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Posted by CN Staff on March 14, 2004 at 08
42 PT
By Robert Hardaway
Source: Denver Post
Every year, more than 400,000 Americans die as the result of tobacco use. Alcohol abuse results in the deaths of another 110,640 Americans, including 16,653 alcohol-related traffic deaths. Alcohol is a major factor in more than half of all homicides and rapes, 62 percent of assaults, and 30 percent of suicides. Illegal drug use causes another 3,562 deaths.
According to the Cato Institute, based on deaths per 100,000 users, "tobacco kills 650, alcohol 150, heroin 80, and cocaine 4."
If an observer from another planet - say, Mars - were to analyze these statistics, he might be surprised to learn that out of tobacco, alcohol and other drugs, only the others are criminalized in the United States.
Our observer from Mars also might be startled to learn about the price Americans are prepared to pay to protect these 3,562 privileged Americans from taking drugs and possibly jeopardizing their health:
The expenditure of more than $80 billion annually to arrest and incarcerate hundreds of thousands of citizens, using large chunks of America's scarce jail capacity and necessitating the early release of murderers, rapists and child molesters. A Cook County, Illinois, prosecutor has described the devastating effect of the war on drugs:
The expenditure of more than $80 billion annually to arrest and incarcerate hundreds of thousands of citizens, using large chunks of America's scarce jail capacity and necessitating the early release of murderers, rapists and child molesters. A Cook County, Illinois, prosecutor has described the devastating effect of the war on drugs:
Whereas he once had a relatively light case load and could take to trial those charged with the most vicious and violent crimes, after the drug war began, he was so overloaded with drug cases that he had no choice but to award "giveaway" plea bargains to even the most violent of criminals;
The imposition of thousands of raids, searches and wiretaps on American citizens;
The forfeiture of billions of dollars of potential tax revenues to organized crime;
The commission of more than one-fifth of all property crime in the United States, amounting to billions of dollars annually, by addicts seeking money for drugs made artificially expensive by criminalization;
The corruption and undermining of our political system, particularly at the local level.
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Author: Robert Hardaway
Published: Sunday, March 14, 2004
Copyright: 2004 The Denver Post Corp
Website: The Denver Post – Colorado breaking news, sports, business, weather, entertainment.
Contact: openforum@denverpost.com
42 PTBy Robert Hardaway
Source: Denver Post
Every year, more than 400,000 Americans die as the result of tobacco use. Alcohol abuse results in the deaths of another 110,640 Americans, including 16,653 alcohol-related traffic deaths. Alcohol is a major factor in more than half of all homicides and rapes, 62 percent of assaults, and 30 percent of suicides. Illegal drug use causes another 3,562 deaths.
According to the Cato Institute, based on deaths per 100,000 users, "tobacco kills 650, alcohol 150, heroin 80, and cocaine 4."
If an observer from another planet - say, Mars - were to analyze these statistics, he might be surprised to learn that out of tobacco, alcohol and other drugs, only the others are criminalized in the United States.
Our observer from Mars also might be startled to learn about the price Americans are prepared to pay to protect these 3,562 privileged Americans from taking drugs and possibly jeopardizing their health:
The expenditure of more than $80 billion annually to arrest and incarcerate hundreds of thousands of citizens, using large chunks of America's scarce jail capacity and necessitating the early release of murderers, rapists and child molesters. A Cook County, Illinois, prosecutor has described the devastating effect of the war on drugs:
The expenditure of more than $80 billion annually to arrest and incarcerate hundreds of thousands of citizens, using large chunks of America's scarce jail capacity and necessitating the early release of murderers, rapists and child molesters. A Cook County, Illinois, prosecutor has described the devastating effect of the war on drugs:
Whereas he once had a relatively light case load and could take to trial those charged with the most vicious and violent crimes, after the drug war began, he was so overloaded with drug cases that he had no choice but to award "giveaway" plea bargains to even the most violent of criminals;
The imposition of thousands of raids, searches and wiretaps on American citizens;
The forfeiture of billions of dollars of potential tax revenues to organized crime;
The commission of more than one-fifth of all property crime in the United States, amounting to billions of dollars annually, by addicts seeking money for drugs made artificially expensive by criminalization;
The corruption and undermining of our political system, particularly at the local level.
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Author: Robert Hardaway
Published: Sunday, March 14, 2004
Copyright: 2004 The Denver Post Corp
Website: The Denver Post – Colorado breaking news, sports, business, weather, entertainment.
Contact: openforum@denverpost.com
