Jesse Kline: Mexico opens to door to a ‘market' solution to drug war NationalPost / Jesse Kline / 09.22,2011 June marked the 40th anniversary of when Richard Nixon declared the “war on drugs.†In the four decades since, the drug war has shaped American policy, both foreign and domestic. If we stick with the war analogy, it's safe to say that it's been a bigger failure than Vietnam, but unlike that war, no politician has been willing to cut and run when it comes to drugs. The U.S. has spent over $1-trillion prosecuting the war, but has failed to curb America's insatiable lust for drugs. Quite the opposite: Illegal drug use has gone up by about 10% in the last 40 years. According to a recent United Nations report, worldwide consumption of opiates increased 34.5% between 1998 and 2008, marijuana usage increased by 8.5% and cocaine by 27%. The United States imports a majority of it's cocaine from Mexico, which has been embroiled in a brutal war among rival gangs for control of the lucrative trade. Over 42,000 people have been killed in Mexico as a result of gang violence since President Felipe Calderon took office in 2006. Not a moment too soon, it appears the President is starting to recognize that the current approach to dealing with illicit drugs is not working. “We must do everything to reduce demand for drugs. But if the consumption of drugs cannot be limited, then decision-makers must seek more solutions - including market alternatives - in order to reduce the astronomical earnings of criminal organizations,†Calderon said in a speech in New York. Using the term “market alternatives†is a key choice of words. The reason organized crime has so successfully dominated the trade is the blanket prohibition on drugs, forcing the market underground. The same thing happened in the United States when alcohol was made illegal during Prohibition. The solution to removing the criminal element from the drug trade is the same one that solved the problem with booze: legalize it. Allow drugs to be produced by private industry in a regulated environment. After all, gang violence has become more deadly than the substances they're peddling. And we don't see beer companies shooting each other for control of distribution networks. “We have to take all the production chain out of the hands of criminals and into the hands of producers - so there are farmers that produce marijuana and manufacturers that process it and distributors that distribute it and shops that sell it,†said Vicente Fox, President Calderon's predecessor, in an interview with Time magazine. “They are bad for your health, and you shouldn't take them. But ultimately, this responsibility is with citizens.†There was a time when even the voices of two Mexican heads of state would not have made an impact on U.S. drug policy, but there are signs that things are slowly beginning to change. According to the The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, 41% of the U.S., representing 35% of its population, has decriminalized marijuana, meaning users will not face jail sentences if they're caught possessing the substance. And with the U.S. heading full steam towards a budget crisis, the revenue that is foregone by not taxing drugs is looking more appealing every day. A 2005 study out of Harvard University estimates the country could save $7.7-billion per year by discontinuing the drug war, and raise $6.2-billion by taxing mind altering substances at similar rates to tobacco and alcohol. There is also evidence that experiments with legalization in other jurisdictions has produced positive results. In 2001, Portugal took the radical step of decriminalizing the possession of all narcotics, including hard drugs. Money that was previously being spent on enforcement and incarceration was diverted to treatment and rehabilitation programs. A 2009 study commissioned by the CATO Institute found that in the five years following decriminalization, drug use among teens declined, as did rates of HIV infection. The number of people seeking treatment for drug problems doubled over the period. Many U.S. states are taking note and backing away from tough-on-crime measures that have caused prison populations to swell with people convicted of victimless crimes, disproportionately hurting minorities, and causing a significant strain on state budgets. Unfortunately, Canada appears to be moving in the opposite direction. The Harper government's omnibus crime bill, which was tabled in the House of Commons this week, includes mandatory minimum sentences for growing small amounts of marijuana and doubles the maximum sentence for pot-related crimes. While other countries are starting to look for alternatives to the war on drugs, Canada's Conservative government is doubling down on an expensive and ineffective strategy. National Post This is as mainstream media as it gets.
