I'm with the druggies on this one. Why should I have to drive all the way to mexico and smuggle valium and percoset back across? If everything was OTC and taxed, the government could get the tax revenue, the demand wouldn't change, and the increased supply and competition would keep costs down. Everybody wins. (except the poor bastard who breaks into a GOP household at night)
...demand wouldn't change... ?? I believe demand would DECREASE since the incentive for pushers to lurk around elementary school playgrounds and give some product away to get new customers hooked would be gone.
I thought about that even as I was typing. Correct, demand cannot predictably decrease, unless we assume that the demand comes from the fact that whatever's illegal is what people want. You, and many others, have bemoaned the traditionalism that pervades our culture, and you cite it as a reason Bush won. Now, if you really believe that, you cannot turn around and claim that nonconformity dictates demand. That is, trying to have it both ways, or either way, whichever is convenient for the present argumentative purpose, is patently illogical. But, all that logic aside for the moment, you're probably right that some folks want to try stuff just because mommy and daddy say "no" Still, mommy and daddy are no less likely to say no to stuff like valium, percoset, dilaudid, morphine, etc., just because it becomes available over-the-counter. I don't think your argument will stand the test of objectivity. Or logic.