Maastricht bans cannabis coffee-shop tourists

[CaptainHaplo]

Originally Posted by Vendor

City authorities say drug tourists pose a threat to public order.

Get rid of the drugs and you would solve the problem. Guess that makes too much sense.

[Thomen]

Originally Posted by CaptainHaplo

Get rid of the drugs and you would solve the problem. Guess that makes too much sense.

Yea.. right.
We see how well that works in the US..

[Morts]

Originally Posted by Thomen

Yea.. right.
We see how well that works in the US..

Prohibition ?

[CaptainHaplo]

The vast amount of drugs used in the US come from outside the country. Why do you think there is such resistance to truly securing the borders? You surely didn't think it was all about immigration, did you?

The "war on drugs" in the US has been one of the biggest and longest running jokes in our history. Ranks right up there with the "war on poverty".

You want to stop drug use - you cut off all the supply.

[Gerald]

"You cut off all the supply"...no easy task but a very good option.

[MothBalls]

Originally Posted by CaptainHaplo

You want to stop drug use - you cut off all the supply.

I disagree.

You create the supply yourself and control it.

In the US we should give away free heroin, meth, and all of the addictive drugs that make junkies commit crimes. In exchange for getting it free, they have to attend short [10 minute] lectures on rehab, offer them help to kick the habit, and help them take control. Bottom line is a junkie is going to be a junkie until he/she decides to stop. Until they make that choice, give em the crap they need without forcing them into prostitution or other criminal activity that preys on society.

Then legalize and tax the crap out of recreational drugs like pot. Make is a legitimate crop, legal to import and put tariffs on. Control it like alcohol.

Then we wouldn't have drug cartels terrorizing border towns. They'd go broke. It would take all of the drug money out of the hands of organized crime and could then be controlled and possibly slowly eliminated.

[Penguin]

If they close the legal market, the black market will rise again, with all it's problems: bad weed, sale of hard drugs, crime, etc... There won't be one marijuana consumer less.

A drug free society is an utopia. The war on drugs is no war, as wars can be won. The Netherlands had a pretty good model.
Interestingly enough the percentage of pot smokers in the Netherlands is lower than in its neighboring countries - also the percentage of juveniles who smoke pot - maybe the attraction of forbidden fruits is not there.

Regarding the US: I find Alaska's handling of the issue pretty good and pragmatic - yeah, those damned liberal blue states!

Originally Posted by Egan

The Belgian/German exemption seems odd. Considering that the vast majority of drug tourists in Maastricht are going to be day trippers from either of these countries, why bother putting through legislation if you're then going to exempt 95% of the people who would be hit by it?

I heard it a week ago, when a friend told me that a coffee shop owner in Maastricht told him that they will continue to sell to Germans but not to the French, couldn't believe it first.
The plans were first to sell only to Dutch, I wonder why they made the exceptions, hard to say how big the economical influence of the coffee shop owners is. My guess is that it could be also a proposal by the police, as they are very pragmatic over there and have certainly better things to do than arresting people with small amounts of weed.

[Gerald]

For God's sake let the Germans have some fun on the weekends...

[CaptainHaplo]

Originally Posted by MothBalls

I disagree.

You create the supply yourself and control it.

In the US we should give away free heroin, meth, and all of the addictive drugs that make junkies commit crimes. In exchange for getting it free, they have to attend short [10 minute] lectures on rehab, offer them help to kick the habit, and help them take control. Bottom line is a junkie is going to be a junkie until he/she decides to stop. Until they make that choice, give em the crap they need without forcing them into prostitution or other criminal activity that preys on society.

Then legalize and tax the crap out of recreational drugs like pot. Make is a legitimate crop, legal to import and put tariffs on. Control it like alcohol.

Then we wouldn't have drug cartels terrorizing border towns. They'd go broke. It would take all of the drug money out of the hands of organized crime and could then be controlled and possibly slowly eliminated.

The problem with that idea is that yoru subsidizing bad habits. So what happens with the kid who is 14 now walks into the "clinic" at 18 and wants to have a hit.... You legalize it - your going to never end the problem.

Lock down the borders where the stuff can't come in - and the supply inside the country will dry up. Can't shoot what you don't have.

I am not talking about pot here - we are talking the serious stuff.Its just like meth - most states now track sales of stuff like cold medicine that can make it. Take away the ingredients (or in the case of other drugs - the finished product prior to shipment) and the problem eases.

You can either fight the problem - or "accept" it. Acceptance means its never going away...

[NeonSamurai]

Originally Posted by CaptainHaplo

The problem with that idea is that yoru subsidizing bad habits. So what happens with the kid who is 14 now walks into the "clinic" at 18 and wants to have a hit.... You legalize it - your going to never end the problem.

Lock down the borders where the stuff can't come in - and the supply inside the country will dry up. Can't shoot what you don't have.

I am not talking about pot here - we are talking the serious stuff.Its just like meth - most states now track sales of stuff like cold medicine that can make it. Take away the ingredients (or in the case of other drugs - the finished product prior to shipment) and the problem eases.

You can either fight the problem - or "accept" it. Acceptance means its never going away...

Interestingly enough though, what you suggest does not match up well with the reality in countries which have legalized the stuff.

Also the concept of locking up all the boarders is absurd, and impossible. You can't possibly stop all traffic inside the country, and if you tried you would seriously disrupt all trade too (which is the main way drugs enter the country). Plus all you end up doing is jacking up the street price which just increases the amount of crime and associated problems, not to mention risk to the users. Lastly if you could block off sources outside the country, people will just make the stuff inside the country. As for tracking stuff like cold medicine, hate to break it to you, but that will just stop the small time manufacturers who get their stuff from pharmacies, it won't slow down the big boys (who will own the companies that make the stuff). Generally criminal enterprises thrive the more difficult it is to get something, as they make far more money that way. One of the cocaine cartels for example almost went out of business, as they got too good at smuggling large quantities and flooded the market so badly the street price dropped below their costs.

You can't fight the problem that way, it is just logistically and financially impossible. The problem also will never go away either, there will always be a segment of the population who will do this (just like they abuse alcohol).

[gimpy117]

[Gerald]

Originally Posted by gimpy117

[Jimbuna]

[jumpy]

Originally Posted by Vendor

I'm more of an 'all things in moderation' kind of guy.

[Gerald]

Deal with different drugs, that abound in the market is obviously the ideal ... but a utopia, unfortunately,