More on market alternatives DrugWarRant / Pete Guither / 09,22,2011 Some commenters have been less than thrilled with my admiration for Calderon's use of the term “market alternatives†as a code for legalization. Sure, in an ideal world, nobody would speak in code, and everybody would understand the full meaning of the word “legalization†and not just its political coloring. And in an ideal world there would be no drug war. Certainly, I'm no fan of Calderon, and he's been no friend to drug policy reform. His escalation of the violent war on drugs in Mexico has resulted in thousands of deaths and ensured that the problems that exist will be much harder to solve in the future. Lots of former heads of state have come out in favor of legalization or some form of decriminalization. Almost none have done it while in office. Yet three times in the last week, President Calderon has suggested that the drug consuming world, if it's going to keep consuming, needs to look at market alternatives. There's no doubt that “market alternatives†in this sense means legalization. When you're talking about finding an alternative to the black market while not eliminating demand, by definition that is legalization. I've been getting quite a kick out of a number of the mainstream media folks trying to deal with Calderon's statement without their heads exploding. Some have reported his statement, along with the fact that he failed to actually define “market alternatives,†and then indicating that some analysts have said Calderon may be referring to legalization. At that point in the article you can practically see the hamster running in circles in the reporter's head as they try to come up with some other possible meaning for “market alternatives†to balance the statement… and realize that there is none. At this point, I believe that the term “market alternatives†has the capability of forcing an epiphany among some people. I know there are a lot of people out there who have rather lazily just gotten in their head that the entire meaning of “legalization†is something akin to “allowing potheads to smoke dope.†They just haven't spent as much time thinking about it as we have. These are the same people who don't realize that regulated legality isn't an oxymoron. Calderon's statement makes them actually come to grips with other, importantly relevant definitions. The more that these discussions occur, the better. Here's a nice understanding of the term from Jesse Kline at the National PostUsing the term “market alternatives†is a key choice of words. The reason organized crime has so successfully dominated the trade is the blanket prohibition on drugs, forcing the market underground. The same thing happened in the United States when alcohol was made illegal during Prohibition. The solution to removing the criminal element from the drug trade is the same one that solved the problem with booze: legalize it. Allow drugs to be produced by private industry in a regulated environment. After all, gang violence has become more deadly than the substances they're peddling. And we don't see beer companies shooting each other for control of distribution networks. Exactly. Market alternatives. Personally, I'm fighting for legalization. However, I'm happy to talk with people about market alternatives to our current disastrous market policies.
What they never mention in these is the fact that Calderon is corrupt. The Zetas (cartel) control him. This coming from a person who's whole family use to work for the cartels and a few that died in the violence.
I have heard that from another source,,an American living in Mexico. Calderon's war on the cartels is his attempt to gain control of the marijuana market before legalization occurs,,,or the licensed brokerages that will be shipping it after it is legalized.
I'll admit that right now Mexico is in a state of ultimate curruptness. You can hire SOLDIERS to kill anybody. When I lived in Mexico about 20 years ago 3 of my uncles were soldiers and they would be sent to raid cannabis fields then they would sell it. That's why it is the drug leader of the world.
hmmm basically it would mean they would allow the cartels to exist and bring drugs into the US? This would only help end the cartels reign if the US where too legalize drugs. Otherwise wed probably do what we did to Noriega.
Panama I thunk,,,some country in Central America. Sheriff Arapaho,,the anti-marijuana sheriff of Maricopa county,AZ,,was his liaison officer with the DEA,,when he was shipping all that cocaine to Florida.
I see the whole Harper thing in Canada as "the empire strikes back" from the star wars trilogy. Basically he's gonna make it suck horribly for a few years and that might just be what it takes to finally motivate the population to vote for some real meaningful change.
Wait process weed wtf, and I'd rather just have the same people that grow it or same group who grow it to trim it cure it and do whatever from there.
with "market alternatives",,the Mexican weed will continue being sold,,just at a much lower price,,and it will no longer have to be compressed,,but AL,,,seeds will be history. A new timeline designator instead of BC/AC,,,Before legalization/After legalization,,,how about a petition on that?
I think once legalization occurs there will be such a big market for it that companies will develop products to make it easier than it already is to grow and no one would have to 'buy it' if they didn't want to.