The War on Drugs, that is. Here’s a policy on which Obama would get complete support from me, if he decided to pursue it:
There is good money to be made by selling drugs on the street, because they are illegal and prosecuted, driving up the profit margin. And that means that details aside, we can all agree that what happened in the Bronx on Monday would have been very different if there were no War on Drugs. In fact, it probably wouldn’t have happened at all.
It’s one more indication of what a tragedy this modern replay of the disaster of the Volstead Act currently is. The simple fact is that if there were no profit to be made in selling drugs on the street, no one would bother. For all of the “root causes” reasons so many young black and Latino men turn to this trade instead of seeking legal work, if there were no War on Drugs, they would seek other solutions to the obstacles that face them. And whatever those were, they would involve less murder, fewer crossfire injuries and killings of the kind that have likely ruined Ms. Vasquez’ life at 15, fewer men in prison for long periods, and fewer of their children growing up fatherless and on their way to repeating their father’s mistakes.
Insanity is “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results,” a quote famously attributed to Einstein. We’ve been fighting this “war” for forty years, and yet the drugs continue to win. Most research not sponsored by the government indicates our policies have failed. Experience and common sense suggests the same: anyone who wishes to buy drugs can find them with little problem.
And yet, the “war” rages on. It’s become part of the bureaucracy, with thousands of government employees paid to fight the battle. They have no incentive to actually “win”, of course; winning the “war” would mean their services were no longer needed.
Politicians are afraid to touch the matter. Nobody wants to be labeled “soft on crime” or pro-drug. It may be a total waste of money, but then again, isn’t most of what government does? The “war” on drugs makes us feel like we’re doing something, and in politics, perception is reality.
Obama made a baby step in the right direction by announcing his administration will not arrest medical marijuana users in states in which it’s legal. Though I’m not holding my breath, I hope he will take an even more courageous step and announce a ceasefire in the “war” on drugs.
