perfidy

From Reason comes this mind-bending story by Jacob Sullum: Forest Tennant has spoken out against the War On Drugs-- the war he helped start.

[W]hen the folks at the Hoover Institution who produce the PBS show Uncommon Knowledge were looking for someone to debate drug policy with me, Tennant must have seemed like a natural choice.

Imagine their surprise when he ended up agreeing that the war on drugs has been a disastrous mistake. To be sure, Tennant is not completely comfortable with the idea of treating all psychoactive substances the way we treat alcohol. Among other things, he worries about underage access and legal liability issues.

But Tennant concedes that only a small percentage of drug users become addicted, that the drug laws are not very effective at preventing abuse, and that any increase in addiction that follows the repeal of prohibition is apt to be small. Equally important, he has come to realize after decades of dealing with addiction that the war on drugs imposes tremendous costs in exchange for its dubious benefits. . . .

Sullum also notes that other old-school drug warriors are coming around to the side of cautious legalization. This is very encouraging. Maybe in a decade or two we'll begin to see actual changes in drug policy, with attendant beneficial effects for our society, economy, foreign policy, civil liberties, and ability to smoke a giant fatty while watching a Mel Brooks film festival.