Before you all read this (TL:DR) I want to say that I think legalisation is more then a dream. Its a reality that will happen but only if we construct a campaign that is ambitious, massive in scale and that has a strong and charismatic leader. Look at all the major movements of the last 200 years. At present the drug reform movement is no where close to say the size or power of the Womens suffrage or even the Gay & Lesbian movement of the 1970/80s in Australia.
Above all though we would have to stop hiding from the anonymity of the internet. We would have to face our parents, partners, children, siblings, colleagues, peers and employers in admitting that we like and use drugs, hard drugs even. I dare say this would be the hardest thing of all. I am also concerned that our opponents would use the DoCS to have some of us cast as unfit parents (because of our drug use) and it wouldn't be difficult to see the forces of evil taking our children away due to our fight.
^ Also might change the numbers of people employed in processing those people. Police, Lawyers, Judges, Corrective Services Staff. Either that or they or they could spend more time focussing on violent crime like they probably should be. ?
I think the big problem with any of the numbers arguments is they're (especially mine) not worth the paper they're written on. We need a structured, funded organisation with professional members who can run a political campaign on drug legalisation. A successful grassroots campaigns along side several sugar daddys would assist in creating a large paying membership where the fees collected could be used to create several key items that are absolutely required for a successful campaign. These being:
1. professional financial modelling on outcomes that legalisation would cause. The financial modelling would be done by a reputable accounting firm, say PWC or KPMG. We all know the numbers case would sell itself. However having a reputable firm behind the numbers would show our independence. This would though force us to accept any negative result the numbers work may result in.
2. Employing several law firms, alongside the Law Reform Commission to draft the new Act of law, and the drafts of other legalisation like the 1910 NSW Crimes Act that would require significant amendment. See legalisation would require huge changes across state and federal laws. I dare say legalisation would require a referendum that would force the states to give up their rights with respects to criminalising drugs. This is also where we'd have to deal with the issue of people currently imprisoned under the unjust prohibition laws.
3. The grass root campaign would need to be backed by a massive media campaign. Hand written letters (nothing else will get a politicians attention), youtube and other internet media forums constantly utilised to spread the message. The other key require would be a constantly evolving and changing message. Keeping it fresh and moving would be difficult. This would most like be the most costly of all the requiments.
4. Significant research into the biology of drug use and addiction. See we need to build the case that drug use is not simply a dalliance, a option not the result of a biological imperative. See part of the reason why the suffrage campaign worked so well was the simple reason that you couldn't blame someone for being a woman. They were born that way and you couldn't discriminate on something that you clearly had no choice in. Drug use however is seen in a different light, a choice for the lazy. I for one believe that my drug use has a biological genetic reason to it. I've been using opiates since I was 13 years old (on a significant level) and I don't think that is normal. I think my brain has a need for opiates that simply cannot be fulfilled using natural means.
5. a detailed strength, weakness, opportunities and threat analysis. We would need to identify our opponents and, without defaming them, make it clear to the public that our opponents are greedy, evil, selfish individuals who would rather see your brother or sister die of an overdose or alcohol related illness than to see drugs legalised.
6. We need to gather organisation that have the same or similar aim (but who may already have political patronage) and steal them from the major parties. We need to threat the major parties and attack them aggressively at their wallets. This will be crucial when the legislation finally hits the negotiation phase. What is dropped / included will be based on how much leverage we have on them.
In fact I would say that if we achieved our aims one of our initial promises would be to deconstruct this political campign machines machine
7. Celebrity endorsement. I think this will be critical in developing a respectable campaign. And not just television stars. Lets get Stephen Hawking on the case.
Lastly and this is absolutely the key of all keys. We have to admit that
we like drugs and want to get high. The latest round of decriminilsation proponents all carefully stated that they all hated drugs but that decriminislation was a lesser evil.
We need to move away from that message. It is contradictory, it confuses people and is essentially equivocal. We need an unequivocal message and the one going out at the moment just isn't effective (or else drugs would be decriminalised).
The problem is that no one will admit to just plain up wanting and liking drugs, and wanting to them to be legalised simply because we want to get high. Though of course it has major ramifications not least with our own family's. I know my in-laws would never trust me with my daughter again irrespective of the facts, and that is something that we're all going to face if we finally put our faces to a proper campaign.
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i'll be coming back to edit this later. gotta go bed.
