Members rudywoofs (Pam) Posted January 3, 2015 Members Posted January 3, 2015 what were the original reasons for criminalizing cocaine and other opiates, and then the prohibition on alcohol? (Hint: it wasn't for "health" reasons...) Stan and JoeMo 2 Quote Pam Meddle Not In the Affairs of Dragons; for You Are Crunchy and Taste Good with Ketchup. If we all sang the same note in the choir, there'd never be any harmony. Funny, isn't it, how we accept Grace for ourselves and demand justice for others?
CoAspen Posted January 3, 2015 Posted January 3, 2015 You are a brave soul! rudywoofs (Pam) and Igakusei 2 Quote
Members phkrause Posted January 3, 2015 Members Posted January 3, 2015 Well Pam, he makes good points, but I disagree. The reasons I think is because the government makes money on cig, alc, but don't on H, Cocaine, and most of the other so called illegal drugs. Stan 1 Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members rudywoofs (Pam) Posted January 3, 2015 Author Members Posted January 3, 2015 the video was talking about the *beginning* of the drug legislation. Heroin and cocaine were very much legal drugs. nowadays, I'm sure there *is* a monetary inducement for legislation....such as the legalization of MJ Quote Pam Meddle Not In the Affairs of Dragons; for You Are Crunchy and Taste Good with Ketchup. If we all sang the same note in the choir, there'd never be any harmony. Funny, isn't it, how we accept Grace for ourselves and demand justice for others?
Moderators lazarus Posted January 4, 2015 Moderators Posted January 4, 2015 I'm reminded of the text that says Mark 4:22: For everything that is hidden will eventually be brought into the open, and every secret will be brought to light. Quote Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocrities. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence. Einstein
JoeMo Posted January 5, 2015 Posted January 5, 2015 Legal drugs (alcohol and nicotine) kill more people than all the illegal drugs combined. I'm not saying all drugs should be legalized (e.g., meth and coke will kill you even faster than nicotine); but at let's at least be consistent and logical - like what Colorado has done for cannibis. Either that or outlaw alcohol and nicotine along with other recreational drugs (good luck with that). I agree that some drug prohibitions have been racially motivated; just as the guy in the video states. Quote
fccool Posted January 5, 2015 Posted January 5, 2015 There tends to be a conspiratorial approach to this subject as thought the government is full of racists who want all black people locked up. But historic evidence is simply not there when you consider the full scope of the prohibition efforts in US, and the likes in Soviet Union, where alcoholism was damaging the strength of the economy and resulted in large health expenditures. I don't think these efforts, along with drug war, had getting rid of black people in mind. That's an extreme view of the reality of the "drug war". The drug war and "being tough on crime" was largely a political tool for some people to get elected. Most of the black people welcomed these measures initially, because these were really damaging the black communities historically. The issue became the cycle that such initial efforts thrown such communities to, given the strict punishments and prison culture that these grown. While I agree that drug war has done disproportional damage to black communities, I disagree that such was the goal or that these efforts were racially motivated. The issue here is fairly simple, and it affects all races alike: 1) Drugs culture in poor neighborhoods tends to be more violent 2) The violence surrounding drugs causes consolidated efforts by the law-enforcement to target these neighborhoods disproportionally 3) The attitudes of the offenders that are perceived as violent would land more strict terms of "prison rehabilitation" 4) When released, these offenders would come back the only thing they knew, and would amplify the culture of violence The reason why both alcohol prohibitions fail, in USA and Soviet Union, is because enforcing the prohibition became more costly than treating alcoholics. Drug war would fail in a similar manner if state was funding it, but much of the funds for the drug war come from confiscated property of the users and dealers. All in all, race factor is coincidental. We can also conclude that poverty or illiteracy is racist by the same statistical measure. Quote
Members rudywoofs (Pam) Posted January 5, 2015 Author Members Posted January 5, 2015 the video isn't all about drugs and the black population! It's about the historic reasons for legislation of drugs and alcohol - which, if one really is interested in the history, was very much related to race - but not just the black race ... the Asians were also singled out... I'm not sure why some folks don't want to acknowledge the truth... lazarus 1 Quote Pam Meddle Not In the Affairs of Dragons; for You Are Crunchy and Taste Good with Ketchup. If we all sang the same note in the choir, there'd never be any harmony. Funny, isn't it, how we accept Grace for ourselves and demand justice for others?
Moderators lazarus Posted January 5, 2015 Moderators Posted January 5, 2015 . the Asians were also singled out... The Opium wars between western powers and China are great examples. Quote Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocrities. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence. Einstein
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