Posted on 11/30/2017 10:49:51 AM PST by GIdget2004
Uh, complaints of needles in the streets by tourists and the zombies piled up in the corners.
Forget it, your a contrarian, I get it.
Nope.
Denmark legalized hard drugs, it was a disaster. So, at this point we argue point of view on what is pot, hard or not.
Nope. Is heroin a 'hard drug' and morphine a 'soft drug'?
No. There is only licit and illicit drugs.
You keep writing that Denmark legalized drugs, but have not provided a single source supporting your assertion.
Prove when Denmark legalized any illicit drugs. Please provide a cite. We'll wait.
Alcohol is physically addictive, thereby the foundation of the term dependent.
So your figures were produced to prove a point, not discover one.
That is why I chose a mental focus,to avoid the determined bias.
Define what you mean by lifestyle change and what drugs you're talking about and I'll answer your question.
Remember denmark?
I remember you keep saying illicit drugs are legal in Denmark but have not provided a single source for this repeated assertion.
This places me in the position of honestly trying to convince you of a point you are willing to lie to yourself to protect.
The only point you've convinced me of is that you want to dictate how other people live their lives.
People loose their minds over it. Just like alcoholics do.
*Lose. Since alcohol addiction harms people shouldn't it be illegal like pot is?
Problem is, I have known a thousand pot smokers in my life, and have met less than ten that were not addicted, the situation is reversed with alcohol.
I see. In your mind, alcoholism and alcohol abuse is not a problem. See: Alcohol Facts and Statistics
A difference you will be incapable of comprehending.
Now who's being insulting? Just because I don't share your viewpoint doesn't mean I'm incapable of comprehending it.
Know how you can tell an acoholic? He spends a percentage of his day every day thinking about his next drink. Obtaining it, thinking about the buzz, or how much better that will be than his present circumstances.
All you're describing is someone with an addictive personality.
I imagine you also drink. Compare the percentage each subject matter takes from your day.
Sure. None.
Now I honestly wonder about Free Republic and me...
It's clear you don't believe in a Free Republic.
I imagine you'd be much happier in an Islamic society where everyone's behavior is strictly controlled and transgressors are severely punished.
I thought you were of the opinion that pot is physically addictive, too.
You really haven’t read a damn thing I’ve said have you?
A. Great Britain
With the report of a government commission known as the Brain Committee of 1964, England instituted a policy whereby doctors could prescribe heroin so long as they followed certain treatment criteria.47 Previously in England, doctors could prescribe heroin much like any other opiate (such as morphine). This allowed a few unscrupulous doctors to sell ungodly amounts of heroin to members of the black market.48 Consequently, it was believed that if heroin were offered at medical clinics according to stringent rules and regulations, addicts would come to these clinics to seek treatment and eventually would overcome their habit.
As of 1983, however, England began to phase out these programs of clinically supplied heroin in favor of methadone treatment.49 Why? First, according to the reputable British physician journal Lancet, the number of addicts increased 100% between 1970 and 1980.50 A disproportionate number of these new addicts were between the ages of sixteen and seventeen.51 Second, only twenty percent of all of the addicts in England belonged to the clinical programs.52 At first blush, this fact seems strange - why would addicts choose not to participate in a program wherein they get free methadone? The answer probably lies in the fact that methadone does not produce the high that heroin does. Also, addicts probably did not care for the mandatory treatment and rehabilitation facets of the clinical programs. Whatever the reason, by 1985 England had 80,000 heroin addicts, the vast majority of whom wen not in treatment.53
A third reason why England began to abolish its clinical heroin program was the fact that not only were there few people, in them, but the programs themselves did not work. According to the British Medical Journal, more addicts left the program because of criminal convictions than because of treatment.54 Fourth, even with the clinical programs, heroin addicts had a death rate twenty-six times the average population. Finally, even when the programs were in operation, Scotland Yard had to increase its narcotics division 100% in order to cope with the increased crime rate.56
To summarize, the British experience with decriminalized heroin in the clinical context was a dismal failure. When experts from British Columbia were debating whether to create a similar program, they made the following conclusions that are so important as to deserve to be quoted at length:
While some success is claimed in terms of reducing the incidence of young users, the following findings have also been noted:
1) The British approach has failed to attract a majority of addicts;
2) Many registered addicts continue to turn to illicit sources of
drugs;
3) Many registered addicts do not decrease their dosage over time;
4) Many registered addicts continue to be involved in criminal activity;
5) Many registered addicts are chronically unemployed or do not earn enough to look after themselves;
6) The death rate of registered addicts is much higher than that of the general population and may be higher than that of North American addicts;
7) Since 1960, there has been a dramatic increase in the English addict population;
8) The black market for heroin continues to thrive;
9) Law enforcement appears to remain a necessary, costly and complex control measure.
