Why does everything our government declares war on flourish? From Jeremy Kuzmarov at thekennedybeacon.substack.com:
Voters in the upcoming Democratic Party primaries should be excited that on ‘day one’ Kennedy would end the War on Drugs. That disastrous policy has transformed the U.S. into one of the world’s leading prison states and resulted in the advent of what Michelle Alexander termed a “new Jim Crow,” with unnecessary and destructive over-policing in Black neighborhoods.
The War on Drugs has had long staying power despite its failure to curb drug abuse, due, possibly, to a number of factors: Banks make billions laundering drug money; police and law enforcement agencies get huge funding to expand their size and weaponry to fight the War on Drugs; arms manufacturers that fund political candidates make a brisk business; and the prison industry sustains local economies and finances politicians nationwide.
Although President Joe Biden has directed more federal resources to harm reduction services designed to keep drug users safe and pardoned thousands of people convicted on federal marijuana possession charges, he has bolstered funding for the Drug Enforcement Adminstration (DEA), the main federal agency responsible for waging the War on Drugs, by $300 million. The Biden administration has also made a $300 million increase for customs and border protection, which is also heavily invested in drug prohibition.
