I speak to a lot of people everyday and hear all sorts of opinions. One thing that is broached but not discussed at length is drugs. The perception and the reality I believe is that drugs are widely used by a lot of people. I have just watched a great episode of hungry beast on our ABC and it featured an expose on drugs in Australian society. The statistics indicated that almost half of the adults in Australia have used illegal drugs which works out to be nearly 7 million people.
This got me wondering about how representative our drug laws really are. It makes me wonder whether prohibition is working, and with a growing alcohol problem in our country I wonder weather it might be time to allow the general public an alternative to alcohol.
After the NYE 2000 the police commissioner at the time praised the behavior of the crowds and supposedly by accident credited the good behavior in part to an increase use of ecstasy. He was immediately chastised by the media and had to back away from his comments. This is the same media that we have at the moment, sensational, light on facts and journalism, and insures the status quo, which might I add is not all good.
If you have been following the main stream media lately you may have heard of a new drug that has hit the street that goes by the name of m-kat aka meow meow. The standard media fear campaign has begun in earnest with “A current affair” airing its high fear low on facts watch out for the children special this week. My argument, and it is only an argument is, m-kat may not be around if ecstasy was embraced, controlled and taxed or at least decriminalization. It may be prohibition that drives the people to seek out different substances. As long as there is demand there will be supply, and invariably that supply is by criminal gangs.
I would like to see a sensible re think of drug policy so as to protect innocent tax paying citizens who would simply want an alternative to alcohol. The people that take drugs are more often than not “normal”, employed, tax paying people who’s only point of difference is that they get loaded on something other than alcohol. I don’t believe that these people deserve to be criminalised simply because of a life style decision.
Firstly I would like to see a risk assessment of drugs through classification and either a decriminalising or a wholesale legalisation of certain drugs that would be controlled by government or corporations. The legalisation of drugs would straight away take millions possibly billions of dollars away from criminal gangs who I think everybody agrees are very bad people. Another immediate effect would be the safety of the drugs. If they were produced under license then safe doses and ingredients could be certified, making them safer for the consumer.
Secondly the cost of policing would drop dramatically because of the previous reasons I have offered. I am also sure that the police force should be focusing on more important issues instead of nannying the general public.
The last and most compelling is the taxation revenue derived by legalisation. You would have to agree that all governments are interested in revenue. Revenue from alcohol, tobacco and gaming offers a huge windfall to government coffers and these are all morally questionable. In relative terms would it really be such a great leap? These funds could be injected into our all too well publicised public hospital system.
This is not just about prohibition of drugs but it is about the far broader issue of freedom. Freedom of choice. Its about being stopped in the street by police for nothing in particular. The fact that citizens are subjected to sniffer dogs in the street, trains and festivals. The law is treating everyone as guilty until proven innocent, I think that is unhealthy for a society.
In closing I think the nature of this argument is cyclical until something radical/progressive is done.
If you read this whole thing, thanks. I just had to get that off my chest.
P.s I only sell a legal drug and possibly the most insidious drug of all. COFFEE!!!
