has the "war on drugs" done anything to other than waste twenty billion dollars a year?

Question

its been like 93 years since the Harrison Narcotics Act of 1914, we haven't seen any real progress why keep wasting money and overcrowding our prisons, i mean shouldn't pedophiles ,rapists, and murderers be our priority?

Answer 1

The War On Drugs has accomplished the following:

1.Wasted 100's of Billions in US taxpayer money
2. Weakened the rights of every American
3.Made us the country with the largest prison population on Earth
4.Created life long criminal records for millions of non violent drug offenders,thus causing them to be less employable, and thus making them a burden on society for life.
5. Increased the Availability and Potency of almost every narcotic on the black market,while simultaneously decreasing their price in many instances.
6.Created a two tiered legal system,where rich habitual drug users get "treatment",while at the same time many poor "users" are often given stiff jail sentences for first time offences.
7. Decreased the availability of jail space for housing violent offenders,thus actually decreasing overall sentences for almost every class of crime other than drug offences.

It is in fact very likely the biggest failure in the history of law enforcement.

AD

Answer 2

The so-called "war on drugs" hasn't put even a DENT in the drug trade. It's a colossal waste of money, but short of COMPLETELY securing our borders and inspecting each and every shipment received in our ports, I really don't see an answer to the "war on drugs". Billions of dollars in illegal narcotics passes across the Mexican - American border every year and yet securing our borders doesn't appear to be much of a priority to Washington.

Answer 3

A war on the wrong drugers is more like it. Donut you see drug money is power and the powerful are into it. In a Hundred years or more their will still be a war on drugs.
If this civilization survives.

Answer 4

Yes, it has guaranteed that the highest single percentage of people incarcerated in prison are non-violent drug users who have never harmed any person other than themself.

And it has guaranteed that a huge amount of police and court time have been allocated to prosecuting non-violent drug users who have never harmed any person other than themself.

Which means all those resources are unavailable to deal with people who are actually violent or dangerous to others.

Answer 5

Its created tens of millions of jobs in prisons, police, laywers, security. Funny though alcohol kills more in one year than drugs combined for 100 years. But thats ok though.

Answer 6

It has employed too many people,
Lawyers would go out of business.....
They are a powerful group...

It helps the rich rape the poor... which most people support in america....
It makes the middle class feel special to have a lower class to kick around,,,,

Answer 7

Yes. It has afforded pompous, self righteous hypocrites a policy from which to claim they care for Americans when they only care about political party power.

Answer 8

Sure:

- put otherwise non-violent citizens in jail.
- raised the price of cannabis.
- made coke a more viable drug to smuggle simply in terms of size and weight.

Answer 9

try 40 billion a year, and NO it hasn't, other than dramatically increase the value of drugs, and making criminals more money than a college degree.

Answer 10

it incredibly is the ingredient...any dept. that has the cheap has skill over somebody or some thing...skill over us is what all government is...the bigger it incredibly is,the smaller we are... Spending money no longer your very own is skill...