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During my vacation last week one of the places I visited was the Netherlands. I’m happy to report the country isn’t a lawless hellscape. In fact, it’s a lovely place.
Apparently, it hasn’t been overrun with gangs of dangerous drug addicts nor has it become a crime ridden anarchistic wasteland where the only law is the thunderdome. Amazingly, none of these horrible things have happened to this small country, even though it has openly allowed the use and commercial sale of cannabis for decades.
In fact I found the Netherlands a wonderful place to visit, and talking with residents I came to believe it is also a great place to live. It is an extremely prosperous and well run first world democracy with a rich history and culture.
The reality is the data has shown the Netherlands’ decision to take an approach completely opposite to that of the United States’ misguided war on marijuana has worked out much better.
Despite marijuana being effectively legal in the Netherlands, the country actually has a much lower rate of cannabis use than the United States and several other countries with more draconian marijuana laws. According to the United Nations World Drug Report 2011 the Netherlands has an annual prevalence of use for people age 15-64 of just 5.4 percent. In the United States it is an incredible 13.7 percent.
Similarly the people of the Netherlands use fewer hard drugs. The annual prevalence of use for cocaine is just 0.6% in the Netherlands, compared to 2.4% in the USA. For opiates the prevalence rate is 5.9% in the United States but just 0.31% in the Netherlands.
The war on drugs approach has completely failed to stop the United States from having higher rates of use. What it has succeeded in doing is create a massive prison population that is a huge drain on tax payer money. The incarceration rate in the Netherlands is less than on eighth that of the United States. USA has a prison population rate of 730 per 100,000 people compared to the Netherlands rate of just 87 per 100,000.
While it is not news that the Netherlands is a great country, it is very important to remind voters of this while debating marijuana legalization in the United States. If the United States ended its failed marijuana prohibition, it would not be some bold untested step into the unknown or uncertain future. It would simply be the United States following the decades old example set by the Netherlands, a very nice country with lower drug use rates and a much smaller prison population.
When voters oppose reforming our marijuana laws, they should know it means they think spending billions of dollars on arresting over 800,000 Americans a year for marijuana is somehow a price worth paying to prevent America from simply becoming slightly more like the Netherlands.
12 Comments
We can’t do what they have done OMG man what about all those private prisons, workers and how about the stock holders. You sure are being mean;) It’s pretty much about profit here and nothing else.
Hell I’d settle for what Portugal or was it Spain did with drugs.
Sounds like you had a great time being around normal people not that every one that comes to this site isn’t normal:)
The problem is this is not a reality-based issue. It’s an ideological, religio-political issue. There are too many vested interests in keeping the ‘war on drugs’ going. The law enforcement industry, politicians, clergy, and others want business as usual.
I don’t use drugs other than an occasional drink of tequila or glass of wine. Personally, I think weed use is stupid, a waste of time and money, but that’s my opinion. I don’t think it’s my place or duty to impose my views on anyone else as long as what they do doesn’t hurt me or infringe on my rights. In that light, I think keeping weed illegal and prosecuting users is a colossal waste of money, effort, and resources that could be better used elsewhere.
I wish it were more like the Netherlands here in a lot of ways.
And the PTB here don’t want us to be more like the Netherlands in a lot of ways.
You neglected to include the Banksters who profit from laundering the drug money and the CIA who manages the distribution for funding purposes.
I do dispute your characterization of marijuana use, but that is your opinion and you are entitled to it.
You’re right about the entities you mentioned. And hats off to you for recognizing my differing opinion on weed. See folks? Two grown-ass adults can have a respectful exchange on a potentially polarizing issue. No, I’m not a Republican, Democrat, libertarian, Green Party, socialist, Randian, Paulite, whatever. I’m apolitical and neutral. I comment and insult ‘em as I see ‘em.
That sounds high to me – what all does it include?
I’m a “Carlinite”, a believer in the gospel according to George Carlin, and I believe no entity is immune to ridicule.
This weed issue sucks .Everyone knows all drug laws are egregious Jim Crow manifestations .This doesn’t mean all drugs should be commodified,as evidenced in Portugal ,it means there are responsible strategies that can reduce availability while expanding civil liberties .However ,if it were a Milton or Mao choice ,I’ll take the ACLU and Friedman .
Amsterdam is indeed a wonderful city, with world-class museums, healthy people, and fabulous food. They have done a great job of preserving their old homes and buildings, which are unique and lovely, except for the stairs, which are scary, narrow and very steep, to accommodate the narrow buildings.
Every building has a built-in crane so you can move furniture in with a pulley to the right floor, and in through the window.
You do have to keep an eye out for bikes and trams and cars, though, they come at you from every direction.
DEVIL WEED! REEFER MADNESS with visions of White girls being raped by Maryjuana crazed negroes, you get the picture. This is what millions believe. DOPE sits at the heart of all they hate, it’s not any ordinary substance to them it’s the Devil’s very own sacrament!!
Hey sea ,your portrayal is even more applicable to cocaine ,where the hyper-sexual ‘buck’ was on the prowl for white women ,but it was spun where white men could infer rape ,but more nefariously ,it threatened the male ego by insinuating once they go Black they never come back .With opiates ,the yellow peril was exploited to convey sneaky Asians using drug enslavement to Shanghai white women .Reagan invoked the ‘buck’ word when using the drug humbug for the Southern strategy to give bigots an emotional rescue .To litigate weed again is tantamount to fighting for 80% human .
I always thought it was the Wines vs the Weeds, sacramentally speaking.