Call off War on Drugs

Via Tom Woods. Guatemala President calls off the War on Drugs:

“I believe western countries fail to understand the reality that countries such as Guatemala and those of Central America have to live in,” said Otto Pérez Molina in a recent interview. “There has been plenty of talk, but no effective response. I believe, ultimately, that this is due to a lack of understanding on the part of western countries.”

He continued: “There is going to be a change away from the paradigm of prohibitionism and the war against drugs, and there is going to be a process that will take us towards regulation. So I would expect a more flexible and more open position from President Obama in his second term.”

It is hard to disagree that the so-called War on Drugs has been a complete and utter failure. So far we have spent billions if not trillions of dollars trying to beat the drugs. Results? The drug use is rampant amongst the wider community from teenagers to politicians, to law enforcement officers. So far it has been a huge waste of time and money with very little to show for it. Why not simply acknowledge the failure and try something else?