Ten Years After Decriminalization, Drug Abuse Down by Half in Portugal

[old Grump]

E.D. Kain
Drug warriors often contend that drug use would skyrocket if we were to legalize or decriminalize drugs in the United States. Fortunately, we have a real-world example of the actual effects of ending the violent, expensive War on Drugs and replacing it with a system of treatment for problem users and addicts.


Ten years ago, Portugal decriminalized all drugs. One decade after this unprecedented experiment, drug abuse is down by half:


Health experts in Portugal said Friday that Portugal’s decision 10 years ago to decriminalise drug use and treat addicts rather than punishing them is an experiment that has worked.


http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain...f-in-portugal/

Golly I wish somebody here would have thought of doing that. Oops silly me, government has gained funds and power with their insane war on drugs and the Cartels have gotten richer so I guess it's all good. Says I biting down hard on my tongue trying not to swear.

[videodon]

...dang shame we can't get our fecal matter together over here.

[American Rage]

The Swiss tried it too, but there drug addiction and deaths exploded.

I say we decriminalizw weed, and give the death penalty for anything else.

[LAGC]

The Swiss tried it too, but there drug addiction and deaths exploded.

I say we decriminalizw weed, and give the death penalty for anything else.

Nah, legalize weed, herion, and cocaine and tax the shit out of them. Use the money to open up clinics to treat addicts.

Death penalty only for crystal meth.

[Full Otto]

If the drugs were decriminalization wouldn't that mean "abuse" should be down 100%.
I mean it wouldn't considered abuse anymore right.

[mriddick]

Have personal freedoms increased, is there less of a need for police, are judges being laid off and prisons closed, has the budget issues got better?

[old Grump]

Have personal freedoms increased, is there less of a need for police, are judges being laid off and prisons closed, has the budget issues got better?

So who's right? You might be surprised to hear that this isn't just about hypotheticals anymore. Portugal decriminalized all drugs 10 years ago and the results are in: decreased youth drug use, falling overdose and HIV/AIDS rates, less crime, reduced criminal justice expenditures, greater access to drug treatment, and safer and healthier communities.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tony-n..._b_891703.html

The decriminalization of drugs in Portugal did not in any way decrease levels of consumption. On the contrary, "the consumption of drugs in Portugal increased by 4.2% - the percentage of people who have experimented with drugs at least once in their lifetime increased from 7.8% in 2001 to 12% in 2007 (IDT-Institute for Drugs and Drug Addiction Portuguese, 2008)

http://www.wfad.se/latest-news/1-art...the-real-facts

Depends on whose study you read last but most reports say their use which was equivalent to the rest of Europe and the death rates have gone down in comparison. Not arresting abusers takes a load off the jails and courts. Decide for yourself.

How many violent felons did California release when the Supreme Court ordered them to release nearly 100,000 prisoners last May. Thefts, murder and rapes went up till the offenders were rearrested. Of the prison population 25,000 people were there solely for drug possession and over 8,000 of them were for a single offense and 1400 for just marijuana. They weren't working and we were housing them, feeding them, clothing them, treating them on an already bankrupt treasury.

I don't have all the answers but I know that what we are doing is making tax free money for the drug lords and forcing pushers to find more customers including children in order to support their own habit. We have been doing this for 40 years so I ask when and what will it take to make the policy makers say "Oooopsy Daisy we done messed it up big time."

[1 Patriot-of-many]

I don't seem to recall any historic examples of the types of violence the gov't has artificially created with the drug war AKA Harrison act. In fact hard drugs were OTC with no problems like today. Same thing happened with prohibition, but I have to wonder why it took a Constitutional amendment for Alcohol, yet we didn't with drugs..... Something stinks and it isn't in Denmark. It's here with your freedom.

[1 Patriot-of-many]

Have personal freedoms increased, is there less of a need for police, are judges being laid off and prisons closed, has the budget issues got better?

