Link of the Day: Taking on the War on Drugs
I’ve discussed my sharp opposition to the War on Drugs, its wildly excessive financial costs, its Draconian prison sentences and its devastating effects on people in drug-delivering nations such as Mexico many times on this blog.
The Toronto Star’s Washington bureau chief has written an excellent, comprehensive article discussing the many, many reasons to overhaul America’s drug policy ASAP.
Here’s just one of many excellent arguments in this piece:
Two recent studies by academics at Harvard and Virginia’s George Mason University suggest the U.S. government could see a windfall of anywhere from $14 to $40 billion annually through decriminalization of marijuana. The figures combine law enforcement savings and potential marijuana tax revenues.
Even if you’re not convinced by the great success Portugal has had with its legalization program, or are simply skeptical for the sake of being skeptical, think about what $14 to $40 billion could do for a reeling economy. It’d be a nice headstart on health care reform; it could be a boon to upgrading the country’s crumbling infrastructure; it could turn an armload of underfunded public schools into state-of-the-art learning facilities…the list goes on and on.
