The “war on drugs” is mostly big business for government—the more “wars” there are the more tax dollars and bureaucrats needed. Law enforcement officials love all the expensive toys they get to play with. And those who build prisons don’t care if the jails get filled with petty drug offenders. And lawyers love the busy courts. It’s time to start rolling back this boondoggle along with all the rest of big government. From the Daily Caller:
By most accounts, the decades-long war on drugs — which started with Richard Nixon’s presidency, gained momentum during the Ronald Reagan’s years, and has remained a political talking point ever since — has been an utter failure.
A new documentary from filmmaker Eugene Jarecki, “The House I Live In” — winner of Sundance’s Grand Jury Prize — aims to take on the drug war by highlighting the financial and human costs.
Over the past 40 years, enforcement of the war on drugs has cost $1 trillion and resulted in 45 million arrests while the number of drug abusers remains unchanged. But as the domestic drug war rages on in every state in the country, it has remained a topic non grata on the campaign trail.
“It’s almost impossible to find advocates for the failed war on drugs,” Jarecki said in an interview with The Daily Caller. “But candidates don’t want to touch the issue with a 10-foot pole.”