I would say Yes 1. Freedom did increase. You can choose to do what you want with YOUR life. 2. Probably. Considering the police spend a massive amount of time stopping , searching for drugs rather than real criminals, yeah less need for police. Prisons would be closed if it wasn't for the war on drugs and if not, you could actually keep violent criminals in jail rather than free up space for someone that wants to exercise their freedom.

[mriddick]

You'd think so but in reality it seems every place that does this ends up having the state more rather then less involved in personal affairs. My personal opinion is as citizens decide they will voluntarily give up the right to being able to use their own minds the state is compelled to step in, and the state likes to overstep...

[old Grump]

Step to the left and put everybody in jail for awhile.
Step to the right and if you have a drug problem you get government supervised treatment centers.

Which would you rather have social workers or police? Treatment or minor criminals learning hard tricks inside?

[btcave]

Step to the left and put everybody in jail for awhile.
Step to the right and if you have a drug problem you get government supervised treatment centers.

Which would you rather have social workers or police? Treatment or minor criminals learning hard tricks inside?

We have had legalized pot in Oregon for a couple of years now in the guise of medical marijuana. Other than the eyesore of seeing clinic signs with a big pot leaf on them, it hasn't had any ill effects here. Some busts here and there where the growers are overstepping the boundaries. The other drugs are poison. I did some of the hard shit in my teens. I hate pot as I can't stand not being able to keep a line of thought longer than 2 seconds, but I don't care what you smoke/do in your own home.

The war on drugs outside of our own borders is a waste of money.

http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/sourcefiles/ORS.pdf

http://norml.org/legal/item/oregon-medical-marijuana

Oregon Medical Marijuana

SUMMARY: Fifty-five percent of voters approved Measure 67 on November 3, 1998. The law took effect on December 3, 1998. It removes state-level criminal penalties on the use, possession and cultivation of marijuana by patients who possess a signed recommendation from their physician stating that marijuana "may mitigate" his or her debilitating symptoms. Patients diagnosed with the following illnesses are afforded legal protection under this act: cachexia; cancer; chronic pain; epilepsy and other disorders characterized by seizures; glaucoma; HIV or AIDS; multiple sclerosis and other disorders characterized by muscle spasticity; and nausea. Other conditions are subject to approval by the Health Division of the Oregon Department of Human Resources. Patients (or their primary caregivers) may legally possess no more than three ounces of usable marijuana, and may cultivate no more than seven marijuana plants, of which no more than three may be mature. The law establishes a confidential state-run patient registry that issues identification cards to qualifying patients. Patients who do not join the registry or possess greater amounts of marijuana than allowed by law may argue the "affirmative defense of medical necessity" if they are arrested on marijuana charges.

The Oregon law does not include a reciprocity provision. However, the Oregon Court of Appeals has ruled (and the Oregon Medical Marijuana Program has confirmed) that patients from out of state are permitted to register with the Oregon Medical Marijuana Program to obtain a registry identification card, the same as an Oregon resident, which will protect them from arrest or prosecution while in Oregon. These out of state patients are required to obtain a recommendation for the medical use of marijuana from an Oregon licensed physician. State v. Berringer, 229 P3d 615 (2010).

AMENDMENTS: Yes.

House Bill 3052, which took effect on July 21, 1999, mandates that patients (or their caregivers) may only cultivate marijuana in one location, and requires that patients must be diagnosed by their physicians at least 12 months prior to an arrest in order to present an "affirmative defense." This bill also states that law enforcement officials who seize marijuana from a patient pending trial do not have to keep those plants alive. Last year the Oregon Board of Health approved agitation due to Alzheimer’s disease to the list of debilitating conditions qualifying for legal protection.

In August 2001, program administrators filed established temporary procedures further defining the relationship between physicians and patients. The new rule defines attending physician as "a physician who has established a physician/patient relationship with the patient; … is primarily responsible for the care and treatment of the patients; … has reviewed a patient’s medical records at the patient’s request, has conducted a thorough physical examination of the patient, has provided a treatment plan and/or follow-up care, and has documented these activities in a patient file."

