Manifesto

[roach]

6 Reasons why the prohibition of drugs must end !

1.Prohibition is by far the largest cause of crime. Worldwide, annual drug profits are in excess of 400 billion dollars. This is 8 percent of the world economy, and 80 percent of total criminal turnover. In the United States the War on Drugs has caused a fivefold increase in annual criminal profits in the past 10 years. In many countries, corruption related to the drug trade has become a fact of life, and public safety is endangered by armed gangs fighting over turf. In major cities, 80 percent of petty crime is related to drugs.

2.The economic and financial damage caused by prohibition is enormous. The economy is distorted by the huge flows of criminal money, and some nations have become highly dependent on illegal trade. Massive amounts of tax-payers' money are wasted fighting the crime that prohibition itself creates. In the United States, 15 billion dollars are fed into the federal drug control budget anually, and the total costs of property damage, police work and incarceration are a multiple of this amount.

3.Prohibition causes social and personal harm on a worldwide scale. Homeless persons, heroin prostitutes, huge numbers of people thrown in jail, families torn apart, fear to go out at night, double locks on your backdoor, the 'nuisance' people in inner cities experience - and much more.

4.Prohibition doesn't have any of its intended effects. While crime rates soar, the number of drug users increases, and the health problem is made worse. In inner cities, the health situation of users of unsafe heroin has become so desperate that many police commissioners now are in favor of controlled provision of heroin by the state.

5.Moral standards are declining because of prohibition. Drug use and possession places ordinary people outside the law, which may cause disrespect for the rules and moral standards society wants to set. We live in a society in which 80 percent of all crime is related to prohibition. If we are really concerned about morality, we must first remove the cause of all this crime - prohibition.

6.The 'drug scourge' is a hoax. The actual health problem which prohibition is supposed to solve is minor in comparison to other health problems. Tobacco causes 6 percent of all deaths in the world. In the US, 400,000 people die from tobacco each year, 100,000 from alcohol, 5000 from drugs. For Britain, this is 110,000, 30,000 and 1000. In general, these numbers are at a 50 to 10 to 1 ratio.
but ... what is legalization ?
Laws must be made which state the conditions under which drugs can be used, bought and sold, like the laws regulating other substances such as alcohol and tobacco, which are more riskful than most drugs. This does not mean that everything will be available to everyone at will. To control tobacco, alcohol and drugs, we call on our politicians to

make rational and consistent laws !

Translations available at..........
http://www.legalize.org

[aeroblurg]

yep. proabition is stupid and wasteful. very well written.

[budburner]

Amanita, link to your heart's content.

And welcome to the coffeeshop!

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Peace

[aeroblurg]

yes, link away!

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[talisman]

I also favour legalization 1000%, but how practical is that?

In this day and age when government is so entwined in all aspects of
human affairs, decriminalization is the only viable option, and I, for
one can live with that for the following reasons:

1. It removes the stigmatization of criminality,
2. It creates a climate appropriate for enterprise
3. The potential for spin off industry is astronomical

The kind of prosperity that could be created globally would have far reaching consequences affecting everything from violent conflict to eroding environment.

I truly believe that the Tree of Life is for healing nations, and that if the existing political powers just reconsidered their tight assed perspectives on the matter only to the extent of decriminalization that would suffice.

May the spirit of Cannabis remain with us always.

[roach]

talisman ,
Agreed.......I usually only speak of legalization in terms of research ,and in the case of medicinal use. I hpope for decriminalization nation wide.( At least thats what I keep telling my congressmen ) I only wish more folks would tell their congressmen too , that way my efforts would not sound so much like the sound of 1 hand clapping.
roach


[This message has been edited by roach (edited January 27, 2001).]

[budburner]

What do you consider to be the difference(s) between decriminalization and full legalization?

1> With decrim, it will still not be legal (any more legal than speeding is) to possess marijuana. It would be reduced to a civil infraction.

2> With decrim, there will still be no age limit on possessing marijuana (which I believe will turn off some people riding the fence on the legalization issue.

3> With decrim, people will still have to go to illegal dealers and pay jacked up black market prices for good marijuana. (I know I sure as hell can’t grow it worth shit....of course I could learn if it was "legal" to do so)

While I'd be more than happy to have marijuana decriminalized, I definitely don't stop there when it comes to continuing "our cause" for legal marijuana. Full legalization and regulation is what
marijuana deserves.


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Peace

[roach]

What you say is true. But what I see is different. Marijuana is still illegal in most of the world. However ,in countries that have made consumption and posession not a crime ,I see price reduction ,an increase in variety/availability ,less young people in prison ,and greater tolerance and leniency when processing violators on posession/production (for personal consumption). I think that outright legalization is way too big a bite to ask conservatives to take all at one time.
This of coarse goes along with total reform of existing drug policy ,ie; elimination of mandatory minimum sentences ,reclassification of marijuana ...etc.

[This message has been edited by roach (edited January 27, 2001).]