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How the Plummeting Price of Cocaine Fueled the Nationwide Drop in Violent Crime

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Re: How the Plummeting Price of Cocaine Fueled the Nationwide Drop in Violent Crime

#81

Post by suivix »

orangecat wrote: post #79
liquidcool wrote: post #61

What I'm most curious about is what keeps the demand for drugs in the US so high? If the demand dropped off, so would the supply, prices, and number of criminals. I recognize that I'm a deviant on the other side - I abstain from drugs, alcohol, and smoking. A bias for optimum brain, liver, and lung capacity/health seems like the rational choice. So why do so many forgo that? More pointedly, why do more Americans forg…

I recognize that I'm a deviant on the other side - I abstain from drugs, alcohol, and smoking. Same here and for similar reasons (although I still strongly oppose the WOD). But at least with alcohol, I'm pretty sure the optimal amount isn't zero in our current society. Not drinking has definitely interfered with my social development, which wasn't great to begin with. I don't plan to start now--among other reasons I…

If abstaining from something secludes you from your peers, then the abstinence likely would have a larger negative effect.

That said, in college I did go out drinking with friends quite often. Just because that's what everyone did, and it was fun. My best memories are from then.

Re: How the Plummeting Price of Cocaine Fueled the Nationwide Drop in Violent Crime

#82

Post by dfc »

feralchimp wrote: post #42
powertower wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ending the WoD? That's only what, about one-third to one-half of all law enforcement (and the prison system)? Do you realize how many jobs there are at stake here. Of course I've got my tongue in my cheek, but you do see the problem with the problem of ending the war on drugs?

It's going to take a lot of LEOs to guard the Manhattan Project weed/coke/heroin territories we instantiate in states that begin with the letter 'I' or 'N'.

"Territories we instantiate in states"? What are you talking about?

What is with the first person plural? The only way "we" are doing this is at a national level. On the other hand individual states could decide for themselves (assuming they can get around federal jurisdiction) but they would certainly not have it done to them.

I will skip over the "instantiate" word choice...

Re: How the Plummeting Price of Cocaine Fueled the Nationwide Drop in Violent Crime

#85

Post by MichaelApproved »

powertower wrote: post #32
feralchimp wrote: post #28

The most interesting point in this article (for me) was the argument that disruptive market pressure from methamphetamine (in particular, low barrier to entry on the production side) didn't just show "War on Drugs" activity to be ineffective; it showed it to be orthogonal to meaningful consequences. Production by cartels outpacing interdiction by law enforcement isn't nearly as convincing as an argument for ending Wo…

Ending the WoD? That's only what, about one-third to one-half of all law enforcement (and the prison system)? Do you realize how many jobs there are at stake here. Of course I've got my tongue in my cheek, but you do see the problem with the problem of ending the war on drugs?

Theirs a similar problem with putting in a flat tax. You'll have lots of accountants and their employees being out of work.

Re: How the Plummeting Price of Cocaine Fueled the Nationwide Drop in Violent Crime

#86

Post by redwood »

angrycoder wrote: post #71
liquidcool wrote: post #61

What I'm most curious about is what keeps the demand for drugs in the US so high? If the demand dropped off, so would the supply, prices, and number of criminals. I recognize that I'm a deviant on the other side - I abstain from drugs, alcohol, and smoking. A bias for optimum brain, liver, and lung capacity/health seems like the rational choice. So why do so many forgo that? More pointedly, why do more Americans forg…

Things that are bad for in the long run are a whole lot of fun immediately. Also, those tv show you mentioned aren't creating reality. They mirror it.

Good point. In fact I think that those who abstain are often those who consume the most media into their adult years (what else are they doing while everyone is out having fun).

Re: How the Plummeting Price of Cocaine Fueled the Nationwide Drop in Violent Crime

#88

Post by liquidcool »

angrycoder wrote: post #71
liquidcool wrote: post #61

What I'm most curious about is what keeps the demand for drugs in the US so high? If the demand dropped off, so would the supply, prices, and number of criminals. I recognize that I'm a deviant on the other side - I abstain from drugs, alcohol, and smoking. A bias for optimum brain, liver, and lung capacity/health seems like the rational choice. So why do so many forgo that? More pointedly, why do more Americans forg…

Things that are bad for in the long run are a whole lot of fun immediately. Also, those tv show you mentioned aren't creating reality. They mirror it.

My hunch is that's it's both - kind of a feedback loop. It shows a certain lifestyle of a highly select group, and those outside that group (viewers) want to emulate it.

Re: How the Plummeting Price of Cocaine Fueled the Nationwide Drop in Violent Crime

#89

Post by davidw »

brown9-2 wrote: post #55
davidw wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you play this game, you can stretch anything to be "on topic".

And what's wrong with that? "On topic" is anything that interests the group.

First of all, it's intellectually dishonest, if done the way you were doing it. It'd be more correct to simply say "no, it's about current events/politics, and that interests me".

However, there's something about that in the guidelines:

"Off-Topic: Most stories about politics, or crime".

Also, "anything that interests the group" is a terrible way to run a site like this, because eventually the group grows, and if you don't place limits, you'll start getting Ron Paul stories, taser stories, etc... etc...

Re: How the Plummeting Price of Cocaine Fueled the Nationwide Drop in Violent Crime

#90

Post by davidw »

GiraffeNecktie wrote: post #75
maximusprime wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a political article. It's toxic.

A political article that entirely avoids discussion of politicians and partisan politics and has only a tangential reference to public policy?

It's yet another drug article. As a bet, I'll buy you a nice bottle of wine and ship it from Italy if one of those hits the front page of the site without generating a "we should fix the problem by legalizing drugs" discussion.
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