Pubdate: Thu, 17 Nov 2005 Source: Columbian, The (WA) Copyright: 2005 The Columbian Publishing Co. Contact: http://www.columbian.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/92 Author: Susan Ternyey Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization) EVERY LAW INVOLVES MORALS Some say that you cannot legislate morals. Acknowledged, if people want to misbehave, they can always find a way. But every law involves morals. It is either moral (lawful) to lie, cheat, steal and kill, or it isn't. Every society chooses its values. A common argument for legalization of vices like gambling and recreational drug use is that people are going to do them anyway, why not legalize them to be monitored and taxed? The same argument could be made for under-age smoking and drinking, or even bullying. Since we know bullying happens, perhaps we could sell licenses for it on certain days. We could have a class of "deserving" victims, or we could let the bullies take care of school discipline. The commonality of a behavior is not a measure of whether it is right or wrong. Some people feel we could get rid of organized crime by making their money-making exploits legal, thus eliminating bootlegging operations. Did the repeal of Prohibition emaciate the crime families? No, they are more powerful today than in the 1930s. Legalization of vices does not eliminate people who wish to make money from the hard work of others. Susan Ternyey Vancouver - --- MAP posted-by: Beth