CALLING A TRUCE IN THE WAR ON DRUGS….I asked drug policy expert Mark Kleiman what his actual drug policy was ? he’s never outlined it before for us bloggers ? and he answers here. He doesn’t explain his positions, he just lists them, but he does provide links to a short article on the same subject, as well as Against Excess, his book about drug policy.
The first line of Against Excess is, “This is a book without a clarion call,” and that characterizes his approach. Drug use does cause societal problems, he says, but at the same time the current “war on drugs” simply isn’t working. His answer is not a single sweeping prescription, but rather a certain amount of increased tolerance, some changes in both punishment and propaganda efforts, some higher taxes, and a mix of other recommendations. Mark has shifted my thinking a bit on the drug problem, so this is recommended reading.
And teenagers nationwide will applaud his final recommendation: we should abolish the age restriction on alcohol. Does that mean it’s OK let my neighbor’s ten-year-old drink a can of my beer?
