Tuesday, August 09, 2005
Libertarian Values
John Tierney, the op/ed columnist replacement for William Safire at the NYT, is becoming a voice of reason for many of us Republicans with basic libertarian leanings and who specifically believe we should be able to do what we want with our own bodies and who think that the government doesn't really help drug addicts by putting them in jail. Here is an example of Tierney's clear thinking.
Heart of the argument:
It's the same pattern observed during Prohibition, when illicit stills would blow up, and there was a rise in deaths from alcohol poisoning. Far from instilling virtue in Americans, Prohibition caused them to switch from beer and wine to hard liquor. Overall consumption of alcohol might even have increased.
Today we tolerate alcohol, even though it causes far more harm than illegal drugs, because we realize a ban would be futile, create more problems than it cured and deprive too many people of something they value.
Read the whole thing. Even if you have to register.
Heart of the argument:
It's the same pattern observed during Prohibition, when illicit stills would blow up, and there was a rise in deaths from alcohol poisoning. Far from instilling virtue in Americans, Prohibition caused them to switch from beer and wine to hard liquor. Overall consumption of alcohol might even have increased.
Today we tolerate alcohol, even though it causes far more harm than illegal drugs, because we realize a ban would be futile, create more problems than it cured and deprive too many people of something they value.
Read the whole thing. Even if you have to register.
# posted by Roger Fraley @ 7:45 AM 
