Thursday, April 8, 2004

Porn -- the new Drug War From Eugene at the Volokh Conspiracy, this analysis of Ashcroft's new crackdown is worth reading. Some strong parallels with the drug war. Note that I'm not asking whether porn is bad, or whether porn should be constitutionally protected. I'm certainly not asking whether we'd be better off in some hypothetical porn-free world (just like no sensible debate about alcohol, drug, or gun policy should ask whether we'd be better off in some hypothetical alcohol-, drug-, or gun-free world). I'm asking: How can the government's policy possibly achieve its stated goals, without creating an unprecedentedly intrusive censorship machinery, one that's far, far beyond what the Justice Department is talking about right now. I guess the question is, is Ashcroft really delusional enough to believe he can somehow create a drug-free or porn-free world, or is he just willing to destroy lives and the constitution to look like he's doing it? Bonus question. Did I add this post just because I'm trolling for search engine traffic? 6:33:55 PM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []

Happy D.A.R.E. Day! I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 8, 2004, as National D.A.R.E. Day Well, I guess we should celebrate! So let's observe D.A.R.E. day with some appropriate reading. DARE fact sheet at Drug Policy Alliance Just say no again: The old failures of new and improved anti-drug education from Reason Report: "The Economic Costs of DARE" (pdf) The Education Issue: The ReconsiDer Quarterly (pdf) - lots of articles on DARE's ineffectiveness Drug Prevention Placebo: How DARE Wastes Time, Money, and Police from Reason DARE Leaders Acknowledge Program's Ineffectiveness GAO Report Finds DARE Ineffective DARE's 20th Birthday Shows No Sign of Progress Update: fixed a link 10:41:54 AM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []

Who's more credible? Mark Souder or Peter Jennings? Check out Grass Roots Buzz with an excellent post on drug warrior Mark Souder's outrageously outraged comments on Peter Jennings' Ecstasy exposé. klotlikar also rightly points out that we should be contacting ABC to thank them for airing the Jennings special. You can do so directly at ABC's site or through Drug Policy Alliance's Action Alert (or both). 10:19:20 AM |  drug policy | Links | permalink | comment []