In view of the above, it is felt that the application of the British approach to British Columbia would present serious dangers.57
B. The Netherlands
Proponents of legalization almost certainly would cite Amsterdam as the drug Mecca of the Western world. Anyone may go into the restaurants in this city and order marijuana and hashish from a menu; further, heroin and cocaine have been decriminalized for all practical purposes. The police simply leave the users alone. Consequently, health officials estimate that Amsterdam has 7,000 addicts, 20% of whom are foreigners.58 These addicts are responsible for 80% of all property crime in the city, thus necessitating that Amsterdam maintain a police presence far greater than those of cities of comparable size in the United States.59
The Dutch have not raised one dollar in tax revenue from drug sales, and drug violators account for 50 percent of the Dutch prison population, a higher proportion than in the United States.60 The Netherlands is the most crime-prone nation in Europe and most drug addicts live on state welfare payments and by committing crimes.61 Nationwide, the number of reported crimes increased to 1.3 million in 1992 from. 812,000 in 1981.62 Faced with public disgust at home over soaring drug related crime and pressure from other European Community countries to strengthen drug laws, Dutch authorities are implementing an aggressive program to reduce drug-linked crimes and disturbances and show new teeth in combatting illegal drug sales.63 Eberhard van der Laan, leader Of the Social Democrats in the Amsterdam City Council says, “People are absolutely fed up with all the troubles caused by drug addicts - car windows broken, noise, whole streets almost given up to the drug problem.”64 Legalization advocates claim that marijuana use in Netherlands has not increased since the laws were liberalized, but the number of Amsterdam drug cafes rose from 30 to over 300 in one decade. They also fail to note that daily marijuana use by U.S. youth has declined by 75 percent.65
C. Switzerland
Much like Amsterdam, Switzerland until recently followed a policy of decriminalization. Indeed, a city park in the town of Zurich for many years was allowed to be a haven for drug users - police simply would ignore the problem by claiming that it was better to have all the addicts in one place rather than having them roam throughout the entire city.66 Unsurprisingly, in February of 1992 Switzerland ended this experiment with decriminalization after experiencing an unacceptable increase in use, violence, crime and health costs and consequences.67 Specifically, the number of addicts residing at the park (called Platzspitz) jumped from a few hundred in 1987 to over 20,000, by early 1992.68 Approximately 20% of these addicts were foreigners who came to Zurich to take advantage of the city’s lax drug laws.69 In deciding to close the park, city officials cited the increased incidence of crime and prostitution—as Andres Oehler, a municipal spokesperson stated, “it was felt that the situation had got out of control in every sense.”70
Legalization always leads to more addiction more addiction always leads to more crime and more ruined lives. Dopamine stimulating drugs are dangerous.
You got that right. And to think I was once an enthusiastic supporter of his. Ugh. Seems there are at least a dozen other more important things he could be concerning himself with than something the majority of Americans would just as soon leave alone for the states to handle.
No, not "the foundation" - a substance can be potentially dependency-forming (as marijuana is) without being physically addictive.
So your figures were produced to prove a point, not discover one.
Whereas this thread shows you as the openminded seeker of truth? LOL!
Of course I have. I just happen to disagree with every damn thing you've written.
And, I'm still waiting for your proof that illicit drugs are legal in Denmark.
It's clear we're on opposite ends of the spectrum WRT to this subject. Let's leave it at that.
'According to the evaluation, it is not just users who have benefited from the injection rooms.
'“Also the residents in those areas where drug abusers hang out and used to take their drugs in the streets, stairwells and hallways have noted that there aren’t as many used needles (lying around),” the ministry release stated.' - https://www.thelocal.dk/20150527/denmarks-injection-rooms-save-hundreds-of-lives
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