Re:Drug Submarine Seized In Ecuador Is Huge Leap For Smugglers
by roel_v on Tuesday July 06, 2010 @09:11AM
(#1490839)
Your argument only holds if all poor people would switch to selling drugs. You're saying there is no alternative to selling drugs, which there obviously is, as demonstrated by the hundreds of millions of people worldwide who are poor yet do not sell drugs. If drugs are not illegal, those who are now selling drugs will simple have to do like the other poos people now.
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Re:Drug Submarine Seized In Ecuador Is Huge Leap For Smugglers
by shin_lao on Tuesday July 06, 2010 @10:45AM
(#1491102)
No, I'm saying that people who currently chose a life of crime would look for other criminal activities.
Re:Drug Submarine Seized In Ecuador Is Huge Leap For Smugglers
by roel_v on Tuesday July 06, 2010 @12:49PM
(#1491527)
Oh OK well I addressed that point two posts earlier. In short, most people who are now in the drug are not in a position to switch to other forms of crime. So overall the number of crimes and the number of criminals must go down. I have no data to back up any estimates onto how much, but I'd guess that something in the magnitude of 75% of all current criminals who commit crimes because of drugs now will not switch to violent crimes (let alone to fraud, for which - let's be frank here - most petty criminals are too stupid).