Legalize what now? (Part 1)

So I have been thinking a lot lately on how the US handles crime. In particular drug crime. Nonviolent drug offenders make up 18% of the prison population as of 2004. That is insane and just adds to the issue of overcrowding and cost the taxpayers more money that could go to filling potholes or infrastructure. While thinking I also thought about all the issues created by the war on drugs, Cartels, the opioid crisis and lack of government aid in support. I talked to a lot of people with differing opinions but since we're all in Micro econ it felt like a good opportunity to make a blog post and have a conversation about the economics and policies around drug use. I'm going to break down the discussion into three different posts each focusing on different reasoning on why drugs should be decriminalized in the united states. The focus of this post will be on the black market.

The black market surrounding illegal substances is estimated to be worth 450 Billion Dollars and that is only expected to increase in the following years. While that would be no issue since its an illegal black market most of the money will never be reintroduced or used for positive purposes. The fact that no government can implement any regulation or control over the market leads to a big black hole of wasted potential along. Imagine for a moment that the government did what we have done with Cigarets and Alcohol for years on those illegal substances. Taxes on drugs, regulations on safety and educational campaigns and focused on highlighting the health risks and negative effects of drugs. This would not only generate billions of dollars of tax revenues but would reduce pressure on the prison systems.

There are arguments against the legalization of drugs and most of them involve the belief that if all drugs where legalized that use would increase drastically. The opposite is true. The legalization of items does not make them more attractive to people as everyone knows the horrible consequences of substances. Those who choose to use them and continue to use them illegally are a minority and the idea that the population of people who want to try cocaine is going to explode after legalization is fearmongering. Even if you choose to accept the argument that it is better to keep them illegal with the hope that it will protect people the fact remains that there is a demand. Demand for drugs will not go away and that demand is strong enough to generate billions of dollars while being hindered by government laws. That demand is not going to go anywhere but instead gaining nothing why not legalize the drugs and gain something that can help everyone?