The sad side of America | Page 3 | INFJ Forum

The sad side of America

Why do they not care about education? Because they know/believe that the system requires there to be poor people to do the crappy low paying jobs, and while one might get out, someone else would only take their place.

In America anyone can get ahead, this is true. But everyone cannot. Someone has to flip the burgers, take out the trash, and in general work hard for little money. Having known what it feels like to be seen as trash by those that have gotten ahead, it's hard for those with the ability to let themselves get ahead and be seen to be 'looking down' on the people they used to be.

They can be proud to be at the bottom, angry at The Man, or turn on everyone that has to stay there.
 
Actually the drug lord is there because almost all users are located there. But in such a case of that you proposed, wouldn't it spread and become a bigger more widespread national problem?

Drug use might increase, but organised crime would drop substantially.
 
... Because Organised Crime is centred around a commodity only THEY can provide.

My way removes that.

You honestly can't see that?
 
  • Remove the laws that say it's a crime to sell or buy illicit narcotics
  • Ensure that Narcotics be sold over the counter at a pharmacy, where they're maintained at the same chemical compound and strength, as well as FAA testing for ingredients

Narcotics at the pharmacy? That's going to open a whole new can of worms. Can you imagine the law suits? What if someone gets their cocaine from their friendly neighborhood pharmacist and it reacts badly with the other medication that they are currently popping? They can go back and say that the pharmacist shouldn't have sold them the drug if they can see the person is taking Paxil, for example. Or the flipside is, the pharmacist won't sell the narcotic to the patient because of these potential risks, and that patient is going to look for another way to get his/her hands on their ill.

Or think about the cost of these narcotics. If I know the gov't, they would be heavily taxed, and the people who cannot afford them the legit way are going to turn to the black market. And since it's no longer illegal to sell or buy narcotics, there are more people willing to make a quick buck. The whole drug ordeal would not be contained to the pharmacies.

It's a nice pitch, but I really can't see it applied practically.
 
It's economics, right? Supply and demand. With most illegal drugs, gangs and organized crime become almost monopoly suppliers of the product. If you allow more suppliers (drug stores, etc.) then the monopoly (organized crime) is weakened.

I am not sure I would want to be the first drug store on the block to start selling in a former gang's market, however, at least not without some serious bullet proof vests or something.

Probably the most comparable situation would be Prohibition. Alcohol used to be prohibited in the US and now it is not. I am not sure what that did to alcoholism rates and I am not sure if we can accurately predict that the same things would happen with stronger, more addictive substances.

Kind of makes sense, though.
 
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Who gives a shit about the addicts.

They chose it. Let them suffer the consequences.

The world is overpopulated as it is.
 
Meh, more addicts and you'd get a whole slew of other problems, and crime wouldn't just go away, it would just adapt. Probably.
 
Crime mostly occurs because of a puritanical, heavy handed approach to protecting people from themselves.
Get rid of this, and I predict a decrease in crime.
 
A decrease in crime would be lovely, but am wondering if there are any places we could experiment with this first!

Overhauling systems from the top down is a great idea, but I have this vague idea that the real problem is from the bottom up... you know, from the individuals... and if things don't change on an individual level then any system changes are going to encounter different versions of the same problems.

Vague, sorry.

Sort of like what Muir was saying
In my country there is a lot of poverty in post industrial areas where once there was a proud culture of people working hard to provide for their families and a strong sense of community as everyone knew each other and worked together. Crime was relatively low for these reasons. ...
It seems to be a common problem. So much of people's self esteem seems to be tied up in their ability to work and stand on their own two feet. The more education given to children the more opportunities they have. If people are educated and in work they tend to have stable lives and stable relationships.
 
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... Because Organised Crime is centred around a commodity only THEY can provide.

My way removes that.

You honestly can't see that?

No not really, because it doesn't make sense to me. Wouldn't your suggestion on legalizing drugs, have the land lords sell the drugs at a much lower price than in the pharmacy, as with the case now?
 
Who gives a shit about the addicts.

They chose it. Let them suffer the consequences.

The world is overpopulated as it is.

The funny thing is, the addicted can be a fair chunk of those people in those poor neighborhoods we're trying to remedy.
 
Not to mention addicts are willing to commit crimes they normally never would consider if they are jonessing and need a fix. It wouldn't reduce crime, it would just morph into something else. I would guess that B&E and muggings would increase.
 
The funny thing is, the addicted can be a fair chunk of those people in those poor neighborhoods we're trying to remedy.

I'm only trying to fix society so the ones with strong personalities and minds have a better chance of becoming rich without jail.
 
I'm only trying to fix society so the ones with strong personalities and minds have a better chance of becoming rich without jail.

What happens to a society when it is filled with strong personalities and minds?

How does it fit your vision of progression?
 
What happens to a society when strong personalities and minds are rich?

How does it fit your vision of progression?
 
the world develops without morons holding it back
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