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May 18, 2013
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Portugal’s New Fix for Drug UsersPosted on Oct 8, 2007
Portugal is the latest European country to pick up on a growing trend of favoring therapy over jail for possession and use of small amounts of illegal drugs. Critics of the new law worry that Portugal will become a hot spot for foreign drug users, but supporters believe the law will shift the focus of the government’s anti-drug efforts from users to traffickers and will give addicts a better chance to get clean.
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By marta80, December 21, 2010 at 8:37 pm Link to this comment
the decision is bold, but it worth trying. the addicted person need a real help form the society, but a total collapse. they have at their hand even the internet, where they can find sites like [url=http://www.drug-rehab.org]http://www.drug-rehab.org[/url], to find help. i hope that the Portuguese Government.
Report thisBy karen32, March 11, 2009 at 1:10 pm Link to this comment
This trend is a more human trend, putting drug addicts in jail won’t help the situation and I am glad some countries realized this. I am expecting only best results from all these initiatives. The future will tell if I am right.
Report thisKarren, Substance Abuse counselor
By martin weiss, October 9, 2007 at 2:32 am Link to this comment
One more major thing.
Report thisPrice pressure on corn, which is in just about everything we eat, has doubled it’s price due to corn’s use in making ethanol. Mexicans can no longer afford tortillas! American food prices have doubled.
And corn-based ethanol is produced at a net energy loss. It takes more energy to make ethanol from corn than is produced in the ethanol. And corn needs good land, herbicides, pesticides, and expensive fertilizers. When the price of corn goes up, the price of fertilizers rises accordingly. Even though the price of corn has doubled, farmers aren’t making more money. The extra money is going to big corporations and fuel prices getting it grown and brought to market.
Legalizing hemp—industrial hemp—not hemp for smoking—would produce more fuel at lower prices and enable people to buy food for less money.
By martin weiss, October 9, 2007 at 2:04 am Link to this comment
Hemp would break the monopoly petroleum enjoys over fuel. Since Germany had no petrol, Diesel designed his engine to run on vegetable oils like hemp. Hemp oil is non-toxic, unlike petro-diesel, which is a carcinogen.
Report thisHemp grows on the most marginal land, without genetic modification, herbicides or fertilizers.
Pharmaceutical companies and tobacco companies cannot compete with a weed Gramma can grow in the back yard.
Once the oil is pressed out, the fiber makes excellent rope, cloth, and paper. The timber companies would be cut out of the market. The National Forest would not be cut to make toilet paper.
Terrorists would not get so much of our money. Those who profit from black market prices and kill for territory would be out of business. End of the multi-billion dollar “War On Drugs”. Thousands of non-violent drug offenders would be out of prison, and we would not be spending thirty thousand dollars a year each to imprison them.
So, legal hemp is opposed by drug dealers,
the prison industry,
oil companies,
Monsanto and Dow chemicals,
tobacco companies,
pharmaceutical companies,
herbicide and pesticide companies, timber companies, the cotton industry,
paper companies,
terrorists, Republicans,
and the CIA.
In spite of this opposition, millions know from personal experience that hemp is less harmful than alcohol, tobacco, or petroleum.
They would rather put people in jail and send money to terrorists and drug lords than legalize hemp.
By boggs, October 8, 2007 at 2:53 pm Link to this comment
We don’t seem to care if a person has been convicted ten times for DWI’s.
Report thisEven when they have been guilty of killing someone with their DWI. They are soon turned out to repeat the crime.
Our attitude changes drastically with cocaine or pot, even if the pot has been prescribed by a physician. These offenders will be locked away in prison cells and no rehabilitation offered.
We are so screwed up in our justice system.
By thomas billis, October 8, 2007 at 1:41 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)
Win Win for Portugal.Rich American drug users vacation there and they save the money that would be spent on prosecution and imprisonment.Their arguements ring hollow.The end of the Netherlands as we know it because of legalizing of Marijuana as predicted by these same people is yet to happen.I hope Americans are taking note.
Report thisBy Leonel, October 8, 2007 at 1:38 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)
Drug prohibition does not work.
It is logically and morally untenable, particularly in our alcohol and pill-awashed western cultures.
Besides, pot kicks a$$.
Good for the portuguese! Next item, child poverty?
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