The Drug War

Forgive me, I ramble a bit on this one. But I do have a point. A couple of points.

Jail is just vo-tech classes on How to be a Gangster 101. If drugs were legal, our taxes wouldn't be pouring like water through a sieve into jails that teach slightly messed-up people how to be real serious criminals. Instead, people whose lives had led them to this pass need counseling and mental healing so they can be productive members of society.

People try drugs:
just because it's passed to them at a party
out of boredom
to impress bravado

People continue to take drugs:
just because it's passed to them at a party
out of boredom
to impress bravado
out of taking something to bury bad emotions (pain, misery, fear, worries)

People get addicted to drugs:
out of taking something to bury bad emotions again (pain, misery, fear, worries)

Let's stop wasting tax money on jailing broken people only to teach them how to cheat, steal and assail their way into more trouble.

Drugs + Jail = Crime

Drugs do not equal crime. Jailing drug users turns lost, broken people into criminals.
Crime is a personal attack on another person (verbal or physical assault, theft).
Drugs are a personal choice (albeit a bad choice) of attack on one's own person.

I am quite proud that the Oklahoma ballot will have two measures on it this November towards a solution, state questions 780 and 781: tax money & time spent on jail will instead go towards substance abuse and mental health programs. This is the way towards healing the broken, not just slapping a bandage on a gushing artery.

It's just plain silly to have so many layers of laws on top of laws against drugs where if we'd just follow the ones we already had against property and personal crime, these problems have already been addressed.

It is still and should remain illegal to be intoxicated (high) in public, whether walking or driving. What's a solution for a safe place for drug use - home, a bar? Drug & alcohol use should be kept private for both the safety of the user and the public at large; if in a recreational business catering to such activities, bartenders and bouncers should be on site to guide in safe usage, with safe transportation choices on hand.

I have no right to tell you what you can or cannot put into your own body, so long as you do not endanger me or my loved ones. True, I would prefer that you do not choose drugs, but I cannot fix your life by trying to legislate your morality.

Morality must come from society - peer pressure. The expected behavior that our peers hold us to.

Our friends and neighbors are the measure of our morals.