Also, Senate Bill 1085, which took effect on January 1, 2006, raises the quantity of cannabis that authorized patients may possess from seven plants (with no more than three mature) and three ounces of cannabis to six mature cannabis plants, 18 immature seedlings, and 24 ounces of usable cannabis. However, those state-qualified patients who possess cannabis in amounts exceeding the new state guidelines will no longer retain the ability to argue an "affirmative defense" of medical necessity at trial. Patients who fail to register with the state, but who possess medical cannabis in amounts compliant with state law, still retain the ability to raise an "affirmative defense" at trial.

Other amendments to Oregon's medical marijuana law redefine "mature plants" to include only those cannabis plants that are more than 12 inches in height and diameter, and establish a state-registry for those authorized to produce medical cannabis to qualified patients.

MEDICAL MARIJUANA STATUTES:Oregon Medical Marijuana Act, Or. Rev. Stat. § 475.300 (2007).

CAREGIVERS: Yes. Designated primary caregiver is the person that has significant responsibility for managing the well-being of a person who has been diagnosed with a debilitating medical condition. Primary caregiver does not include the patient’s physician. The caregiver must be 18 years of age or older. A patient may only have one primary caregiver. Or. Rev. Stat. §§ 475.302(5); 475.312(2) (2007).

CONTACT INFORMATION: Application information for the Oregon medical marijuana registry is available online or by writing:

Oregon Department of Human Services
800 NE Oregon St.
Portland, OR 97232
(503) 731-4000
http://egov.oregon.gov/DHS/ph/ommp/index.shtml

Oregon Cannabis Patients registry: 1 (877) 600-6767

Oregon NORML Medical Marijuana Act Handbook (PDF)

[American Rage]

The only way China was able to solve the drug problem given to them by the British was to institute the death penalty.

Come on, with the exception of weed it's all poison. (Yes, you could say the same about hard liquer)

[raxar]

The only way China was able to solve the drug problem given to them by the British was to institute the death penalty.

Come on, with the exception of weed it's all poison. (Yes, you could say the same about hard liquer)

if it's all poison isn't letting people do it the death penalty?

[mriddick]

Step to the left and put everybody in jail for awhile.
Step to the right and if you have a drug problem you get government supervised treatment centers.

Which would you rather have social workers or police? Treatment or minor criminals learning hard tricks inside?

Again show me one place that has got rid of one cop because of legalization. The cops don't go but you are right you do get more social workers, you get more people and kids under state care and more tax money being spent (which means even more taxes).

[caaraa]

I think that's awesome. Makes me feel layered. Like some sort of epic lasagna

[raxar]

Again show me one place that has got rid of one cop because of legalization. The cops don't go but you are right you do get more social workers, you get more people and kids under state care and more tax money being spent (which means even more taxes).

well comparing america to other countries is apples and oranges but you do have a point, Freedom requires morality. Nobody is willing to deny themselves anything so we get the nanny state.

On the other hand we could get rid of the problem of more social workers and higher taxes by simply not having social workers and letting private charities take care or neglected children.

[mriddick]

I'd like to think we leave drug addicts alone to their own devices which would probably fix the issue as well but we don't and I fear never will.

[raxar]

I'd like to think we leave drug addicts alone to their own devices which would probably fix the issue as well but we don't and I fear never will.

Indeed, its too much of an opportunity for gubmit to take more control and get more money to let it go

[Dr. Gonzo GED]

The only way China was able to solve the drug problem given to them by the British was to institute the death penalty.

Come on, with the exception of weed it's all poison. (Yes, you could say the same about hard liquer)

They didnt solve their drug problem though. They just drove it undergound with higher stakes and more desperate peddlers. The Triads are notoriously bad news, even among organized criminals.

The only reason China appears drug free is that the state does not admit it. Sort of like the "no homosexuals in Iran", or "no serial killers in Russia" lines.

"Those things don't happen in The Peoples Utopia, they are the byproducts of Western Societies sick and amoral ideologies."