Opioid Deaths: Another Drug War Failure

by | Mar 20, 2017

Opioid Deaths: Another Drug War Failure

by | Mar 20, 2017

Illicit drug use is an old phenomenon, and Jeff Sessions has an old solution: take off the gloves. “We have too much of a tolerance for drug use,” the attorney general complained to an audience of law enforcement officials Wednesday, promising more aggressive policing. “Our nation needs to say clearly once again that using drugs is bad,” he declared. “It will destroy your life.”

That claim will fall on a lot of deaf ears among the 100 million Americans who have used marijuana—most of whom found it did not destroy their lives and some of whom found it made their lives better.

He is right, though, that tolerance is rampant. A Gallup Poll last year showed that 60 percent of Americans think pot should be legalized for recreational use—as eight states and the District of Columbia have done. Medical marijuana is allowed in 28 states and D.C. But in his prepared remarks, Sessions insisted cannabis is “only slightly less awful” than heroin.

Steve Chapman

Steve Chapman is a columnist and editorial writer for the Chicago Tribune.

View all posts

Our Books

Shop books published by the Libertarian Institute.

libetarian institute longsleeve shirt

Our Books

cb0cb1ef 3fcb 417d 80d8 4eef7bbd8290

Recent Articles

Recent

Our Meddling in Yemen Has Gone On Too Long

Our Meddling in Yemen Has Gone On Too Long

Since the middle of March, the United States has launched extensive air and naval strikes targeting Houthi installations across Yemen. These strikes killed at least 53 people, including Houthi leaders, and injured many others. The strikes were ostensibly aimed at...

read more

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This