War on Drugs

How the war on drugs contributed to Philip Seymour Hoffman's death and the deaths of so many others.

"The first is that owning, selling, and buying heroin is prohibited by the state and such activities carry heavy penalties. This causes a multitude of distortions in its production, distribution, and consumption. For the economist then, heroin is not in its normal state. "
"Another implication is that prohibition is not effective. North Korea can conceal its own failures, but open societies cannot. Prohibition might discourage some potential consumers, but would those same consumers commit harm to themselves or others in the absence of prohibition? Most would not. In other words, while the drug war forces addicts and casual users to rely on unlabeled, black market (and possibly tampered-with) products for their fix, would drug users in a free market turn to such dangerous products? It’s unlikely. We do know that in the face of prohibition, many users turn to using alcohol and prescription drugs for off-label recreational uses that can cause harm that is similar or even worse than those caused by prohibited drugs.
There is simply no evidence that prohibition generates any socially desirable benefits, but there is ample evidence of its costs and destruction."

People should learn the lessons of the official Prohibition.