Quote from nutmeg:
Theodore Dalrymple is a renowned crusty old misanthropic, alcoholic, lawful-evil professional troll who delights in making absurd arguments on the off chance that some moron might actually buy into his disgusting campaign of misinformation.
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Well, I'm that is cleared up.
With all due respect, how are you different?
You've made the point of attacking the character of the author rather than the content of the article.
You are the one who wants the system to change. Nothing will change attacking the author.
The system will change once sufficient countries for sufficient time have a policy of medical, not criminal treatment of drug addicts. The obvious and undeniable successes resulting from this more enlightened policy will save so much money, reduce crime so much, and rehabilitate so many people, with so little negative consequences, that eventually only socially backward societies will be able to hold out for decades with a criminalisation/prohibition approach.
Once most if not all of the civilised world has adopted that approach and the benefits are universally acknowledged, then thanks to the wonders of the internet, we will be able to come back and look at the ET archives/google cache and laugh uproariously at reactionary ignoramuses like vhehn, and chuckle loudly at how completely wrong they are. With a bit of luck, he might actually still be alive, in which he will say something like "Of course, things have changed now, and I could support limited decriminalisation, if it was properly regulated that is. In fact that was my position all along."
Really it is quite amusing how stick in the mud some people can be. Reading some posts here, it is apparent that some people *honestly believe* the drug prohibition is not only right, not only sensible, but *will actually last*. As a professional forecaster of the future, I can guarantee you that drug prohibition will go the way of alcohol prohibition eventually. People opposed to that progress are just social and intellectual dinosaurs who will go the way of the dodo. Just as mainstream reactionary society once supported flat-earthism, feudalism, the divine right of kings, alchemy, blood-letting, slavery, racism, sexism, homophobia, theocracy, and other totally irrational barbaric modes of thought and social oppression, so today's mainsteam support their own versions. It is really amazing how blinkered people can be, not seeing that they themselves are today's reactionaries, taking the ostrich approach to social progress. I am just thankful that this ossified, unimaginative, set in its ways thinking is also the main reason for your lifelong continual donations in the financial markets and other competitive fields, to my considerable personal benefit. Thank you.
