From: [t--n--o] at [best.com] Date: Sun, 04 Aug 1996 21:17:04 -0700 To: Jerry Stratton <[n s pace] at [cts.com]> Subject: Re: great page THE PROHIBITIONIST MENTALITY ============================ The prohibitionist believes he is the protector of society. The prohibitionist believes society might self destruct if adults are allowed to make their own personal choices. The prohibitionist believes it is his duty to prevent adults from harming themselves. To prevent adults from causing themselves harm, the prohibitionist believes laws must be passed which say: "Adults shall not be allowed to consume X, Y, or Z because X, Y, and Z can be harmful." The prohibitionist also believes there is something about illegal drugs which makes them more 'evil' than tobacco or alcohol. The prohibitionist believes illegal drugs are much more dangerous than alcohol or tobacco. Let's check the FACTS... ANNUAL AMERICAN DEATHS CAUSED BY DRUGS -------------------------------------- TOBACCO .............................................. 400,000 ALCOHOL (Not including highway deaths or murders) .... 100,000 ALL LEGAL DRUGS (Overdoses) .......................... 20,000 ALL ILLEGAL DRUGS (Overdoses) ........................ 8,000 CAFFEINE (From stress, ulcers, irregular heartbeats) . 4,000 ASPIRIN (Including accidental overdose) .............. 500 MARIJUANA ............................................ 0 The prohibitionist shows little concern about the 500,000 annual American deaths caused by alcohol and tobacco, or the 20,000 annual American deaths caused by other LEGAL drugs. But the prohibitionist is very worried about the relatively small amount of harm caused by illegal drugs. The prohibitionist is also very worried about marijuana, even though medical science has NEVER attributed a single human death to marijuana consumption! The prohibitionist believes government must play the role of daddy. The prohibitionist believes it is the government's job to baby-sit adults. Like many hypocrites who claim to be conservatives, the prohibitionist believes in big, expensive, intrusive, highly-inefficient, big-brother government. Is the prohibitionist truly concerned with protecting adults from their own actions? No. The prohibitionist is most concerned with forcing his personal morality on others. To prove this serious charge, let's examine exactly what the prohibitionist does and does not advocate. Let's interview the prohibitionist... QUESTION: --------- Mr. Prohibitionist, as you know, poor diet KILLS MILLIONS of Americans. Grocery stores and restaurants are loaded with unhealthy and harmful foods that KILL! Beef, eggs, pork, ice cream, cheese, milk, butter, and junk foods are known to cause health problems that can be SERIOUS and FATAL. These harmful foods cause serious illnesses that KILL 100 TIMES more Americans than all illegal drugs combined! Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead was a heavy drug user for 30 years. But it was lack of exercise and a junk food diet--NOT drugs--that killed him. Had Jerry Garcia died of drugs, the prohibitionists would have harped for weeks about how 'evil' drugs took another life. But when Jerry Garcia died, the prohibitionists were silent--they said nothing about how 'evil' junk food took another life. Mr. Prohibitionist, to prevent MILLIONS of needless ILLNESSES, CANCERS, and DEATHS, do you believe laws should be passed that make it a crime to sell, possess, or consume UNHEALTHY, HARMFUL, and potentialy DEADLY foods like the ones listed above? Mr. Prohibitionist RESPONDS: ---------------------------- Of course not! Passing such laws would be an outrageous violation of our civil liberties! ADULTS have the right to live their lives as they please as long as they cause no harm to others. QUESTION: --------- Mr. Prohibitionist, as you know, tobacco and alcohol are DANGEROUS and DEADLY DRUGS. Tobacco and alcohol can be as ADDICTING as heroin or cocaine. Tobacco and alcohol KILL MILLIONS! Tobacco and alcohol KILL 50 TIMES more Americans than all illegal drugs combined! Mr. Prohibitionist, do you believe laws should be passed that make it a crime to manufacture, sell, possess, and consume cigarettes and alcoholic beverages? Mr. Prohibitionist RESPONDS: ---------------------------- Of course not! Passing such laws would be an outrageous violation of our civil liberties! ADULTS have the right to live their lives as they please as long as they cause no harm to others. The mere thought of punishing ADULTS for using tobacco or alcohol is absolutely ludicrous--it makes no sense. Why should all ADULTS who enjoy beer or wine be punished just because a small percentage of drinkers abuse alcohol? Imagine the absurdity of arresting and jailing ADULTS just because they smoke cigarettes, drink beer, or just because they're alcoholic--it makes no sense! QUESTION: --------- Mr. Prohibitionist, you say ADULTS have the right to be overweight, engage in dangerous sports, not exercise, eat unhealthy foods, smoke cigarettes, and get drunk on alcohol as long as they cause no harm to others. In other words, you believe ADULTS should have the right to live lifestyles that KILL 200 TIMES more Americans than all illegal drugs combined!!! Mr. Prohibitionist, do you believe ADULTS should have the legal right to use marijuana or cocaine as long as they cause no harm to others? Mr. Prohibitionist RESPONDS: ---------------------------- No way! Marijuana is illegal, so there must be something very wrong with it! Even though marijuana consumption