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Revision as of 13:28, 7 March 2005 by 70.32.174.33 (talk)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)This is a derisive name for the United States' government policy of legally combating the sale, distribution, and manufacture of particular intoxicants and addictive substances commonly known as the War on Drugs. Those who are critical of these policies are often in favor of the legalization or decriminalization of all or some of these substances, but a small minority are people who are in favor of further restriction on consumption. Consequently, both libertarians and prohibitionists may criticize the legality of alcohol, in spite of the negative social and personal consequences of its use. Another common criticism is the self-contradictory policy of fining and subsidizing tobacco firms.
More specifically, the term "War on Some Drugs" refers to the fact that although many substances are classified as drugs, only some are made illegal. To the critics of this policy, its hypocrisy is mainly identified by the perceived arbitrariness of which drugs are made illegal. Such critics usually raise the objection that alcohol and tobacco are far worse than most illegal drugs, but since they are legal in the US (and thus more easily obtained) it is difficult to perform accurate comparative measures.
The term "War on Some Drugs" is purposefully loaded and is used by proponents to catalyze critical thought regarding United States official drug policy. Many proponents of this view, although not all, identify with the movement to decriminalize all or most illegal drugs in the US.