Bruce Hanson has written a thought provoking and perhaps controversial piece for The New Media Journal regarding the illicit drug trade in the US.
Hanson contends that the efforts of George W. Bush to implement covert surveilance on the population and the backlash it has caused is evidence of its success in curbing the illicit drug trade.
“Is it possible that much of the political rhetoric about eavesdropping, the President breaking the law, civil rights being violated, and demands made to limit the executive branch powers, are just drug users whining and the illicit drug industry speaking out, via their lobby?”
He goes on to compare the illegal trade in narcotics to the US brewery industry in that the brewery industry would never tolerate a governmental attack on their market and as such, neither would the “drug lobby” - perhaps a rather provocative point to be making (especially for those working in the brewery industry!)
He also makes the argument that the illicit drug trade is responsible for the funding of terrorist organisations, which is perhaps a slightly less controversial route to take.
While Hanson’s points may or may not be defensible, they have certainly drawn some ire on the internet with Pete Guither taking strong exception in drafting his response - “An Idiot-Eye View of the Black Market.”
Hanson’s article can be viewed online at The New Media Journal.
Pete Guither’s response can be viewed at the Drug War Rant.
Technorati Tags: war on drugs, drugs, GWB