... James:

>> Why do you think the lowlifes are going to get
>> a job to earn money to buy the "legal" drugs.

I don't. I was a prosecutor for 10 years and did criminal defense work for another 12 or so and I have no illusions about what the lowlives of the world are going to do. However, this is the key point:

>> Maybe they won't have to steal as much ...

... and is the reason for my statement that:

>>>> ... most of property crimes committed
>>>> to obtain drug money would no longer occur.

Because they are illegal, street drugs generally cost 10 to 100 times their real value if legal (not counting whatever "sin tax" government might choose to impose on them). Thus, drug addicts would have to steal only 1/10th to 1/100th as much of other people's stuff as they do now to support their habits.

>> ... but it is not going to change their attitude towards private
>> property, or life in general, or the value of YOUR life specifically.

For hard core criminals, this is undoubtedly true. The losers of society will, for the most part, remain losers. But, how often do you hear of someone committing an armed robbery or a residential burglary to obtain money to buy alcohol or tobacco? Or of a drive by shooting in a turf war over cigarette or beer sales?

It is the financial need that drives the serious property crimes, not the drug use or addiction itself.

Remember that it was prohibition, more than anything else, which provided fertile ground for the creation of organized crime in the United States. The current drug laws have similarly motivated the modern day creation of drug cartels, drug gangs and all of the crime that goes with them.

I stand by my opinion, formulated after years of seeing the problem up close and interviewing, examining and cross-examining literally thousands of crooks, many of whom were motivated in their criminal activities by either the need for money to buy drugs or the easy money to be had by selling them.

----- jim o\-S