Stupid Drug War Tricks

Scott Morgan at Stop the Drug War found this bizarre and freakish opinion piece: A new strategy —
Expert: War on drugs should shift focus

The expert? A former DEA agent.
The plan?

In his book “Fight Back — How to Take Your Own Neighborhood Back From the Drug Dealers,” Levine shifts the focus from the drug dealer to the user, who he calls pejoratively the “druggie.” It’s simple business principles at work, he says. Without demand, there would be no need for more supplies brought in.

That’s right. Get rid of the druggies and you win the drug war.
Hmmm… let’s see. According to 2002 NSDUH, roughly 108 million Americans had used illicit drugs in their lifetimes. So if we just arrest them… Now, where to put them….
Levine also wants new drug education approaches in Hollywood and schools:

Levine says druggies should be depicted “convulsing and vomiting on themselves in detoxification wards; or staring vacant eyed on the benches of intake centers and emergency wards. That is what being a druggie is really all about, and that is what we should want our kids to see and understand.”

The entire piece is a bunch of similar nonsense, complete with a rather strange discussion in comments.

For a much more intelligent view of the drug war, check out Terry Nelson’s OpEd in the Hood County News last week: Legalize All Drugs, where he makes a very telling point against those who call for winning the war by increasing penalties:

According to the Associated Press

KUWAIT CITY ( AP ) — A court has convicted a member of Kuwait’s ruling family for drug trafficking and the court has condemned him to death, according to a ruling obtained Monday. It is believed to be the first time that a member of a ruling family in one of the Gulf Arab states received the death sentence for a drug offense.

Even facing the death penalty, being wealthy and having connections to royalty, the allure of additional riches derived from drugs is too strong. So, we can conclude from this and our own prison population, that no matter how severe the penalty there will always be those willing to run the risk for the rewards.
We will never stop trafficking in drugs as long as they are illegal, the market is there and the profit so substantial.
The solution is glaringly obvious.
The solution is to legalize all drugs, regulate and control the manufacturing process and license the marketplace. […]

Nelson’s got Levine beat by a mile, in terms of practicality, the truth… and basic intelligence.

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