Mexico- Legalizing Hard Drugs

[MissAva]

Hey I know many PSers do destination weddings, honeymoon and vacations in Mexico. Their house has passed a law allowing hard drugs to be used everything from Marijuana to heroin to crack cocaine. Their president was supposed to sign it, but then sent it back for revision. I thought I would mention this in case anyone is considering it as a possible spot for a travel destination. I know that I would not want to be there if they are going to allow such things.

 

[moon river]

That''s one way to cut down on crime.

 

[indecisive]

They aren''t legalizing it they are decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of the drugs and making the punishments stricter for people that are caught with larger amounts (drug traffickers)

 

[Angela1977]

I think this is a superb idea...the U.S. should take note. What''s the point of putting an 18 year old kid in jail for one joint? All of the costs and the legal fees...completely ridiculous. And it''s not exactly preventing this "crime"...jeez. GO MEXICO!!!

 

[MissAva]

Date: 5/4/2006 3:02:07 PM
Author: indecisive
They aren''t legalizing it they are decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of the drugs and making the punishments stricter for people that are caught with larger amounts (drug traffickers)

CNN- said it would be legal to take and use the drugs...that to me means trouble. They may have misspoke but I am not sure how else to interpret that.

 

[Angela1977]

Date: 5/4/2006 3:14:22 PM
Author: Matatora

Date: 5/4/2006 3:02:07 PM
Author: indecisive
They aren''t legalizing it they are decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of the drugs and making the punishments stricter for people that are caught with larger amounts (drug traffickers)

CNN- said it would be legal to take and use the drugs...that to me means trouble. They may have misspoke but I am not sure how else to interpret that.

And this is different from the drug use that''s currently going on how? (aside from you won''t spend a measly night in jail and take the taxpayers money for doing it...)

 

[indecisive]

"Mexican legislation decriminalizing possession of small amounts of cocaine, heroin and other drugs is designed to go after the "smaller groups of drug smugglers," former U.S. drug official Ana Maria Salazar said May 1. Salazar added that if President Vicente Fox signs the new law into effect, it will become easier to prosecute small-time street drug dealers and inhibit bribery within the court system. On April 28, the Mexican congress passed a bill allowing "consumers" to possess small quantities of several drugs and tightened restrictions on sales and trafficking of larger quantities."

I think it is pragmatic to tell you the truth. The "war" on drugs is just not working the way they are going about it. If you spend the majority of your recourses cracking down on people that are merely in the possession of a small amount of drugs that would only be enough to use themselves then you won''t have the recourses to go after the dealers and the traffickers who pose a more serious risk. I really could care less what individuals do on their own time but the crime associated with dealers and traffickers is what scares me. Why clog the system with people doing something that only hurts themselves? That is just how I feel about the issue though.

 

[movie zombie]

with you, angela.

movie zombie

 

[KittenKat]

Date: 5/4/2006 3:09:17 PM
Author: Angela1977
I think this is a superb idea...the U.S. should take note. What''s the point of putting an 18 year old kid in jail for one joint? All of the costs and the legal fees...completely ridiculous. And it''s not exactly preventing this ''crime''...jeez. GO MEXICO!!!

I agree with you...

 

[Demelza]

America''s "War on Drugs" is an absolute catastrophe. Clearly, the answer isn''t simply stiffer laws and more draconian penalties. Would anyone say don''t travel to Holland because the use of certain drugs has been decriminalized there? The number of addicts in Holland is low compared to the rest of Europe and the US perhaps in part because they focus on harm reduction and treatment rather than imprisonment. The reason Mexico is seen as dangerous is largely because of rampant poverty and abominable living conditions. Drugs can be understood in part as a side effect of poverty. I''m sure if I had to live in those conditions and work 14 hour days for a measly $5, I''d want to take drugs. I''d also probably do whatever I could to get out of the country and come to the US or Canada where there is at least some hope for a better life.

