Harvard economist: Prohibition creates violence, legalize all drugs Because of his title as a Harvard economist, people tend to listen to Jeffrey Miron. And, if the old principle holds true and controversy always creates interest, expect a lot of people to be talking about Miron's latest volley into the mainstream media.
"Prohibition creates violence because it drives the drug market underground," he wrote in an essay published by CNN on Tuesday. "This means buyers and sellers cannot resolve their disputes with lawsuits, arbitration or advertising, so they resort to violence instead.
"Violence was common in the alcohol industry when it was banned during Prohibition, but not before or after."
Miron's proposed solution to ending the cartel war along the US-Mexico border is both simple and enormously complex.
"Violence is the norm in illicit gambling markets but not in legal ones. Violence is routine when prostitution is banned but not when it's permitted," he wrote. "Violence results from policies that create black markets, not from the characteristics of the good or activity in question.
"The only way to reduce violence, therefore, is to legalize drugs."
http://current.com/items/89914072/harva ... _drugs.htm
