes and use cocaine say smoking is at least as strong an urge. But no one robs convenience stores for Marlboros.
Alcohol prohibition created Al Capone and the Mafia. Drug prohibition is worse. It's corrupting whole countries and financing terrorism.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment