World cocaine market 'in retreat'

[lazymanc]

Dunno if anyone saw this story yesterday: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8044275.stm

If you can't be ar**d to read the article the gist is, due to various seizures etc by the Serious Organized Crime Agency (SOCA), the price of wholesale cocaine has increased from £39,000 to £45,000 a kilo. SOCA are making a song and dance about this as if it's a big win for them.

It also goes on to say that this has not had an effect on street prices because the dealers just cut what they have with more cutting agents (which include insecticide and rat poison!). This also means that the dealers either make the same money they always have, or in some cases more because the dependant users have to buy more to get the same effect.

Making the street level product less-pure makes it more dangerous to take due to the nasty crap they cut it with, so the end result will more than likely be more drug-related deaths.

For me this is just absolutely crazy - it's costing a huge amount of money (£400 million in the 3 years since it was formed) to run this agency, but it's had zero effect on demand, and every person they lock up is replaced by a dozen other dealers.

Is it time to accept that this so called "war on drugs" is a completely un-winable and pointless charade?

[G]

Perhaps the goverment should secretely release a massive batch of the seized drugs with something worse than pesticide and rat poisen mixed into it..........no more customers = problem solved.

What is this "cocaine" of which you speak? Is it as good as beer?

no and i put it simply as this how would you feel if someone was selling "legal" drugs across the road from your kids school

Originally Posted by davepreston

no and i put it simply as this how would you feel if someone was selling "legal" drugs across the road from your kids school

They do, it's called a pub or and off license or a supermarket.

[dizzyblonde]

It may be in retreat, but behind the scenes, they'll just be doing more to make the snow mountain bigger.

[Biker Biggles]

Originally Posted by davepreston

no and i put it simply as this how would you feel if someone was selling "legal" drugs across the road from your kids school

They already do.Theres a shop that sells baccy and drink.Not to mention chocolate which they can buy legally too.
Might be a way out of the economic crisis to legalise all drugs,regulate them and tax them.Would also negate the need to fight an unwinnable war in Afganistan as well.Cant say any of that though.

[Biker Biggles]

Beaten to it by Rigor.

Originally Posted by Biker Biggles

Might be a way out of the economic crisis to legalise all drugs,regulate them and tax them.

Until the NHS has to deal with the fall out.

[Biker Biggles]

Originally Posted by Jabba

Until the NHS has to deal with the fall out.

True,but the NHS already deals with the fall out.We just need to find a way to pay for it.