chidi_anagonye
Alan FerrierPortugal decriminalised drugs in 2001 and subsequently treated drug abuse as a public health issue. Between 1999 and 2016 deaths from overdose fell by 92%.
If Westminster refuses to even consider this approach then future deaths are on their hands.
Hugh Ferguson@alanferrier but then how do you fill your prisons with a slave labour force that industry can profit from?
Alex@rtnVFRmedia Suffolk UKWhilst we do have issues with conditions of labourers in prison, there's only just under 82 000 people in prison in the whole of the UK (with an adult population of about 38 000 000). Even medium level drug dealing only results in a relatively short prison sentence, *if* the offender gets prison at all
(I was a raver from the late 1980s to late 2000s, and had a lot of first hand experience of UK drugs culture)
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/aug/26/prisoners-uk-labour-shortage-exploited
my experience (including getting nicked on various occasions for possession, and my friends being nicked for dealing) was that previous governments did everything they could to keep drug users *out* of prison, whilst the current one tries to be more hardline there isn't the space to give them long stretches (unless its thousands of pounds of drugs and violence also involved). The real problem is lack of harm reduction and people being left to get unwell/addicted and OD..
@vfrmedia @alanferrier I was thinking of the American model where the "solution" to overcrowded prisons was to bring in private developers. And those developers lobby hard for tough on crime policies to keep the prisons filled. And often, those companies will use their prisoners as an ultra-cheap labour force. Cheap for them, expensive for the taxpayer. All part of the grift. I fear that model may come to Canada if we elect a Conservative govt nationally.
Oli@hfinyow @vfrmedia @alanferrier
"There are more 17year old black males in jail than in college"
This is from a UK show QI (Quite interesting)
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sHz2Hmq7soo
Its shocking both in terms of the numbers but also that it these facts seem only to appear on the media a vehicle for comedy
There are loads of numbers presented and it just insane
QI | Where are 1% Of Americans?
Pusher Of Pixels (old account)@hfinyow @vfrmedia @alanferrier literally threatening to close unless gov *finds* them more prisoners
bananamangodog@alanferrier
A graph sourced from The Lancet, drugpolicy.org. titled "Then & Now: Portugal's Drug Deciminalization, key developments since Portugal decriminalized drugs in 2001".
The graph shows:
Overdose deaths in 1999 at 369 compared to 30 deaths in 2016.
New HIV diagnoses due to injecting in 2000 at 907 compared to 18 in 2017.
Number of people incarceratetd for drug offences in 1999 at 3863 compared to 1140 in 2017.
GreenSkyOverMe (Monika)@alanferrier Image description:
Then & Now - Portugal's Drug Decriminalization:
Key developments since Portugal decriminalized drugs in 2001.
Overdose deaths
1999: 369.
2016: 30.
New HIV diagnoses due to injecting:
2000: 907.
2017: 18.
Number of people incarcerated for drug offences:
1999: 3,863.
2017: 1,140.
Sources: TheLancet, drugpolicy.org, EMCDDA, VHPA.
Then & Now - Portugal's Drug Decriminalization:
Key developments since Portugal decriminalized drugs in 2001.
Overdose deaths
1999: 369.
2016: 30.
New HIV diagnoses due to injecting:
2000: 907.
2017: 18.
Number of people incarcerated for drug offences:
1999: 3,863.
2017: 1,140.
Sources: TheLancet, drugpolicy.org, EMCDDA, VHPA.
Lazarou Monkey Terror 🚀💙🌈@alanferrier #Westminster couldn't give a fuck if we lived or died, the Pandemic showed us that.
We cant shame the Shameless into doing the right thing sadly
We cant shame the Shameless into doing the right thing sadly
Nuno Pássaro 🐦@alanferrier as a Portuguese that was a kid on a heavy on drug trafficking neighbourhood I can say that 5 years after, the whole environment was way better.
Wincing 🌍@npassaro you mean for better, right?
@Wincing5185 sorry for the poor English! Yeah, there were hundreds of junkies up and down my street 24/7 going for the dealers, an endless stream of ghostly figures. Around 2005 I honestly don’t remember seeing one. There were two main improvements: more police in the known trafficking areas and more support for the junkies to get them on replacement drugs and therapy.