has never caused a single human death, marijuana should remain illegal because I don't like marijuana! ADULTS who consume substances that I don't like should be punished! I know what's best for everybody--I am the prohibitionist. If it were legal for ADULTS to consume any substance they wish, they might consume 'evil' drugs. Harm or death caused by poor diet, participating in dangerous sports, obesity, lack of exercise, over-the-counter medicines, prescription drugs, tobacco addiction, or alcoholism is tolerable. But harm or death caused by CERTAIN drugs is NOT tolerable! I know which drugs are tolerable and which drugs are not tolerable. I know what's best for everybody--I am the prohibitionist. ADULTS should not be judged on their character alone. ADULTS should also be judged on what they put into their bodies. It is the government's job to determine which substances ADULTS can and cannot consume. It is the government's job to PUNISH ADULTS who consume substances that I don't like. I know what's best for everybody--I am the prohibitionist. ==================================================================== SUMMARY ======= As you can see, the prohibitionist is EXTREMELY ILLOGICAL, IRRATIONAL, and INCONSISTENT. The prohibitionist is also a HYPOCRITE. Prohibitionist views are NOT based on facts or reason, they are based on UNFOUNDED FEARS, PREJUDICE, and IGNORANCE. Because the prohibitionist tolerates DOZENS of UNHEALTHY, HARMFUL, and DEADLY lifestyles, the prohibitionist is NOT truly concerned with the health or well being of others. The real agenda of prohibitionists--whether they admit it or not--is to force their PERSONAL morality on others. The prohibitionist is a WORRIED person. The prohibitionist is WORRIED that if government does not play the role of daddy, society might self destruct. The prohibitionist is WORRIED that somewhere, someone might consume something that the prohibitionist doesn't like. Rather than mind his own business, the prohibitionist spends time WORRYING how other people live. The prohibitionist just can't keep his nose out of other people's business. The prohibitionist talks tough as long as he is the only one to talk. But the prohibitionist will NEVER openly debate the repeal of Prohibition. The prohibitionist is FRIGHTENED of debating the opposition because the opposition will expose the prohibitionist for what he is--a HAND-WRINGING WORRY WART who advocates an IRRATIONAL, ILLOGICAL, and HYPOCRITICAL policy that causes more harm than good. The prohibitionist talks tough when he's has the stage to himself. But when confronted by the opposition, the prohibitionist goes into hiding. THE DISASTER OF PROHIBITION--BROUGHT TO US BY THE PROHIBITIONISTS ================================================================= The government spends $20 billion every year trying to enforce Prohibition. Prohibition is responsible for a tremendous amount of crime, which adds even more to its cost. Prohibition has overflowed our prisons, jails, and courts with nonviolent drug offenders. Nonviolent drug offenders are frequently serving longer prison sentences than violent criminals like armed robbers, rapists, even murderers. The government is spending billions of tax dollars to warehouse thousands of nonviolent drug offenders. Billions of tax dollars are being spent to enforce Prohibition, leaving little money left for drug education, rehabilitation, and prevention programs. Most of the money spent on the drug problem is spent AFTER the problem occurs--arresting and imprisoning users and dealers, rather than reducing demand via education and rehabilitation. Pure cocaine and pure heroin rarely kill people or cause serious long-term health problems. But because of Prohibition, pure heroin and cocaine is extremely expensive and unaffordable to most drug users. To make cocaine and heroin more affordable, they are often cut with harmful impurities making those drugs very dangerous. Most heroin and cocaine deaths are not caused by heroin or cocaine, they are caused by the added impurities. In other words, most heroin and cocaine deaths are caused by Prohibition. Prohibition keeps the price of pure drugs very high, so more affordable garbage drugs like PCP, crack cocaine, and methamphetamine have been developed. If pure heroin and cocaine were legally available to adult addicts via a prescription, there would be little or no demand for garbage drugs like methamphetamine, PCP, crack cocaine, etc. Methamphetamine, PCP, and crack cocaine proliferate because of Prohibition. Most drug-related crime and violence is not caused by drugs, it is caused by Prohibition. Because drugs are illegal, organized crime, street dealers and gangs control the market. When these groups fight over territory and profits, they generate crime and violence. Fights over deals gone bad, gang wars, and drive-by shootings are caused NOT by drugs, but by Prohibition. If Prohibition was repealed and drugs were regulated by the government, organized crime and street dealers--who pay no taxes and sell drugs to children--would be put out of business. Drive-by shootings and gang violence would plummet. If Prohibition was repealed, theft and armed robbery committed by drug addicts to pay for their drug habits would be eliminated. Prohibition is responsible for BILLIONS of dollars in crime costs--theft, robbery, and drive-by shootings committed against INNOCENT bystanders. Prohibition is responsible for a MAJOR amount of America's crime, violence, and murder. ALCOHOL