Should Drugs Be Decriminalised?

Why does everyone care so much about two drug dealers?

Just because they are “Australian’- like somehow that means its important?

Got me thinking….

Better question to ask, should drugs be decriminalised?

A conversation with a friend/top criminal barrister opened up my eyes to the reality which is, the war of drugs has done nothing to prevent the sale of drugs or deter its use. In fact, if you look at market price, it has gone down since the inception of “the war on drugs!” In the world of economics, that means one thing… Demand is great and people have no problem getting it.

Furthermore, making it a criminal act allows people who otherwise would have to get a real job, the opportunity to make a lot of money illegally and puts people who are willing to risk everything in volatile positions. Decriminalised drugs would mean – gangs, dealers and Tony Montana would not exist in the way they do now. Business owners who want to dominate the market would have to guarantee quality and purity and develop real relationships with customers… Just like any legitimate business… AND the government could tax them a fuck load and no-one would bat an eye because its drugs.

-On the flip side, is making something illegal a deterrent?

-Is making it accessible going to create a bigger problem? (Places like Amsterdam would suggest not)

-Could our society successful implement safe houses?

-Would we be trading lots of ‘dealers’ for a handful of conglomerates who seize ‘control’ over an industry? (The last thing we need is bigger profit margins for pharmaceutical companies)

-Would this create a bigger problem… Or make sense and better manage things like overdoses, violence and other criminal acts associated with drugs? (It would manage purity and quality issues associated with overdoses.)

-Would we allow people who are ‘addicted’ the liberty to feel less shame and guilty about their addiction and get the help they need? A society of ‘less’ judgement?

If history tells us one thing; drugs are not going away. They need to be managed, rather than swept under the rug and pretend they don’t exist.