“Mothers throughout history have come forward for the sake of their children. We’re coming forth saying that the drug war has been more damaging to our families than the drugs themselves.” – Gretchen Burns Bergman, executive director of PATH
Moms United is a growing movement to stop the violence, mass incarceration and overdose deaths that are the result of deeply flawed, punitive and discriminatory drug policies. (more…)
Seeing how it’s the time of year when billows of pungent smoke pour out across the world (Happy 4/20 everyone!), let us take a few moments to reflect upon the insanity that is drug prohibition.
Suppose every myth you’ve been led to believe about drugs is true, and that they are really an evil scourge on society; destroying families, fueling crime, and turning our young people into mindless addicts. Even if all that were factually accurate (which it isn’t), there is still something far more destructive to our world than drugs themselves. And that something is drug prohibition. (more…)
Ten years ago Portugal decided to end the war on narcotics, opting to decriminalize drug use and treat abusers as patients instead of criminals. The experiment is being touted as a resounding success, and needs to be replicated elsewhere everywhere.
According to health experts, the number of “problematic addicts” in Portugal has fallen by half since the early 1990s. As well, the nation has seen a “spectacular” reduction in the number of infections among intravenous users and a significant drop in drug-related crimes.
See! Prohibition has never shown results like these.
Just ask the escalating number of families in Mexico mourning their dead while under constant threat. Seeing the blatant failures firsthand, it’s no wonder Latin America is poised to follow Portugal’s lead and finally abolish the war on drugs.
Forget the old wives tales about drugs. They aren’t some bogeyman we can just scare off with guns and soldiers. Instead, let’s behave like sensible people and look for an approach to the problem that is proving itself a success. It’s time we give legalization a try.
(Oh, Cannabis!)
An Ontario Superior Court judge ruled Monday that Canada’s medical marijuana program is unconstitutional, essentially quashing laws against possessing and producing cannabis.
The judge has given the government three months to appeal, and if the ruling isn’t challenged, owning or growing pot will become legal across Canada.
Oh man, how glorious this would be! We can finally stop policing and prohibiting one of the world’s most productive plants.
