I just finished watching "The Drug Years" on VH1

It was a 4 hour documentary broken up into 4 parts and basically it traced the history of drug use and it's place in popular culture in the last 50 years. It was a fascinating show and I think it is airing tomorrow night on Sundance Channel, I suggest watching it.

Anyway there was a figure that really struck me in it, they said that the US government has spent half a trillion (yes trillion) dollars fighting the war on drugs since 1980. Not to mention all the tax dollars spent on keeping drug offenders in prisons. Now I'm not condoning drug use because a lot of them are quite addictive and can screw your life up, but I couldn't help but wonder what all that money could have been used for if the drugs were decriminalized. At the least we could have spent it on effective rehabilitation for addicts instead of jail. I'm quite conflicted on my feelings for legalizing all drugs just because I think heroin and crack are just really bad things to do and I don't think setting up legal "hard drug stores" would be sending a good message to people, on the other hand I think it would stop a lot of organized crime and the tax revenue would be great.
I do however think that pot should be 100% legal in this country (only age restrictions like alcohol should exist).

Personally what people do to their own bodies is their own business as long as it doesn't hurt anyone, the only problem with that is hard drug use (heroin, etc...) usually ends up hurting people around the user. The same could be said about alcoholism I suppose and I just get tangled up in this circular debate with myself.

What are some of your feelings on drug legalization?

http://www.mcwilliams.com/books/aint/

Most of the book is online; it is not a site to "sell" you the book.

Legalize all drugs. Legalize prostitution. Period.
It will be easier to control(read=help!) all situations when they are allowed above-board.

I knew some of the history why drugs were made illegal but the entire story is quite enligtening...I should have known the first drug laws were made with racist intentions.

of course ppl are scared of what they do not understand(myself included). The whole thing has gotten so out of hand that it's understandable why any person is intimidated. Patriarchy plays into this too-it is all very psychological and controlling. I'm not sure what to do about the problem; but making it illegal is not the solution.
Did you know there is an herbal substance that is now credited with curing ppl of alcoholisim heroin and crack addiction? http://www.ibogaine.co.uk/ibogaine6.htm
It looks very promising; although I try to take it with a grain of salt.
Just a way of letting you know...mother nature does take care of us; if we let her.

and spent it on treatment, I honestly think we would be better off...jail is no place for an addict. Hopefully there is some validity to this Ibogaine stuff, it could really help people

That money....sigh.
The people who are in jail; their lives ruined; their families lives ruined; their anger multiplied and enhanced and then expressed on the ones they love; and society....it is a horrible; destructive cycle.
People would not want to get high as much if thier lives didn't suck so bad; and many of them would have better lives if this cycle was not entrenched in our country.
We need to have an open dialoge in this country about this; free from the pull and push of big pharm and pseudo-religious (read=political) influences.

but I read about the late 70's and how there was a serious push for the legalization of marijuana, in fact, I think Carter supported it...unfortunately the 1980 election happened; Reagan, Falwell and his ilk came on the scene and we haven't been able to have an open debate since

Make me feel old; whydontcha!
I was alive; but very young.......
Maybe we can get back to that someday.