A few humble questions, if you would permit me.
If I’m not mistaken, it seems to me that you’re suggesting that criminal laws do not restrain activities that are deemed to be criminal offenses in the eyes of the law.
So I’m curious, do you think should we have criminal laws, or no criminal laws at all ?
If you do think we should have criminal laws, please explain why we should, i.e., what purpose do criminal laws serve ?
Laws against real crimes with actual victims are much more successful than laws against acts that harm only willing participants - because the former, but not the latter, have victims who avoid and resist the crime before it occurs and who cooperate in investigation and prosecution afterward. According to the FBI , two out of three murder cases are cleared; in contrast, the number for drug sales is assuredly no more than two out of three-thousand.
Also, real crimes with actual victims are the legitimate business of government, whereas acts that harm only willing participants are not (the opposite point of view leads to banning Big Gulps ... and beyond).
So I’m curious, do you think should we have criminal laws, or no criminal laws at all ?
If you do think we should have criminal laws, please explain why we should, i.e., what purpose do criminal laws serve ?
I'm not terribly convinced that laws do have a deterrent effect. It is upbringing and societal pressure that have traditionally served as deterrents to criminal behavior. Laws simply spelled out the penalties for engaging in it.
We have misunderstood the relationship between laws and behavior and increasingly expect the police and the courts to maintain the ordered society we remember fondly. They can't do it. They can't ride herd on society any more than teachers can impart an education to children who don't want one.
We certainly should have criminal laws. We still need to punish behavior that harms others. But drug laws, I think, should be limited to bad behavior while using drugs -- not the use itself.
It's how we treat alcohol. We punish, for example, driving while drunk, but not the drinking itself.
Very good question. I hope I answered it satisfactorily.