Does the War on Marijuana Cause Crime?

Is the war on marijuana actually CAUSING crime? Well, it depends on what kind of crime we are talking about. Ask yourself what is more criminal: a United States citizen making an informed decision about using a plant, or organized crime combines implementing violence and coercion to protect their preeminence trafficking an illegal substance?

Why would the United States foster violent drug trafficking and organized crime? Well, much of it has roots in the end of alcohol prohibition in America. When prohibition was finally deemed an abysmal failure in the 1930s, there were thousands of narcotics officers who stood to lose their jobs. Through a bureaucratic reach-around, these men were able to retain their positions as drug vigilantes when marijuana was deemed a dangerous substance peddled by lazy blacks and Mexicans. Instead of giving a chunk of the population a pink slip or a ticket to another police department, a rather ubiquitous plant was outlawed, along with its industrially-grown relative that helped form the backbone of the early American economy.

What happens when there is demand for something that farmers aren't allowed to grow and stores aren't allowed to retail? The supply for that demand becomes produced on a growing black market. On black markets, the high demand and the low supply will stimulate a keen interest in obtaining products even at high prices. Why else do you suppose it costs forty to fifty dollars to obtain an eighth of an ounce of something that can grow as prolifically and easily as a dandelion? United States citizens are paying these ridiculous sums of money on a harmless weed. If you are still keen on believing in a harmful nature of marijuana, then you might as well admit that over seventy million Americans are either too stupid or self-destructive to responsibly use the substance. Too bad there hasn't been a single death directly attributed to marijuana.

Black markets thrive because of demand, and will continue to do so. But what is the cost? In effect, the cultivation and distribution of marijuana has passed out of the hands of ordinary citizens, and into the hands of violent criminals. To openly defy law and go underground with equipment and resources to elude police forces, you need a lot of money. Who has adequate money, communications networks, and defense? You got it, organized crime.

Well, surely the inflated size of the DEA and local narcotics divisions would lead to the elimination of such crime rings? Well, that might be the case if efforts weren't concentrated on busting ordinary people on casual use or possession charges. A fifth of all crimes prosecuted in the United States are marijuana-related charges. Large organized crime organizations certainly don't mind the attention from the DEA, because the DEA really only manages to crack down on small operations if they're lucky. If you weed out all the small fish in the sea, then prices are able to remain high and buyers are forced to buy product from a narrowed field of distributors.

What's the incentive for large drug enforcement staffs if the war on marijuana is going nowhere? Well, one reason for that comes from a seldom thought-about fact. In accordance with certain legal statutes, police and government agencies can seize property connected with large suppliers of marijuana. Ever wonder where they get all that crap to sell at police auctions? The war on drugs has become big business and the war on marijuana has become particularly profitable. Respect for law enforcement has eroded in a climate of prolific crackdowns on houses and users. If the motto of police forces is "to protect and to serve," who exactly are these drug enforcement agents protecting or serving? How is dragging someone wearing no pants or shoes out of his house to be sentenced to time in jail going to rid the world of people making a choice to put something into their body?

More people are smoking weed every year. That trend is unlikely to reverse itself any time soon. Police forces are inflating and so are violent crime organizations that control the flow of black market drugs. Decriminalizing marijuana would put control of production back into the hands of ordinary people. When production increases, prices will go down. Who the hell is going to spend fifty bucks on a tiny clump of something they can get for a fraction of that price legally at a farmers market with no middleman? Well, some policemen might lose their jobs. Big freaking deal, they can find another job! Hell, experience obtained on a police squad could translate well into many occupations in the private sector.

If you are truly concerned about drug trafficking and criminal activity related to drugs, then please take time to consider the causes for those things. Are adding more cops on the street, more space in the prisons, and more money in drug-enforcement programs really the ways to go?