Drug War

The Most Absurdities per Kilo

by James Bovard February 1, 2006

The war on drugs has produced more absurdities per kilo than any other federal policy. Drug warriors have had high-profile belly flop after belly flop. Yet most of the media and the vast majority of American politicians continue to treat this war with deference, if not reverence. One of the biggest farces of the George W. Bush-era war on drugs ...

More Drug-War Victims

by Sheldon Richman December 28, 2005

Opponents of the so-called war on drugs (it’s a war on people) have long cautioned that enforcement of victimless-crime laws is by nature a mockery of justice. We have a vivid example in Cory Maye. You haven’t heard of Cory Maye? Few people have, despite the best efforts of blogger-journalist Radley Balko (TheAgitator.com). Maye, 25, ...

Treating Sniffles with a Jail Term

by Doug Bandow November 9, 2005

Drug abuse is never-ending but ever-changing. Periodically public officials warn that the use of heroin, LSD, PCP, cocaine, crack, and now methamphetamines is sweeping America. Eventually each crisis ebbs, only to be followed by another well-publicized addictive fad. Unfortunately, in each case tabloid-like publicity generates increased pressure on authorities to ...

Muddle at the Supreme Court over Medical Marijuana

by Sheldon Richman June 20, 2005

When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against medical-marijuana users, many critics of the decision thought the six-justice majority failed to show compassion for severely ill people. But the Supreme Court doesn’t sit to dispense compassion. It’s supposed to ensure that Congress respects the Constitution and, by extension, individual ...

Medical Marijuana Is Not a Libertarian Cause

by Sheldon Richman March 1, 2005

“Medicine by regulation is better than medicine by referendum.” U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer said that during arguments in the much-watched medical-marijuana case, Ashcroft v. Raich. Breyer, in other words, prefers that any change in the government’s prohibition of marijuana use be accomplished by an appeal to federal drug-enforcement authorities rather than by a public vote in the ...

Ashcroft v. Raich: Whither Federalism?

by George Leef March 1, 2005

Article I, Section 8, of the U.S. Constitution provides that “Congress shall have the power to prohibit citizens from consuming or ingesting any substance that it deems hazardous to the health, safety, or morals of the people.” On the basis of that grant of authority, Congress has carefully investigated the effects of numerous substances and has chosen to ban ...

The War on Pain Sufferers

by Sheldon Richman February 14, 2005

A good deal of air is exhaled over the state of medical care in America. Open state worshipers want a complete government takeover, while a more subtle band of state worshipers, those who call themselves advocates of limited government, propose instead to use “market incentives” to accomplish their aims. What ...

Gun Control and the War on Drugs

by Anthony Gregory February 1, 2005

Many opponents of gun control support the war on drugs, and many critics and reformers of America's drug laws tend to believe in gun control. Conservatives tend to fall into the first category and liberals into the second. In reality, these two issues are more similar than many people might think. In both cases -- laws that restrict which guns people ...

A Letter to My Friend Who Supports the Drug War

by James Muhm February 1, 2005

My friend, we’ve been discussing this war on drugs for quite a while, and whether or not it is doing anything to reduce drug use. We both agree that most drugs, particularly “hard” drugs, have a harmful and debilitating effect on most persons who use them. And yet, is the metaphorical war on drugs doing what it is supposed ...

The Longest-Running War

by Doug Bandow December 20, 2004

Joel Miller, Bad Trip: How the War on Drugs Is Destroying America; (Nashville, Tenn.: WND Books, 2004). Jeffrey A. Miron, Drug War Crimes: The Consequences of Prohibition; (Oakland, Ca.: The Independent Institute, 2004). War has become a centerpiece of American politics. The ...

States Should End the Drug War

by Sheldon Richman December 13, 2004

“Medicine by regulation is better than medicine by referendum.” U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer said that during last week’s arguments over the much-watched medical-marijuana case. Breyer, in other words, prefers that any change in the government’s prohibition of marijuana use be accomplished by an appeal to the ...

Book Review: Drug War Heresies

by Paul Armentano April 1, 2004

Drug War Heresies by Robert J. MacCoun and Peter Reuter (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2001); 479 pages; $28.00. In the ongoing debate over drug policy, professors Robert MacCoun and Peter Reuter are betwixt and between. On the one hand, government officials have assailed their empirical data documenting prohibition’s negligible impact on both drug use and perceived harm because it undermines ...