 

[Angela1977]

Oh, yeah. Been to the Netherlands...lovely place, lovely people, decriminalized drugs. (cheap diamonds too...this is Pricescope

)

 

[movie zombie]

yes, very lovely and civilized, the netherlands. much more grown up about the world in general.

movie zombie

 

[cinnabar]

Well, so much for that great plan ... following pressure from the US, including the Mayor of San Diego, Fox has done a u-turn today and said he wants personal drug use to remain criminal.

I have to wonder if the conspiracy theorists are right, and the Powers That Be do actually run the drug cartels.

 

[Angela1977]

This makes me so mad...
I wonder how many parties threatened high ranking officials in Mexico to defeat this...unbelievable.

 

[indecisive]

Ridiculous

 

[mrssalvo]

another reason we need to do so much more to protect our borders. Mexico is corrupt. You surely don''t see millions of Canadian''s trying to get here.

 

[Demelza]

Date: 5/5/2006 4:17:41 PM
Author: mrssalvo
another reason we need to do so much more to protect our borders. Mexico is corrupt. You surely don''t see millions of Canadian''s trying to get here.

With all due respect, Mrs. S, doesn''t this have to do with the fact that Canada is a first world country with plenty of resources to support its people? For the most part, the people of Mexico live in abominable conditions and often can''t afford to feed their families because they make $5 a day doing hard labor. Yes, the government of Mexico is indeed corrupt (as is ours, I''m sorry to say), but I really do believe that the reason people are coming over the borders in droves is simply a matter of survival. It''s a terrible problem, of course, but I do have great sympathy for their plight. As much as it would be nice to think that they should simply come over legally, that often takes education, money, resources, and a lot of time. When I immigrated to Canada, I was able to pay a lawyer $1500 to deal with the bureaucracy AND I was married to someone with Canadian citizenship. If I were coming from Mexico with no family in the US, no education, no knowledge of the language, or any financial resources, I''d be completely lost. I''m not trying to be argumentative, I just think it''s important to recognize the complexity of the issue.

 

[MissAva]

Date: 5/5/2006 4:17:41 PM
Author: mrssalvo
another reason we need to do so much more to protect our borders. Mexico is corrupt. You surely don''t see millions of Canadian''s trying to get here.

except for healthcare...

 

[mrssalvo]

Dem,
I totally understand what is going on and feel horrible for the people, and do not blame them. I would do the same thing. But in my opinion the US cannot keep absorbing millions of mexican''s each year, we just can''t. The US already accepts more imigrants legally each year than the rest of the world combined. I don''t want to stop immigration but feel the US gov''t has let us down for over 30 years and it''s time to secure the border. For our own protection, drug trafficing, our economy etc. No other country allows such easy access in. Not even Mexico. Just my .02

 

[soulsis]

Geez...I guess we''re vacationing in Mexico this year.

Hahaha

No, seriously. The drug laws are considerably messed up. In Canada, no one blinks an eye if you are smoking a joint. Meth, coke, speed, etc, are in a completely different catagory. The real problem is that there is too much stereotyping going on in society. Not everyone that tries pot turns into a drug dealer. They don''t all quit their jobs and turn into habitual thieves. Some of these people lead very real, regular lives with considerable responsibilities. The drug problem will never go away. We have to remain in our kids faces!

 

[Demelza]

Date: 5/5/2006 6:20:07 PM
Author: mrssalvo
Dem,

I totally understand what is going on and feel horrible for the people, and do not blame them. I would do the same thing. But in my opinion the US cannot keep absorbing millions of mexican''s each year, we just can''t. The US already accepts more imigrants legally each year than the rest of the world combined. I don''t want to stop immigration but feel the US gov''t has let us down for over 30 years and it''s time to secure the border. For our own protection, drug trafficing, our economy etc. No other country allows such easy access in. Not even Mexico. Just my .02

I completely understand what you''re saying. It''s a very difficult situation. Having lived in LA my whole life, it''s always been an issue at the fore of political debate. I wish there were an easy answer. I am so painfully disappointed in and disgusted with our current government, spending billions and billions of dollars on a war that is, IMHO, a disaster on all fronts when that money could have been so much better spent elsewhere. Sigh. I hope you didn''t feel like I was attacking you; that was not my intention.