@npassaro I had a similar experience and between now and then, it's like day and night. On top of what you already mentioned, there was a massive campaign of education about drugs. It was everywhere, schools, tv, papers...was scared as shit about hard drugs.
@Wincing5185 didn’t need to be scared, just looking out the window Didi it😅
Canadian Crone@alanferrier Time for Canada to emulate this success story. Province-wide.
it's B! Cavello 🐝@alanferrier image description (you may be able to edit your post to add): charts representing the dramatic decreases in deaths, new injection-related HIV diagnoses, and people incarcerated for drug-related reasons.
Nicole ParsonsDemocracies adopted the Christian attitude that substance abuse & addiction were failures of character & deserved punishment as a coercive correction to poor behavior.
After 100 years of jailing addicts & the mentally ill, nothing has improved in their lives.
A punitive approach to mental illness and substance abuse isn't useful. Re-traumatizing the already traumatized doesn't do anything.
When medical help is needed provide it.
Maria De Agosto@alanferrier We (🇵🇹) could do even better if the law wasn't so vague concerning 'possession': the amount that some judges consider for personal use (not criminal) or (eventually) for selling (criminal), that other judges may not. In a country where it's legal to grow cannabis for export (to states and countries that legalize recreational use) but not legal for locals's recreational use, we still aim to overcome this hypocrisy. No doubt things have greatly improve, though.
Calluna@alanferrier
Impressive numbers. You still got lots of people around who would say, well ...we cant do that, because drugs are unhealthy and dangerous...
Impressive numbers. You still got lots of people around who would say, well ...we cant do that, because drugs are unhealthy and dangerous...
Steve Frenzel@alanferrier Here's the alt text for your image:
Then & now: Portugal’s drug decriminalisation. Key developments since Portugal decriminalised drugs in 2001.
Overdose deaths: 369 people in 1999, 30 people in 2016.
New HIV diagnoses due to injecting: 907 people in 2000, 18 people in 2007.
Number of people incarcerated for drug offences: 3863 people in 1999, 1140 people in 2017.
Sources: The Lancet, drugpolicy.org, EMCDDA, VHPA
Ricki Yasha Tarr@alanferrier This stuff always blows my mind. Politicians will shrug their shoulders and say What can we do, nothing works, and then people are like, Well here's a bunch of data about what has worked well in other places and they're still like, Yeah, nothing to be done, oh well.
Dominykas Blyžė@alanferrier do we have data from other countries, ones that did not decriminalize, for comparison?
Causation, correlation, etc.
I want this to be true - but I want it to be truly true.
Threadbane@alanferrier
Dimwitted Nancy #Reagan gave us the War on Drugs, which alienated allies in Central and South America, Turkey and the Middle East, put more people (especially minorities) behind bars than any country on Earth, and turned many against the gov't itself. It also staffed our local police forces with sadistic bullies who enjoyed bashing down people's doors with the new no-knock search warrants that Reagan gave them and allowed police to seize our assets. At least we're drug free now.
Dimwitted Nancy #Reagan gave us the War on Drugs, which alienated allies in Central and South America, Turkey and the Middle East, put more people (especially minorities) behind bars than any country on Earth, and turned many against the gov't itself. It also staffed our local police forces with sadistic bullies who enjoyed bashing down people's doors with the new no-knock search warrants that Reagan gave them and allowed police to seize our assets. At least we're drug free now.
PonyOfModeration 🏳️🌈🍄🇪🇺@alanferrier the gov's immediate 'no' response and their aim to be 'tough' on drugs are absurd. At what point will they spot that the approach isn't stopping people using drugs all of the time.
In most cases, as with most people's consumption of alcohol, it's pretty harmless and would be less so if it were sold in a legal way so not cut with crap. The main risk with drugs is that they are unlawful...
Legalisation would remove vast amounts of funds from criminals and free up vast amounts of police time. It such an obvious thing to to that it's not not to imagine that there's some strong vested interests in the absurd war on drugs that mainly criminalises young people, more often than not, young black men.
While, at the same time it's very obvious that white MC people are hoovering up tonnes of charlie with very little risk of being caught. It's all BS.
LeaBug
Maier Amsden@alanferrier Norm MacDonald said something to the effect of: Addiction is a disease, but it's the only disease you get yelled at for having.