The Way to end Wars and Deaths in Mexico and Afghanistan

From time to time one may have across news of the huge number of deaths that take place in Mexico regularly over drug trading. It is like a war being fought within the country. We also hear frequently of wars fueled by illicit drug money in Afghanistan and elsewhere. There is a very simple solution to all these problems that can be implemented overnight.

The solution lies in decriminalizing the production, use and possession of heroin, cocaine marijuana, LSD and other illicit street drugs. Sale of such drugs may be permitted through pharmacies so that the same sort of control may be exercised as in the sale of other medicines, some that are equally dangerous. Such packets available from a chemist may be obliged to carry warnings, precautions and national help line numbers for addicts and others. The deaths and crime related to drugs will disappear overnight. In fact, with a similar move in USA these drug prices will crash so that it will no longer remain a lucrative profession for criminals. A crash in drug prices will destroy the funding of the Tailban fighters too. The Afghan taliban war is a ridiculous thing in any case. A significant proportion of Afghans are potential Talibans if not actual ones and USA cannot possibly convert or kill them all . The sooner they pack their bags and leave Afghanistanis to their own devices the better it will be for everyone concerned. The Afghans are a fiercely proud people that just do not like foreign interference and they have demonstrated that time and again through history.

In the opinion of this author both the Mexican war and American war are easily avoidable great tragedies.

Decriminalizing drugs was implemented in Portugal ten years ago. Since then the number of deaths from drug overdoses as well as needle infected cases of HIV have dropped dramatically in Portugal. Mexico and USA need to learn from Portugal and go further. Drug use does not go up significantly by decriminalizing it. In fact some of these drugs have been around for centuries. They only became a serious problem in human societies recently after their use became a criminal thing. It is time to recognize the folly of such laws.

The money spent on fighting drug crimes can then be spent on public education programs that educate the public about the adverse impact of drugs and for funding de-addiction centers as in Portugal. Is Mexico listening, dying or sleeping?