 

[soulsis]

Ooh no. I didn''t feel threatened at all. It is a real problem. We have a lot of meth labs, crack houses, etc. It''s quite horrible. My fiance and I are pro-pot users. We participate in rallies, etc. I show up for work everyday, [ay the bills and take care of our kids. It is a shame that some people are narrow minded though. Canada is in the process of trying to decriminalize pot here as we speak. You can walk down the street smoking a joint and no one bats an eye. But jaywalking across the street will snap you a $500 ticket!

 

[mrssalvo]

Date: 5/5/2006 6:35:29 PM
Author: Demelza

Date: 5/5/2006 6:20:07 PM

Author: mrssalvo

Dem,


I totally understand what is going on and feel horrible for the people, and do not blame them. I would do the same thing. But in my opinion the US cannot keep absorbing millions of mexican''s each year, we just can''t. The US already accepts more imigrants legally each year than the rest of the world combined. I don''t want to stop immigration but feel the US gov''t has let us down for over 30 years and it''s time to secure the border. For our own protection, drug trafficing, our economy etc. No other country allows such easy access in. Not even Mexico. Just my .02

I completely understand what you''re saying. It''s a very difficult situation. Having lived in LA my whole life, it''s always been an issue at the fore of political debate. I wish there were an easy answer. I am so painfully disappointed in and disgusted with our current government, spending billions and billions of dollars on a war that is, IMHO, a disaster on all fronts when that money could have been so much better spent elsewhere. Sigh. I hope you didn''t feel like I was attacking you; that was not my intention.

oh I didn''t. I think the one thing that might bring American''s together is the dissatisfaction with our gov''t. Bush''s approval rating is low in both parties and the Congress'' approval rating even lower. American''s are getting fed up with politicians from both parties not looking out for us and our best interests

 

[Angela1977]

Date: 5/5/2006 4:07:51 PM
Author: SanDiegoLady

Until you lose someone to drugs in any way, shape or form, don''t tell me how it should be legalized.

I lost a very good friend to a heroin overdose. They were two blocks from the hospital, but his "friends" were too freaked out to take him there and he died at the age of 24. It was incredibly sad.

However, there is such a thing as personal responsibility. No one starts shooting heroin completely innocently. We all know the side-effects, and yet you make that conscious decision to put that needle in your arm. Sure there may be other circumstances in your life, but still, you made the call.

The point of all of this is I think traffickers should indeed be prosecuted. Mexico never said they weren''t going to. And if a kid has one joint on him, I don''t think he''s going to be parting with it to spread drugs to everyone he knows. Plenty of people have died from alcohol...more innocent are the victims who are killed by drunk drivers. I think if we''re looking to make something illegal, we''d be better served to take care of alcohol first. It''s socially accepted, and yet kills hundreds/thousands a year. Is this fair? (And yes, I drink) No, it''s political, pure and simple. I don''t care how nice of a man the mayor of San Diego is, he''s still a politician. He''s still lobbied by the police, the firemen, etc, and they don''t want the drugs across the border. There is pressure on him from the state govt as well as the federal govt, so to make it sound like he''s doing it for completely altruistic reasons isn''t feasible. I don''t think anyone would disagree that we don''t want traffickers in the country, but regardless of the legal stance in Mexico, small quantities are going to be out there and they''re going to make it across the border. This law isn''t designed to make drugs legal and encourage use. This is making the use that is out there, in small quantities, not illegal. That''s all. I doubt this law would have any real effect at all, but people are freaking out and making a huge deal out of it.

Personally, I''d like to know honestly how many of the drugs that are in the United States actually come from Mexico? I''m sure it''s a lot, but making it illegal for someone to have a bump of coke isn''t going to do anyone any good, and will just clog the justice system. People hear the word "drugs" and tend to freak out...