IS A DRUG. Alcohol can be every bit as harmful as cocaine. Just as Prohibition was a failure in the 1920s, Prohibition is still a failure today. When was the last time you heard of organized crime, gang warfare, robbery, theft, police corruption, and drive-by shootings associated with alcoholic beverages? During the 1920s Prohibition of alcohol, that's when. After alcohol Prohibition was repealed, crime and violence plummeted and peace returned to the streets. Prohibition never works. American and Colombian law enforcement agents spent years trying to shut down the major Colombian cocaine cartels. They finally succeeded and celebrated their victory with great fanfare. But as the cocaine supply from Colombia was reduced, other nations increased their cocaine production. And only one year after the big Colombian cocaine cartels were defeated, the amount of cocaine being produced and exported by Colombia is right back to where it was. Nothing demonstrates the failure of Prohibition more than the availability of drugs in our prisons. By spending billions of tax dollars on drug interdiction along our 10,000 miles of wide open border, the government claims it can prevent drugs from entering America. Yet, the government can't even keep drugs from entering very small and extremely secure fortresses--our prisons. The government can't keep drugs from entering prisons, but the government claims it can impede the flow of drugs across 10,000 miles of open borders. The prohibitionist would prefer to avoid this issue. We send people to prison because they have violated our drug laws. And when they get to prison, they continue to use drugs. This is another fact the prohibitionist does not want to discuss. Prohibition creates a black market that makes the illegal drug trade enormously profitable. As soon as one group of drug producers, dealers, or traffickers are imprisoned, another group immediately takes their place. Tough drug laws create high risk. High risk leads to high drug prices. High prices lead to high profits. High profits attract more drug producers and dealers. The economics created by Prohibition ensure its failure. Trying to eradicate drugs via Prohibition is like trying to extinguish a fire with gasoline. Yet, the prohibitionist wants to pretend that Prohibition works. Add it all up... * $20 BILLION of taxpayer's money spent every year by politicians, government bureaucrats, and law enforcement officials who claim prohibition is a success. It's these same people who frequently tell us that government doesn't work and cannot solve our personal problems. Yet, these same people insist that it is the government's job to baby-sit adults. * Extremely tough drug laws have produced no major reduction in drug abuse. * Imprisoning drug offenders for 2, 5, 10, 20 years causes far more harm to them and their families than the harm caused by drugs. Imprisoning just one nonviolent drug offender for one year costs taxpayers $30,000. * Less time, effort, and money is available for police to apprehend real criminals because law enforcement and courts are spending their resources trying to baby-sit adults. * Extremely harmful drugs like PCP, crack cocaine, and methamphetamine have flourished because Prohibition has driven up the price of pure cocaine/heroin. * Less than 5 percent of all drugs are seized. Drugs are easily available to anybody who wants them, including children and prison inmates. These facts clearly show that eradicating drugs via law enforcement is futile. * Hard criminals (thieves, rapists, murderers) are serving shorter prison sentences so room can be made to imprison nonviolent drug offenders. Does that make sense? * Prohibition always works wonders--if your goal is to waste taxpayer's money, increase crime, increase police corruption, increase violence, and increase murder. Just ask Al Capone, organized crime, street gangs, and the Colombian drug lords. That's what America gets for spending $20 BILLION per year on the so-called War on Drugs. By any measure, Prohibition is a fiasco--a ridiculous and miserable failure. The above facts are the reason why prohibitionists like the folks at the DEA, Partnership For a Drug-Free America, politicians, and law enforcement officials refuse to debate the repeal of Prohibition. They know that when the facts are exposed, Prohibition will be exposed for what it is--a colossal failure. The prohibitionist does not want to hear or acknowledge the above facts. The prohibitionist cannot admit the policy he has so long supported is a failure. The prohibitionist is in denial. When one's long-held beliefs are challenged by an overwhelming amount of evidence that contradicts those beliefs, denial is typical behavior. In 1633 Catholic Church leaders condemned and censored Galileo for producing evidence that showed the Earth revolves around the Sun, contradicting the belief that the Sun revolves around the Earth. Today's prohibitionists behave in this same manner--they condemn those who advocate the repeal of Prohibition, and practice a form of censorship by refusing to debate the issue. Once again, long-held beliefs are being challenged and threatened--the evidence is too strong for prohibitionists to confront. The prohibitionist is in denial. "Prohibition goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control a man's appetite by legislation, and makes crimes out of things that are not crimes. A prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded." --President Abraham Lincoln