Portugal’s radical drugs policy is working (2017)

Post by e1g » Sun, Jul 14, 2019, 11:22 PM UTC

heavenlyblue wrote: post #133

e1g wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s an interesting question. For example, gender-at-birth should be evenly distributed, but in wealthy families kids skew towards male much more frequently than expected. As another factor, some social structures and norms will make it more difficult for LGBTQ people to come out - even with identical odds, there will be less visibility and personal experience within those groups.

Do you have a link supporting this?

Post by crankylinuxuser » Mon, Jul 15, 2019, 12:04 AM UTC

greglindahl wrote: post #196

crankylinuxuser wrote: post #141

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In some states, sure. But where I live in Indiana, the strongly Republican state hates gay people (government and much of the citizenry). Remember that one of the cases in northern Indiana was the 'Gay Cake lawsuit'. Our state only allowed gay marriage because SCOTUS ajudicated it so. Also, the decision also affected me directly because women could legally change their name in marriage for free. But men doing so (I a…

The point that I'm getting at is that even in states where a majority dislikes gay people, there's not much of a move to abolish the 14th Amendment. People complain about "activist judges", and there's been one significant recall (Iowa), but that's it. FWIW California was about the same as Indiana in how marriage equality was achieved: a popular vote against followed by a court ruling for. It's popular now, but it wa…

Post by dixie_land » Mon, Jul 15, 2019, 12:32 AM UTC

briffle wrote: post #162

phil248 wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why would you arbitrarily exclude suicide from gun violence? Guns are a distinct problem because they make serious injury/death incredibly easy and simple. That's just as true for murder as it is for suicide, and in a world without guns both acts would have a far lower success rate.

In my state, they keep trying to ban 'assault style weapons' even though almost all gun crime and suicides are handguns... The last time they tried to define what an assault style weapon was, my Ruger 10/22 would have counted as one...

Post by crunchyfrog » Mon, Jul 15, 2019, 1:18 AM UTC

phil248 wrote: post #153

crunchyfrog wrote: post #101

I think drug addiction is really misunderstood and this leads to bad policy. The two popular narratives that drug addiction is a moral failing or a disease are both wrong. In some ways it is more simple than that: drug addiction is a coping mechanism. Most people who get addicted to drugs are using them to escape pain. This is occasionally physical but usually mental. It is memories of traumatic experiences or abuse,…

Using drugs to treat a physical addiction is first and foremost a "coping mechanism" for treating the physical addiction. When a serious alcoholic is puking themselves nearly to death as they try and get sober, they aren't trying to escape some childhood trauma or "stress". They are trying to escape a physical addiction that has already dramatically altered their mind and body and may possibly kill them. You may be c…

Post by GabrielBen » Mon, Jul 15, 2019, 1:29 AM UTC

jdavis703 wrote: post #57

achenatx wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I disagree, the problem is that status quo problems are "acceptable". If a politician legalizes drugs they become personally responsible for every death from those legal drugs.

Taken another way, would this mean if I pay taxes for a war I think is unjust I'm personally responsible for every death?