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Is The Opioid Crisis The Government's Responsibility?

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Schwingel9 said:
When is the last time you walked into Wal-Mart and looked at a display of heroin, lsd, and cocaine? Never mind the people who are already addicted or fighting the addiction, what about all people who would tempted to experiment with highly addicting drugs? There will be many, many more addicts, period. The more of those drugs the more addicts there will be.

One of the roles of the government is to protect its people and that includes protecting them from their selves, if need be, especially the vulnerable. In any society there will be those who are vulnerable and need help. Who in their right mind would pupose an idea to make money off of vulnerable people? Well, besides planned parenthood?
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There were huge segments of the European population who said the same thing about Portugal. Many dire predictions were made but never came to pass. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...-overdose-in-portugal/?utm_term=.13e4d9b448d3

Legalization should also entail taxation, strict controls on sales, education and treatment for addiction. There would still be a prohibition on illegal, or "under the counter" sales. It is a multi-prong approach that has been effective in Portugal. The current approach to the drug problem is unworkable. It is past time to try a proven approach here. If it falls short in effectiveness, it won't be any worse than the current situation.
 
Just a little of an interesting aside prompted by the link you provided above BoilerAnimal.... Check out the high end of the 'deaths thru drug overdoses' chart. A thorough cursory glance suggests that the top end of that chart, ie, those countries where MORE deaths thru overdoses occur, is heavily populated by those countries in the EU that have the most lenient drug laws (altho stopping short of decriminalisation like Portugal) & apart from Portugal (possibly the exception that proves the rule?) the low end of the chart, ie, those places with FEWEST overdose deaths, is populated by those countries with the STRICTEST anti-drug laws & enforcement.... :dontknow: The next most lenient country, which I believe is the Netherlands, is pretty much smack in the middle... (oops, pun not intended! :opps:)

So while that chart could be interpreted to support decriminalisation, it could be also be argued to support (possibly even more strongly) the idea that maybe decriminalisation is not quite the panacea for all drug ills that some might like to think; & arguably, for most countries shown on that chart, stricter controls have proven to be significantly more effective at reducing overdose deaths?? Aren't charts & statistics fun?! :gaah:
 
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It's not all about reducing deaths. There are other considerations as well, such as costs of law enforcement, incarceration, crime rates and the effects and burdens on society as a whole. In the U.S., these costs are escalating at extremely high rates.

The more restrictive a society or country is, the easier it is to influence behavior in all forms. I certainly don't want to go down the avenue of a near police state to control drug use, especially if there are other options available.

The status quo is far from a success. I think that it's time to have a serious discussion of alternatives. The route that Portugal has taken has seen much better outcomes than most anything short of execution for drug offenses.

With income from taxation on the legal drug trade used for education of the TRUE dangers of drugs and for rehabilitation, I believe that headway could be made on this problem. I emphasized true because of claims made by the government regarding some drugs that empirical evidence shows not to be true. If you lie about the dangers in one area why should you be trusted for anything?

Part of the allure of drugs is due to the fact that they are illegal. It provides a bit of a thrill and a certain perception of a "cool" factor, at least to those most inclined to experiment with them. The U.S.had a period where they tried outlawing alcohol. Prohibition was strongly advocated as a means to cure societal ills back in the 1930's and it was reversed due to the fact that it caused more problems than it purported to cure. I feel that we have arrived at the same outcome with pretty much the same problems.

If they told you today that drug use would be legal, would you decide to become an addict, especially if you were educated on the true facts of any possible decisions that you may make about drugs? Legal access to drugs would not alleviate your responsibility to your fellow citizens. Restrictions on drug use at work would still be valid, driving while using drugs would still be illegal.

What the U.S. is doing now is not working!!! It's time to explore other options!
 
When is the last time you saw the government become involved in something and it turned out good?

Exhibit A for failures would be healthcare
 
"It's not all about reducing deaths."

How is possible to have a rational conversation if one believes money trumps human life?
 
But the costs cannot be ignored either: how do you figure out where to draw the lines? :dontknow:

And to further complicate things :shocked:: Do you value the life of an addict, as much as that of a taxpayer?
 
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Bob Denman said:
But the costs cannot be ignored either: how do you figure out where to draw the lines? :dontknow:

And to further complicate things :shocked:: Do you value the life of an addict, as much as that of a taxpayer?
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Easy, human life is always first, especially those who are on the margins and most vulnerable. By helping those on the fringes we become stronger. Legalizing drugs harms those that are on that edge. I struggle with how much I have to pay in and what my tax money goes towards. But then stop and remember that this tax thing is nothing new, that is why we are told to pay Cesar what is Cesar's, and care for those who need the most help. Everyone's dignity is equal.
 
I believe that addicts started down that path knowing full well the dangers. Everyone deserves a 2nd chance but chances beyond that should be of their own doing. Fool me once shame on me, fool me twice shame on you. I agree cost has to play into the equation.

I would personally prefer my US tax dollars stay here and help the people in the USA (preferably legal citizens of the USA) rather then be sent to foreign countries for who knows what. Those BILLIONS sent to foreign countries could do a lot more "work" right here for the people who paid them in.

That's a whole other conversation though.
 
Rob Rodriguez said:
I believe that addicts started down that path knowing full well the dangers. Everyone deserves a 2nd chance but chances beyond that should be of their own doing. Fool me once shame on me, fool me twice shame on you. I agree cost has to play into the equation.

I would personally prefer my US tax dollars stay here and help the people in the USA (preferably legal citizens of the USA) rather then be sent to foreign countries for who knows what. Those BILLIONS sent to foreign countries could do a lot more "work" right here for the people who paid them in.

That's a whole other conversation though.
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I repect your opinion, even though it is contrary to the Gospel.
 
Really????


What is the recovery rate for drug addicts?


The National Institute on Drug Abuse states that between 40 and 60 percent of recovering drug addicts will eventually relapse. With heroin, those rates are even higher. Some experts place the rate of relapse for heroin addicts as high as 80 percent, which means that the recovery rate may be as low as 20 percent.Aug 24, 2015




I think this thread was about opioids, not coke, weed, etc. I am not sure, but I think that falls under heroin. See second and third sentences above.

Rehab is a BIG business.


Joe T.
 
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