The Dirty Little Billion Dollar Secret

Mushroom, you feel strongly on the issue, and that's a good thing. But is it so personal, or your lifestyle too precarious, that you are not involved in changing things. What if a cop pulls you over for a busted tail light on day, and finds some 'makings'? You'll face at the very least a heavy fine and some community service. And in some places a life altering year or more behind bars, with a lifelong tag as a criminal when you get out.

I'm not saying you are not involved, for all I know you could be the head(sorry for that pun, sometimes I can't help myself) of a group fighting to change these laws. But there are so many in your position who do nothing. They just try to stay out of sight and hope it becomes better on it's own. But our nation will not get better unless we force it to.

I'm not a user of anything, and I am involved in all the areas where I think I can improve the world. I owe that much to my children and all who will walk this land after me.

One aspect of this drug war nonsense that almost always overlooked is the destruction of possibly quite valuable genes. Many "drugs" are derived from plant material or are simply plants that have been dried out or some such process. In fighting this war on drugs, we are forever removing precious genetic material from the face of the earth. Who are we to say that coca leaves or cannabis, etc. will never have any medicinal value? Clearly, these plants have pharmacological impacts. In vying endlessly to destroy these plants, we are, perhaps, destroying species that may hold keys to medical breakthroughs. I am obviously against the drug war, but if we are to continue down this path, we must make an effort to preserve the plants that we are eradicating. It would be a shame to destroy the cure for cancer just because one might be able to turn it onto some sort of street drug.

And if you're into ecology, take a look at all the spraying that's done in South America. To cut down on the areas that are remote and the cops have a hard time reaching, widespread defoliation projects have been underway for years. How much deforestation is this causing? How much extra pollution? What is the damage to humans who live in the area?( Think Agent Orange.)

I'm sure that none of this is on real plants that are needed for the drug trade, because so far it hasn't made a dent in the flow. But it makes it look like they're trying. Still, the ecological damage is the same.