The Fate of Drug Policy: Moving Forward?

[trancedance777]

A thought just occurred to me about current governmental drug policy. In the period up until about 1950 or so, drugs have continually fallen in their social acceptance, and therefore laws and regulations have increased. the majority of "citizen elected" political figures will make decisions based off of a general public view, just as long as they are re-elected. Anyway, what i see happening as a result of this trend of "majority safeguarding" is a weakening and possible elimination of many parts of drug policy. Here is how i figure: The policy of the country now is dependent on a group of individuals raised mainly between 1920-1950, or an average age of between 50-70 years. These were youth who were taught that touching a woman while dancing was the lure of the devil. and, what we learn as youth stays with us the strongest throughout our lives, a proven fact by handfuls of medical authorities. If you want a reference pick up any copy of some parenting or health magazine. Naturally, these people arent going to warm to the idea of any drug resulting in any pleasurable effect for the user. They were robbed of pleasure, therefore we should. In the past 50 years though, it seems that drugs have only grown larger, both in use, variety, attention (positive and negative), and especially in the research field. (knowing what affects what, how it does it..ect) My point is this.. the general late teen to 20's + population at present seems to have a LARGE percentage of drug users, a nice percentage of those who are educated about it, and an almost TOTAL acceptance of drugs in our society. When i graduated from high school, not only did 84% of the 3,000 + students in our school try "some illegal substance" (not alcohol either) in the past year, but a whopping 95% of the non users said they "didnt mind being around others who used" ( forgot how the survey exactly put it). When i saw the "afraid to dishonor my parents" valadictorian toke a J for the first time at a grad. party, I knew that our children had hope. What i think is that when our generation, or even the youth of the 70's or 80's, hits the political scene, slowly, but steadily, drug policy will begin to drop. If a society has certain collective views, even if they might seem "too taboo" to discuss, an inevitable transition will still take place. After the invent of TV and in decades after, would any adult have dare mentioned how 'they would pay anything to have a station where "I dream of Jeannie" (sp?) was really a show about two lesbian lovers on a 24/7 porn channel. No, of course not. But not a single man could deny that they would not prefer this station. And slowly, sometimes so slowly that the public forgets they even cared, the change will take place, just as playboy and adult channels have swarmed onto our tvs. It only seems to make sense that the upcoming generations will only improve current policy, because as the publics acceptance grows, the government follows, eventually... a long rant.. i know.. but i was bored.. and thought it made some sense to me at least....agreements or disagreements?
-if you run too fast, you'll get caught even quicker.

 

[PhreeX]

Oh, I am sure th9ngs will EVENTUALLY get better ... we are seeing marijuana legalized for various applications, so I think we will see *SOME* drugs decriminalized .. it's not going to happen overnight... I would say "get out and vote" but that doesn't accomplish anything...
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dot slash 0wn3d

 

[ILLUSION]

I think in the next couple of years marijuana will become legal for recreational use, like liqour. Its become sociably acceptable by people coming from all walks of life. But this doesnt make me that excited though, a country full of stoners. Legalization of any narcotics or amphetamines will probably never come due to the fact that many (irresponsible) people OD on them. But maybe the legaliztion of marijuana will increase our chances.

 

[dickthebeast]

in the next few years? Try about 2030-2050 before recreational use is legalized in the US. Non users (i.e. people who make our laws) are deathly afraid of drugs and think that anyone who uses them will end up robbing old women and banks in order to support their addiction. Although this is FAR from the truth, the old, stubborn people that run this country won't change their minds anytime soon. Pot will be about the only thing that is legalized in this century.

 

[starshine_seraphim]

yes, but trancedance's point was that right now the powers that be won't allow it..
however as we move forward and the current elected officials get old and die or leave office, over time they will be replaced by a younger generation that grew up in a time frame where it is MUCH more socially acceptable than it was in the 40's & 50's.
it's only a matter of time. . .

 

[estranged]

My parents generation, 40-50 year olds, born in the 50s and 60s are really only beginning to take control of our national government. Many congressman are in their 60s and 70s, as these older people leave their positions, they will most likely be replaced by 40-50 year olds.
Using my parents and their friends as examples, I have come to the conclusion that the children of the 60s and 70s in general accept drug use. Although the vast majority of them do not use illegal drugs, most of them do not disapprove of drug use. My own mother told me that she believes that drugs should be legal. Several friends of my parents smoke marijuana, and my non drug-user parents allow them to do so at parties held in my house.
Now what does all this mean? I think it is very likely that a majority of the 40-50 year old congressman deep down probably do not believe in the prohibition of drugs. Although many claim to support the criminalization of drugs, this is probably due in part to the pressure of the older congressman who have so much influence. As the older senators retire, the younger senators will feel less pressure to agree with their positions on drugs (and other issues for that matter) and things will begin to change to represent their true beliefs.