Pubdate: Thu, 15 Nov 2007
Source: Victoria Advocate (TX)
Copyright: 2007 Victoria Advocate Publishing Company
Contact:  http://www.thevictoriaadvocate.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/671
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v07/n1282/a04.html
Author: Russ Jones
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topic/Law+Enforcement+Against+Prohibition

WAR ON DRUGS IS A LOST CAUSE

I'm no stranger to the drug war. I know that police officers want to 
do the right thing, want to put drug dealers out of business, and 
they look forward to the day when the dealers are gone and the 
cartels eliminated. And that is why the Interagency raid in Refugio 
(Victoria Advocate, Nov 5) with 28 arrests was celebrated by local 
law enforcement. Law Enforcement is a brotherhood and cooperation, 
and getting the job done always feels good. My experience tells me 
that we will never see the end of the dealers and cartels by fighting 
the drug war the way we have been. Drugs are in every town in the 
nation: lots of drugs, lots of different kinds of drugs.

The international market for illegal drugs is a $500 billion a year 
enterprise. In the United States we spend about $70 billion a year 
fighting the War On Drugs. Yet we fall further behind every year. For 
every change in police tactics, the cartels adjust accordingly. Maybe 
we need to admit there's a reason for our failure to control the 
trafficking in illegal drugs.

How much failure is enough? Can we afford another 10 years? 20 years? 
50? Another century perhaps? Or do we call the cartels' bluff? The 
scariest word for those who profit in the black market of drugs is 
"legalization." That's a word they don't want to hear. They know that 
as long as drugs are illegal they will have a tax-free, golden egg 
laying goose.

When Al Capone was a young man, he was just a common street thug, a 
hard punk. But Prohibition made street thug Capone into a very rich 
and powerful man. He had money to burn, to buy protection, to buy 
guns and to hire the muscle willing to use those guns. He could 
afford to pay off the cops and buy a politician or more.

When Prohibition was ended, violent crime decreased. Distributors of 
alcohol didn't have to engage in running gun battles against each 
other over territory. Legalization ruined the hold criminal 
syndicates had on the booze business.

Legalization doesn't mean drug dealers on every corner; we have that 
now with Prohibition II.

Legalization does mean products of known strength and purity. 
Legalization means legitimate businesses producing and distributing 
these substances under regulation. Today's teens readily admit that 
it is easier to get illegal drugs than alcohol. They can't go into a 
business and buy all the booze they want, but they can sure find 
drugs. And when they buy illegal drugs they know they won't get asked 
for identification. They'll only need cash in hand.

I'm not speaking out of my hat either. I have worked as a detective 
in narcotics. I have participated in DEA task forces. I have worked 
in Latin America, studying drug trafficking. I am a court-recognized 
expert in narcotics enforcement. I don't advocate drug use, but I do 
advocate intelligent drug education.

Education has drastically reduced tobacco consumption, and we didn't 
have to arrest our way to that reduction. We have, however, arrested 
our way into being the most incarcerated population on the planet. 
Even that hasn't stemmed the flow of drugs or our appetite for them.

If we really want to behead the cartels, we do it the smart way. We 
cut off their funding. The drug war is their cash cow, and they won't 
be happy if the word "legalization" becomes more common when 
discussing drug policy.

We need to change our ways. We need to accept our failure and look to 
a different way. We need to follow in the footsteps of those who 
recognized alcohol Prohibition as the failure it was and ended it.

Let's let the police catch those stealing our cars, our kids' bikes. 
Let's let the police have the time and resources to focus on real 
crimes with real victims. Let's let doctors deal with health problems 
of drug abuse. Let's let our educators teach effective lessons on the 
harm drugs can cause.

And let's return to being the nation once proud to be known as the 
"Land of the Free." End the War On Drugs. Put the cartels out of work.

Russ Jones is a member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, LEAP. 
He lives in New Braunfels.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman