Crime and Drugs

The economic argument for the legalization of marijuana and other drugs in this country is quite clear. From an economic standpoint, excise taxes or "sin taxes" could be imposed on the production and distribution of these drugs, therefore creating tax revenue that could be funneled into treatment programs and other domestic sectors which are suffering because of the so-called war on terror. Spending on higher education is low, healthcare costs are stifling, and public education programs such as art, music, and drama have all but been eradicated in the poorer states of the union. These are programs that could at least be bolstered somewhat by drug tax revenue. Also, the "War on Drugs" would come to a crashing halt because production and distribution would be taken out of the hands of organized crime and placed into legitimate pharmaceutical companies that could regulate, under the watchful eye of the food and drug administration, the production and sales of said drugs. This would free up even more resources that could be used to promote the general welfare of the populace instead of putting more police on the streets and building more and more prisons to house drug offenders. According to statistics, the United States prison system, in 2004, had an incarceration rate of 682 inmates per 100,000 people; the second highest only to Russia. The vast majority of these inmates were incarcerated for petty drug offenses. This trend is increasing, sucking dry the tax coffers of the United States and punishing as criminal what is in fact (according to the AMA) to be a medical and psychological disease. Yes, usage of marijuana will certainly increase in every state because of its relative elastic demand and the glorification it receives in the popular media. However, usage of narcotics should not expand widely because of their relative inelastic demand curves. What do you guys think on this issue?