Legalize All Drugs
The War on Drugs Does More Harm Than Any Substance
Reading the New York Post‘s popular Page Six gossip page recently, I was surprised to find a picture of me, followed by the lines: “ABC’S John Stossel wants the government to stop interfering with your right to get high. The crowd went silent at his call to legalize hard drugs.”
I had attended a Marijuana Policy Project event celebrating the New York State Assembly’s passage of a medical-marijuana bill. I told the audience I thought it pathetic that the mere half passage of a bill to allow sick people to try a possible remedy would merit such a celebration. Of course medical marijuana should be legal. For adults, everything should be legal. I’m amazed that the health police are so smug in their opposition.
After years of reporting on the drug war, I’m convinced that this “war” does more harm than any drug.
Independent of that harm, adults ought to own our own bodies, so it’s not intellectually honest to argue that “only marijuana” should be legal—and only for certain sick people approved by the state. Every drug should be legal.
“How could you say such a ridiculous thing?” asked my assistant. “Heroin and cocaine have a permanent effect. If you do crack just once, you are automatically hooked. Legal hard drugs would create many more addicts. And that leads to more violence, homelessness, out-of-wedlock births, etc.!”
Her diatribe is a good summary of the drug warriors’ arguments. Most Americans probably agree with what she said.
But what most Americans believe is wrong. (For details, see the links here.)
Myth No. 1: Heroin and cocaine have a permanent effect.
Truth: There is no evidence of that.
In the 1980s, the press reported that “crack babies” were “permanently damaged.” Rolling Stone, citing one study of just 23 babies, claimed that crack babies “were oblivious to affection, automatons.”
It simply wasn’t true. There is no proof that crack babies do worse than anyone else in later life.
Myth No. 2: If you do crack once, you are hooked.
Truth: Look at the numbers—15 percent of young adults have tried crack, but only 2 percent used it in the last month. If crack is so addictive, why do most people who’ve tried it no longer use it?
People once said heroin was nearly impossible to quit, but during the Vietnam War, thousands of soldiers became addicted, and when they returned home, 85 percent quit within one year.
People have free will. Most who use drugs eventually wise up and stop.
And most people who use drugs habitually live perfectly responsible lives, as Jacob Sullum pointed out in Saying Yes.
Myth No. 3: Drugs cause crime.
Truth: The drug war causes the crime.
Few drug users hurt or rob people because they are high. Most of the crime occurs because the drugs are illegal and available only through a black market. Drug sellers arm themselves and form gangs because they cannot ask the police to protect their persons and property.
In turn, some buyers steal to pay the high black-market prices. The government says heroin, cocaine, and nicotine are similarly addictive, and about half the people who both smoke cigarettes and use cocaine say smoking is at least as strong an urge. But no one robs convenience stores for Marlboros.
Alcohol prohibition created Al Capone and the Mafia. Drug prohibition is worse. It’s corrupting whole countries and financing terrorism.
The Post wrote, “Stossel admitted his own 22-year-old daughter doesn’t think [legalization] is a good idea.”
But that’s not what she said. My daughter argued that legal cocaine would probably lead to more cocaine use. And therefore probably abuse.
I’m not so sure.
Banning drugs certainly hasn’t kept young people from getting them. We can’t even keep these drugs out of prisons. How do we expect to keep them out of America?
But let’s assume my daughter is right, that legalization would lead to more experimentation and more addiction. I still say: Legal is better.
While drugs harm many, the drug war’s black market harms more.
And most importantly, in a free country, adults should have the right to harm themselves.
