Do Americans (and others) who use illegal drugs have the blood of the victims of the drug trade on their hands, even though the substances’ very prohibition is a major reason for the spillage? Dr. Mark W. Hendrickson, an economist at Grove City College, believes so and has laid down a challenge to libertarians in particular who, while correct about the major reason behind the violence inherent in the illegal drug trade, believe that drug usage is a victimless crime.
In his recently-published article “Critiquing the Libertarian Drug-Legalization Argument” (bizarrely re-titled “Legalizing Death” on Frontpagemag.com), Dr. Hendrickson, starts off by laying out a pretty standard case for the legalization of drugs many aspects of which drug war opponents, particularly libertarians, could agree with:
- Everyone (or at a minimum, a mentally competent adult) owns their own body and thus should be able to choose what goes into it, even if others might not like it or think it wise. He would not, however, extend this to situations where its consumption may endanger others (for example, driving while impaired); this proviso would be open to debate amongst libertarians.
- The artificially inflated prices of drugs, due to prohibition, leads to opportunities for high profit margins. The result is an influx of criminal elements as well as corrupt law enforcement personnel.
- Taxpayers have to foot the very expensive bill for the incarceration of non-violent drug offenders.
- Internationally, the United States’ war on drugs hurts the livelihood of poor people as a result of various crop destruction programs. This can only alienate these citizens and open the door to anti-American politicians.
- It strengthens narcoterrorists and authoritarian authorities who are in league with them and weakens democratic governments; the level of violence is high as a result.
While Dr. Hendrickson, who identifies himself as a “free-market economist”, says he is not a “card-carrying libertarian”, he is sympathetic to the basic libertarian stance on the desired legal status of recreational drugs, with one major exception: drug usage being a victimless crimes.
Most, if not all, libertarians insist that drug usage is a victimless crime. It isn’t. In today’s world, its victims are legion. Whether they are innocent bystanders killed in gun battles between rival drug factions in American cities, or the thousands of South Americans who have been kidnapped, robbed, or murdered by the powerful drug cartels, any American who uses illegal drugs today has blood on his hands. I disagree when libertarians try to pin all the blame on Uncle Sam. Laws criminalizing drugs don’t drive drug prices into the stratosphere by themselves. The other factor is American demand for those drugs.If you want to work for the decriminalization of drugs, then do so; but until those drugs are legal, don’t tell me that you have a right to use them. If you choose to use illegal drugs, your choice is helping to kill people. This is not, and never will be, your right.
It’s a thought provoking one. I’ll have to go and do just that.
