Time to Become a Republican Again

On Wednesday, I'm going to change my voter registration from independent to Republican. There's a measure on the ballot here in Oregon that would make it possible for me to vote in primaries, thus reducing the need to pick a party in order to have a say in who appears on the November ballots, but I'm going to switch anyway.

Frankly, I think the Republican Party is too important to be handed over to Sarah Palin and her ilk. After McCain loses, I expect those responsible to gain rather than lose influence, unless there's a counterattack. I'm sure that many of those who presently lead the Republican Party will be uncomfortable finding me within their fold. But it's mutual so that makes it fair.

I'm going to pick an issue to rally people around and it's going to be the "war on drugs." I just read an interesting comment about how it's going in Britain and it seems much the same as here. America's cost is pushing $200 billion a year, when you consider all the impacts. After nearly four decades, it has failed. Let's give it up.

Simply consider this alternative. All dangerous drugs are legal but regulated, taxed enough to pay for treatment, viewed as public health issues, and made the subject of unfavourable publicity. You become a drug criminal in the same way you become a booze criminal. It's illegal to sell to minors. It's illegal to hijack trucks filled with drugs, but then it's illegal to hijack trucks filled with Tootsie Rolls. If you treat drugs as health problems, there is very little to be unduly concerned about.

Which is different from being completely unconcerned. We tell people to fasten their seat belts, exercise, and cut down on fat. Employers pay uniform medical insurance whether or not we do these things. If we simply discourage drug use and treat addiction as a health issue, almost all the problems go away.