Comment by Dave on 11 August 2009:
Could not agree more – Let me say that again. I agree 100%. But beyond legalization we should actually NAtionalize the sale and distribution! All proceeds go to the government. No more concerns about Social Security, no concerns about paying for helath care. If you don’t want the US government involved then let the States sell the drugs and TAX the hell out of it! By undercutting the profits made by big business on global drug distribution we would take out the cartels, stop the worthless loss of young kids to pimps and drug dealers on the street. The moeny could also be used to make an effective drug counseling/recovery system, allowing such things as Ibogaine to be used in the US. Ibogaine works to get Heroine addicts clean without side effects….there is so much more. We are being lied to constantly by big business profiteers that care nothing for human dignity (except their own).
Thanks for the great article!
Comment by joe on 3 January 2010:
Thank you, thank you, thank you….As a one time herion,coke,crack,oxycottin,and cigarette smoker. Honest to god the hardest habits to kick where the already legal oxeycottin and the legal nicotine. icould not agree more the government does not want it legalized because they do not think they would be able to control the flow…Once again thank you for this article will be linking it on my page
Comment by R F Nabih Day on 11 February 2010:
La drogue est une plante naturelle capable de vous rendre à l’état dont vous devrai être.C 1 plante divine capable de vous faire communiquer avec Dieu
Comment by Lenny on 14 August 2011:
@Dave
Taxing the hell out of drugs would be a horrible idea, a major point of legalization is to dramatically lower the price of drugs so that people don’t commit crimes to get them and so that drug dealers have no way to stay in business, as legitimate sellers out-compete them. If taxes are too high, neither of those goals will be accomplished. That is the biggest danger of legalkization, the temptation to overtax. No commodity should ever be taxed at higher than 10% of their retail price, let alone at over 100% like cigarettes are now.
Comment by Clive Wall on 15 December 2011:
Greetings All
I think you have all been asking the wrong question. the question you should be asking will give us the answer to what should be done.
The question is this: How long will it be before drugs are totally eliminated and no one in the world sells or uses them?
If everyone in the world were to be asked this question and the their answer is always that is for eternity, then the only conclusion is to legalise them, because otherwise you are saying we must continue with all this misery, murder and corruption for eternity, for as long as the human race lives we will have this problem with no solution.
The question is very simple, and the only possible solution is legalise them, the logic is undeniable, continue forever and suffer crime forever solve it by legalising drugs. I really don’t see any possible alternative to solving this problem, it is right in our face and yet we don’t see the solution.
I don’t touch drugs nor will I even if they are legalised, and I believe that the majority of people won’t touch them either, make them legal to anyone over 21, those taking them can kill themselves I don’t care, put on the packet warning take at you own risk.
Also bring out laws to ensure users must be made aware of driving with drugs is a serious crime, committing any crime while under the influence is a vey serious crime, you need to look at this from every possible scenario and come up with the answers to what will happen and that is when and not if they are legalised, because unless the human race as so moronic that they will never legalise them the alternative is crime forever, or the other alternative which is we all loose our freedom and liberty, that’s not the alternative I would wish to see because unless the system can watch everywhere we go and everything we do the only option is ligalisation, I think people should be seeing where this is going, do you all get it we will be all labeled we will have to be all tabbed and if all you do-gooders and idiots want this as an alternative you won’t even be able to have a shit without them knowing how long you was sat on the bog and how many you dropped, that is what can happen if you don’t wake up, because it is going to get worse and worse and worse and no one is seeing it coming, it gives them an excuse to take away our freedom.
Clive
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Comment by Camel on 13 February 2012:
Legalization will allow ANYONE to grow their own, which means there will be NO criminals selling it. Anyone with a brain can figure this out on their own. When it is illegal or “decriminalized”, criminals will still be involved because it has massive value. Once everything is legal, the value drops dramatically, which means everyone can grow it in their backyards if they so choose. Wakeup people, these things will be used whether they are illegal or not. So why waste money putting people in jail over things they will use anyways. So dumb.
Comment by Virginia on 29 March 2012:
I don’t touch drugs nor will I even if they are legalised, and I believe that the majority of people won’t touch them either, make them legal to anyone over 21, those taking them can kill themselves I don’t care, put on the packet warning take at you own risk.