Mexico is thinking about legalizing narcotics. Good or bad idea?

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   melporposted 14 years ago

   Mexico is seeking new ways to end years of violence due to the illegal drug activities in the country.  Mexico is waiting to see if Californians approve an initiative on Nov. 2 to legalize marijuana for recreational use in their state. If Californians vote yes on this Mexico may do the same thing for drugs in their country to bring the violence under control there.

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      Evan G Rogersposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      fantastic idea.
      
      It'll open up competition and skyrocket supply - thus prices will plummet. Drug kingpins will starve.
      
      If only america would follow suit.

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         Don Wposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Wow. Good to see we can always rely on the conscience of the 'invisible hand'.

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            mega1posted 14 years agoin reply to this

            what the heck does that mean?

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         ceciliabeltranposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         agree. if its legal, then it will be regulated. You can't fight em, make money out of them. It is already a problem but if becomes a system, the outlaws will be forced to make money elsewhere.
         
         
         although in america i don't think that's a good idea.

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      Ben Evansposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      If Mexico legalizes drugs, it wont have a lot of impact on the violence and for practical matters the Mexican mob enjoys the government's inability to enforce the laws. 
      
      Most of the drugs are bound for the US.  The laws in the US will have a more causal relationship to the violence than would the laws in Mexico.

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         The Smiling Manposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Or the violence may spill into the U.S.

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      lady_love158posted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Great Idea! It worked in Portugal!

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      drbillfanninposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Dumb idea. That won't solve anything. The crime in Mexico is over the trafficking. They all want the money. They will still fight over territory. Idiots.

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         drbillfanninposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Idiots, being the Mexicans that think that will actually work.

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            The Smiling Manposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            Those silly Mexicans. Don't they realize that the junkie, drug addicted Americans will pay any price for their next fix?

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      Texasbetaposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      There appears to be only 2 tactics that would work to combat the civil war going on in Mexico via the drug cartels: troops or legalizing pot. The vast majority of the product they supply is pot. Meth is made here; coke hasn't got the demand to fund them near their current level is the product already has several pipelines that don't involve Mexico and heroin has never come through there. Their power is in pot. We legalize pot, we cut their power within a month.  They will still have lots of weapons, and be pretty pissed off, but soon after they go broke. We all know it is ridiculous to outlaw pot and legalize alcohol, so enact the same rules on pot, tax it, and have a much less tense society.

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      dutchman1951posted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Think a bit deeper texas;
      
      The Cartels already control the Police, and some of the Press, and they produce nothing for a sustained national income, so it seems destined to happen.
      
      California's proposed economic plan to grow and sell it as a cash crop may get some Southern competition...watch out..!     
      
      Hey, I wounder if we could call it a commodity , put it on the exchange!
      
      ah-capitolism!    lmao

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      IntimatEvolutionposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Didn't England legalize heroin at one time, in which it ended up backfiring in their face? 
      
      Whatever the case, I think they should really investigated this decision by looking at other countries who've tried and failed, or who've tried this policy and had positive results.

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   Menso El Reyposted 14 years ago

   I agree. Legalise it or continue to kill people needlessly.

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   kerrygposted 14 years ago

   I'm not sure how much good it will do, since they'll still be illegal in the US and that's where most drugs are sold. The cartels are mostly fighting to control supply lines into the US, not within Mexico.
   
   Now if the US legalized them, that would make a tremendous difference. Personally, I think we should. If people want to destroy their lives, that's their own business, as long as they do it in the privacy of their homes and don't hurt anyone else because if it. Even if they do hurt someone else while high, we already have laws covering that, so I don't see why we need additional laws making the drugs illegal too. Enforcement of drug laws is extremely inconsistent and frequently racist anyway.

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   schoolgirlforrealposted 14 years ago

   good if u want to visit and smoke grass :-)

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   SomewayOuttaHereposted 14 years ago

   ...is Mexico wanting to legalize narcotics or marijuana....there is a distinct difference....i think Mexico's drug wars are about a few narcotics like meth, cocaine and heroin....and then they also trade in marijuana.

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      Texasbetaposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      You are wrong man. They primarily trade in marijuana. Meth is an American made drug. Go to Texas or Arizona, or well...basically any southern state. Coke's pipeline has been through Miami and the control of the product has never had anything to do with Mexico. They cannot maintain their levels on heroin and let's not forget...that comes from the middle east. It comes through Canada.

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         Ralph Deedsposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         80 percent of the meth comes into the U.S. from big meth labs in Mexico (2007) according to Wikipedia.

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   Evan G Rogersposted 14 years ago

   let's think this through.
   
   Why does a king pin need to rely on violence?  The answer is so blatantly obvious that it is often ignored.
   
   It's because he can't rely any legitimate business/police force to enforce his property rights? the book "Gang Leader for a Day" discussed this: If you can't get a legitimate court system (private or public) to protect your drugs, then you have to protect it on your own.
   
   Why are drug prices so high? once again, it's blatantly obvious and so it goes ignored!
   
   To get drugs to the customers, the "criminals" ("heroes" in my book) need to 1) protect their drugs with their own inefficient means, 2) hide the drugs from the law, and also bribe officials.
   
   The third reason is also obvious: you can't have a 50 acre farm dedicated to marijuana if someone (the government) will simply claim the right to burn it!  Thus supply is restricted and prices soar.
   
   Why do drug addicts resort to crime?
   
   Well, one reason is because of the altered state of mind, undoubtedly. But the main reason is because of the high prices of the drug in question. They can't afford to keep up the "habit", so they need to resort to theft! you don't see rich addicts breaking into people's houses for pawn-shop-money... Because they can afford it!
   
   What do ALL of these situations have in common?
   
   They are ALL symptoms of tyranny. Legalize the drugs, and let the people make their own decisions. Prices will plummet, petty theft will follow, and so will dangerous crime.
   
   Search your rational thoughts, you know it to be true.

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      Texasbetaposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Dude, where did you get that drug prices are high? In Seattle they are high, but in the rest of the country, they are pretty cheap now days bro. Secondly, you don't appear to be aware how much of the population does illegal drugs on a semi-regular basis. Most, and I mean the VAST majority don't resort to crime. That is ridiculous. A few here and there, but then again, a few here and there of every category of person resorts to crime. Don't believe the after school specials Evan. Basically, your rationale here is based upon misconceptions.

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      Texasbetaposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Wait, you are applying basic supply and demand to a field you don't understand. Drug lords rely on violence because it is an effective means of control. When he didn't have any property, he was using the same method. This isn't about high school economics or the last class you had at OSU. This isn't simply about his property rights. Have you spent any time dealing with drug people at all bro?

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   kephriraposted 14 years ago

   I definitely think that they should legalize it, but people are right to say that it won't help with the problem of gangs whose business is trafficking.
   
   In Holland they are now toughening up their legalisation of cannabis to make the places that sell it members only establishments for dutch citizens only. That's because although it worked in taking the criminals out of the domestic market, they have had significant problems with crime from drug related tourism and have actually seen a rise in illegal trafficking from Holland into other countries rather than a drop.

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   cathylynn99posted 14 years ago

   i'm almost a tea-totaller, but i agree totally with legalizing recreational drugs anywhere and every where. taxing and regulating them would be a boon to users and non-users.

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   Ralph Deedsposted 14 years ago

   I would support legalizing marijuana on both sides of the border as a first step. It wouldn't eliminate the violence but it might reduce it, and let the authorities on both sides of the border concentrate on more harmful drugs.

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