The two would be quite different as the price of cigs can be blamed on unique circumstances all thanks to opportunistic lawyers and politicians. Could prices go up? Possibly, but using simple economics and history of prices of things that are illegal vs legal, I'd place my bet that prices would come down. The more important goals is to stop the crime associated with drugs, dismantle the murderous cartels, and bring some common sense into the war on drugs which hasn't worked and never will. It's funny how conservatives are all for reforming welfare and other bloated government programs that were failures and hurt people yet they won't admit the war on drugs is a failure.
I disagree. The government would tax it to death, the trial lawyers would sue everyone who makes it or disributes it. It would Cigarettes II.
They're the same folks who (correctly) criticize the Left for viewing government policy through the prism of emotion, yet fall into the same emotional mindset ('it's for the children', 'throw the maggot-infested, dope-smoking FM types in jail', etc.) when anyone suggests much-needed reforms to drug laws.
Post #18
Your argument about legalizing drugs to make the price come down in the context of economics is missing a big peice of why the price changes. Remeber supply and demand. The price is what it is as a result of the demand Vs supply. Legalize it and the supply goes way up to meet demand and the price comes down. Addiction drives demand as more and more get hooked on crack and so goes supply to regulate the price on the curve.
So your theory that driving the price down hurts terrorist is liberal logic.