From: [m--w--l] at [fnalv.fnal.gov] (what does THIS button do?)
Newsgroups: talk.politics.drugs
Subject: Benefits of Prohibition.
Date: 27 Jul 94 20:52:20 -0600
Summary: good for you.

something I posted to alt.rush-limbaugh...

In article <316be4$[j m s] at [Starbase.NeoSoft.COM]>, 
[k--e--r] at [Starbase.NeoSoft.COM] (Ted Krueger) writes:

> You don't really believe that prohibition does nothing good, do you 
> oh great and powerful Ah?

Prohibition obviously yields some benefits.  

For example, it provides steady employment for certain task-specific LEO's, 
quite a construction boom for businesses involved in prison construction along
with an increase in taxpayer funded prison guard and administrator positions.
Because of prohibition, the law enforcement community can now easily augment
its funding with revenues derived from civil forfeiture of private property,
without the expense of a trial -- in fact, only a few person-hours of paperwork
are required for seizure of most assets, and in many cases, no paperwork at
all!  Legal professionals have certainly benefitted, with steady business for
defense attornies, and opportunities for  ambitious prosecutors to further
their careers.  It's simplified our legal system by making the prosecuting
attorney decide a criminal's sentence before a trial begins, instead of
leaving such decisions to unqualified judges.

The legal system has been further streamlined by eroding unnecessary hindrances
such as protections against warrantless searches, double jeopardy, excessive
fines, cruel and unusual punishment. Prohibition has made us freer and safer by
contributing to the destruction of outdated notions, including the right to
freely associate, and the right to keep and bear arms. 

Prohibition has even created new industries, the drug testing industry being
the best example.

American health care has benefitted with a growth in the number and capability
of inner city trauma units.

Prohibition has given us an additional post cold war mission for the military,
and has finally helped erode our squeamish, traditional reluctance towards
using our military against our citizens.

Prohibition has provided an extremely lucrative alternate career path for
individuals who would otherwise find themselves unemployable, and has lessened
the burden of property taxes on taxpayers living in communities where
prohibitionist policies are most strongly focused.

These are just a few of the benefits of prohibition, there are countless more.

> Are you one of those idealogoues who believes that use will not 
> increase if drugs are legalized?

If just one person in the entire US who would not otherwise use an illegal
drug tried a suddenly legalized drug just once, drug use would go up. It's
reasonable to assume if marijuana were legalized, at least one person in the
US would try it at least once. Certainly the use of some drugs would go up.

Of course, the real question is how much would the use of a particular drug
increase, in what age groups and to what effect.

Naturally, if drugs were legalized, our highways would be flooded with drugged
drivers, because unlike drunk drivers -- which are steadily decreasing in
numbers, every year -- drugged drivers cannot choose not to drive while
impaired. And, naturally, it's not reasonable to think we could rewrite our
drunk driving laws to handle anything as complicated as non-alcohol drug
intoxication. It would be far too dangerous to fly aboard commercial airliners
since the pilots would be taking LSD before takeoffs. Our children would be
forced to watch their teachers smoke crack cocaine during class, and our
surgeons would probably attempt heart transplants while using ketamine. Our
parents would be unable to provide for their families because they would soon become
opiate addicts and cease to love or care for their children. 

Naturally, if drugs were legalized, unlike now, we'd be unable to control 
our children's drug use. 

It is indeed fortunate that we don't face these dangers. Legalizing drugs would
destroy our society: we Americans don't have the strength of character to
deny ourselves our addictions, and despite what the current trends for alcohol
and tobacco use suggest, we can't be expected to restrain ourselves.

Fortunately, our Senators and Representatives are wise enough to see this, and
have simplified our lives by removing from us choices we're incompetent to
make.