It’s been years since I read an article in Rolling Stone, but they recently published a fascinating one on their website that I highly recommend to everyone. It’s called How America Lost the War on Drugs, by author Ben Wallace-Wells.
In it, Wells chronicles the terribly the United States’ terribly costly and ineffective war on drugs, starting back with President Nixon in 1973. Billions of dollars have been spent going after Columbian drug lords and Mexican gang members, but after 35 years, usage rates remain where they’ve always been. And, while money is thrown away on dramatic – but useless – battles with drug cartels, programs that actually make a difference are shunned because they’re seen as being too soft.
It’s both incredibly interesting and incredibly depressing at the same time. I couldn’t help but think back to the 2000 movie Traffic while reading this piece. The feeling you’re left with – hopelessness – is the exactly the same.