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November 30, 2008
Getting A Daily Dose
The Swiss are giving in to the junkies. GENEVA (AP) - Dr. Daniele Zullino keeps glass bottles full of white powder in a safe in a locked room of his office.Junkies with jobs? What is the world coming to? Or rather what is the world going back to? The Swiss program is very much like one in effect in the US from 1914 when the Harrison Act was passed until about 1923 with the closure of last clinic in Baton Rouge. It worked then, and it still works. Which is why we can no longer do that sort of thing in America. Which is rather fortunate. After all those drug cartels need to make a profit too. And think of all the street dealers such a system would put out of business. We certainly don't want to be putting retailers and wholesalers out of business in a down economy do we? There is one small problem with the program. Crimes committed by heroin addicts have dropped 60 percent since the program began in 1994. Now think of all the police, prosecutors, lawyers, prison guards, etc. out of jobs because of that. Every junkie in America has a huge burden to bear keeping all those people working. If it were not for junkies taxpayers might not willingly pony up the dough to support all those folks. Another economic disaster in the making during hard times if this clinic idea ever caught on. As long as Americans keep hating junkies the jobs that depend on them are safe. So do your part. Hate a junkie today. A big part of the economy depends on it. Cross Posted at Power and Control posted by Simon on 11.30.08 at 09:04 AM
Comments
At one time, doctors treated alcohol addiction by getting the user addicted to morphine. Morphine addicts aren't as likely to beat their wives and kids, smash their cars into people, and be too far gone to go to work in the morning. But that's scary. Phelp · November 30, 2008 01:41 PM I am horrified by this program. Speaking, of course, as a free market conservative (there seem to be so few of us left). The government should not be operating a business like this (making heroin). That should be the role of the private sector. As far as the jobs the junkies go back to, I'm sure those are in the public sector, too. Rhodium Heart · November 30, 2008 01:49 PM RH, You realize that making drugs illegal was the innovation of radicals. I propose that we do the conservative thing and relegalize drugs. === BTW what do you think a 60% drop in crimes committed by junkies is worth? M. Simon · November 30, 2008 02:51 PM Phelp, Another cure for alcoholism was to get alcohol users to convert to cannabis. M. Simon · November 30, 2008 02:57 PM RH, One point you are missing in all this is that heroin is so demonized that for the time being the free market solution is unavailable. Baby steps. Otherwise I agree - the free market solution should be our desired end result. M. Simon · November 30, 2008 03:01 PM Simon Simon Simon. My strongly-felt objection was to the part about the government manufacturing the heroin. Government can't run business. It's my understanding that in Pennsylvania, por ejemplo, the government can't even make money running a liquor store monopoly. How the hell can they handle something like this? I don't recall typing an objection to any other part of the program. ;) (For some reason I don't understand, I find this program less objectionable than needle exchange programs, which seem to just be hastening death.) Rhodium Heart · November 30, 2008 05:47 PM RH, My misunderstanding - apologies. You know why we have needle exchanges? Because governments made them a prohibited commodity. And yes. Government mfg. is the wrong way to go. However, government has whipped up hysteria for so long on the subject that for cosmetic purposes it may be the only way to back down from drug prohibition stupidity. The very fact that you see needles as hastening death is an indication that you may have been influenced by the propaganda. Of course - again - it is possible I am mistaken. Simon M. Simon · November 30, 2008 09:44 PM Does the word incentive mean anything to you? Chris · December 1, 2008 07:30 AM Chris, Of course it does. As in if there is enough incentive the narcos will be taking over the government of Mexico. And of course prohibition induced profits seem to be more than enough incentive. M. Simon · December 1, 2008 08:27 AM Post a comment
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Don't forget that this would have the side effect of making pain killers more available to those suffering from serious diseases, like cancer.
It reminds me of stories my Dad tells about running a honky-tonk after WWII. It was in a tiny little town, but big enough to have a town drunk. The owner told my Dad to give him (I forget how many) beers every day.
That's one reason I like small towns -- they may not socialize with their drunks and crazies, but they take care of them. Or at least they used to.