Drug Laws poll

[kt421]

While decriminalization is an option, it is likely to prove a worse option that either legalization or continued prohibition. Decriminalization fails to solve any of the harms associated with prohibition (except for imposition of criminal records on possessors...though even that is questionable given that decrim usually involves fines and some form of police contact and thus record) and also fails to impose any control on the black market.

But your post compels me to talk a bit about definitions. Legalization is often conceptualized as a sort of free market free for all - cannabis on sale at the supermarket and heroin at party stores. It doesn't need to be, and in fact shouldn't be. A legal but tightly regulated market is an option that makes a lot of sense. Indeed, it is arguable that we have really failed to properly regulate the alcohol and tobacco industries leading to increased social harms. The ad-driven glorification of drinking is an example of this.