A loud voice of reason denouncing the long war on American drug users comes from a London School of Economics report described in Economists Slam the War on Drugs in a New London School of Economics Report. Written by five Nobel Prize winning economists and drug policy experts, these academics suggest our current ideology based approach is not working so we should shift to a more scientific "evidence based approach."
This 81 page summary analysis of a complicated set of issues will require a full reading before I can render an opinion on it, so I'm merely calling it to your attention, not recommending it, nor trying to summarize it. Here are a few sample paragraphs so you can decide if it is worth your time to pursue.
1. A “drug-free world” is not plausible.
In the opening chapter, written by Collins, the economist argues that believing we’ll live in a world free from drugs one day is not only deluded, it’s counterproductive. Collins blames prohibitionist forces in 1961 for perpetuating this fantasy—which he says still exists. In a seemingly heroic attempt to make this fantasy come true, he argues, we’ve assumed that the illicit market can be tamed through enforcement. “A global system which predominantly encourages policies that transfer the costs of prohibition onto poorer producer and transit countries, as the current system does, is an ineffective and unsustainable way to control drugs in the long term.” Collins argues for the decriminalization of drugs, which he calls a “far more effective tool.”
An interesting chapter warns us to "4. Stop sacrificing basic human rights," as presumably authors argue have occurred as an unintended side-effect" of our war on drugs. Previous scientists have argued that the enormous flows of illicit money created by our drug laws have been the cause of corruption of the police forces, military, and systems of justice in drug supplying countries such as Mexico, Columbia, and Afghanistan. Other writers have pointed to risks of narco-terrorism created as a direct causal consequence of these vast illicit flows of drug money.
One chapter requires no additional reading for me to agree with because substantial numbers of previous studies, as well as common sense and compassion already will lead anyone who studies the data to conclude we need to "5. Put an end to mass imprisonment of drug offenders."
On the heels of Madrazo’s claim, Ernest Drucker, adjunct professor of epidemiology at Columbia University, dives into one of the most costly, counterproductive byproducts of the war on drugs in America: mass imprisonment. Drucker details the grisly measures used to punish inmates brought in on drug charges in the U.S.—citing discipline that includes hard labor, severe mental and physical privations, isolation, body mutilation, and execution. The collateral effects, Drucker argues, show how imprisonment, human rights, and public health are related.
Another radical new idea which we may want to experiment with after careful debate and much caution is "6. Make mistakes—then learn from them."
While Collins says he hopes the information in the LSE report will lead member states to back it publicly—so far, only Guatemala has formally done so—his main focus is on putting an end to the misinformation that has perpetuated the war on drugs. “People are afraid of drugs—rightly so, these substances can destroy people’s lives,” he said. “But their lack of knowledge results in vitriolic reactions, overreactions. At this point, they’re doing more harm than the drugs themselves.”
This last section about being open to "learning from our mistakes," foretells just how controversial this book may become. While this may seem to be good sense to some, we need to keep in mind that for many others in our country, being willing to "learn from one's errors," could be seen a "slippery slope," much like a "gateway drug," - just one step away from having an "open mind" and taking a "rational approach to public policy." Who can imagine where we might end up if we start down this road?
America may not be ready for such a radical departure from our current approaches. Perhaps, we should wait and see what the other countries do first?
In the meantime, I would like to see us stop putting so many of our otherwise innocent citizens in jail for non-violent drug offenses such as possession of marijuana. We've been arresting over 800,000 citizens a year, many who are young people who then can not receive any federal benefits such as Pell Grants for college, or social service counseling for mental health troubles. Our drug laws are destroying their lives and the lives of their families in ways beyond whatever harm drugs may do to them that we can try to repair. This is tragic, unwise, and lacking in compassion.
It is high time we put an end to this insanity. An immediate step we can take is to write to President Obama and A.G. Eric Holder demanding they immediately fire our current Drug Czar who is refusing to cooperate with their attempt to reduce harsh mandatory prison sentences for drug offenses. My understanding is she is a holdover from the Bush administration is has overstayed her usefulness.