Taking of recreational drugs has been a huge taboo in Australian culture as those from Australia know, of late though a lot of politicians and elected officials are coming out and saying that they have tried illicit drugs from pot brownies to MDMA. This noteworthy because a lot of much needed light is being shed on the issue of black-market drugs, overdoses at music festivals and possible legislation to tackle the negative connotations of these substances. Furthermore, discussions about harm reduction and minimisation are being brought to the table, at the behest of Dr Alex Wodak a physician who was Director of the Alcohol and Drug Service at St. Vincent’s Hospital – Wodak believes regulating the party drug MDMA, so it is manufactured in a controlled way instead of in illegal labs, could drastically reduce the number of deaths, also stating that MDMA only becomes a high risk drug when the black market is controlling the manufacturing, supply and distribution processes. With progression of this magnitude, the need for pill testing will be virtually eradicated, deaths from pill taking reduced drastically, revenue from tax of this drug will increase and public financing of healthcare and policing will also be non-existent.
Yes, people probably shouldn’t do drugs, yeah its bad for you and if everyone didn’t do them we would live in a perfect society where all the straight edge people live and those guys are so totally hardcore because they are high on life, man. But telling people not to do the drugs does not work, we’ve been trying to do that since the dawn of the war on drugs (of which has killed millions and done nothing but increase the amount of people who do drugs), even with the added bonus of serious prison time, so why not listen to experts who say HARM MINIMISATION works, at least people might stop dying, if not from taking shotty drugs then at least from the Mexican drug cartels in Central America or the biker gangs in Australia who run the black markets in their respective – because instead of suits and ties in a court room settling disagreements, they do it with guns and violence (putting more of a burden on tax payers).
The reason why I talk about things like this is because I want to stop unnecessary deaths from illicit drugs, the government say they want to stop drug use – however, I don’t think its possible to stop drug use all together, so why not try to reduce drug deaths with a change in legislation rather than a finger waving at those who do it and symbolic gestures to the older generation about how tough Canberra is tough on crime. A lot of people will say I don’t want my tax payer dollars going towards people who are just doing drugs, but they are unlikely to know that currently we spend $1.1 billion a year locking up people for drug related crime, that estimate included police services, judicial resources, legal expenses, corrective services, the Australian Federal Police and the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service. Another $8.2 billion is spent on the healthcare of those using illicit drugs, so whether you like it or not drugs are being spent on those who use drugs.
It’s just a matter of how you want our tax dollars spent. Do you want it spent on a system that has continuously failed us and led us down this path or try something new and drastic that has empirical data suggesting its efficacy?
My proposal? As stated in the title, "Legalise, Tax and Regulate All,Currently Illicit Drugs"
References
I’m not linking the other article I used because its from a stupid place
The price of ice: The social and economic costs of methamphetamine to Australia
http://www.connections.edu.au/researchfocus/price-ice-social-and-economic-costs-methamphetamine-australia
FactCheck: does Australia spend $1.5 billion a year on drug law enforcement, with 70% due to cannabis?
https://theconversation.com/factcheck-does-australia-spend-1-5-billion-a-year-on-drug-law-enforcement-with-70-due-to-cannabis-55307