RadioBanter - View Single Post

January 9th 05, 10:38 PM

In article , (Steve
Robeson K4YZ) writes:

Subject: Mode/Band Use in 1961
From: PAMNO (N2EY)
Date: 12/31/2004 10:20 AM Central Standard Time
Message-id:

Remember Cecil, W5DXP/W6RCA? His take on the problem was that all
"recreational" drugs should be legalized for adults. But if someone was
caught
providing them to minors, or caused problems while under the influence, the
penalties would be much higher than today. IOW, if you want to get high, go
ahead, but if you cause something bad to happen, don't try to use the drugs
as an excuse.

Uh huh...And that won't work.

Is what we have in place now working? People who want them seem to have no
problem getting their hands on illegal drugs. Heck, how long did Rush Limbaugh
abuse *legal* drugs (in an illegal way) before being caught?

We have rules like that for alcohol and firearms yet people still insist
on being stupid with them.

Of course. People are stupid with gasoline and electricity, too. Also motor
vehicles of all kinds.

The problem with the laws are that we WON'T use them to their full
extent.

I agree 100%! That's the key to Cecil's idea: Enforce the laws based on
*outcomes* of someone's behavior.

Personally, I believe that we have more than enough laws to punish
people
who use those weapons illegally or improperly. Yet everytime there is some
tragedy with a firearm, we go through yet another knee-jerk reaction of
insisting that we take away the guns rather than enforce the laws on the
books.

Let's get this straight:

The solution to firearms abuse isn't banning firearms. Instead, the solution is
to have serious and swift punishment for the *abuse* of firearms.

And I agree 100%.

So then it follows logically:

The solution to drug abuse isn't banning drugs. Instead, the solution is to
have serious and swift punishment for the *abuse* of drugs.

Same with alcohol. It's only been in the last 10-15 years that we've
finally decided to drop the hammer on alcohol abuse and DUI, but even then
it's
not unusual to find people who are still behind the wheel after four, five or
more DUI's.

Because the laws aren't perfect, and there's a long history of classifying
alcohol related highway deaths as "accidents".

So...as I see it the ONLY benefit to legalizing drugs would be the
potential tax revenues. But then we'll only spend those revenues building
rehab facilites or more prisons to house the offenders, so what's the use?

Remember that about 85 years ago, ethanol was banned as a beverage in the USA.
Rather than curbing the consumption and abuse of ethanol, banning it made the
problem worse, and created/empowered new levels of organized crime.

73 de Jim, N2EY