This blog is a pseudo-response to Moulder's blog on marijuana usage and legalization. I expect a heated debate with knee-jerk reactions. Well, that's the fun part of blogs like this!

Proposal
I have a controversial proposal: Eliminate BOTH the War on Drugs AND the War on Poverty.

Premise
As of 2012, these two "wars" cost over a trillion dollars per year.

The War on Poverty started under the Johnson administration in the 1960s with a massive expansion of government power and centralization, lessening states' rights to handle their own matters in ways that were tailored to their specific needs. The two most well-known programs include MediCare and MedicAid. The former is funded by a mandatory tax on all workers and matched by employers. This tax must be paid by even those who have other health insurance plans in place from pensions or employment. The latter is a joint venture between the Federal and state governments, where the Federal government provides partial funds to the states, as long as the states spend the funds by certain rules. Both programs are bankrupt, and these programs, plus welfare, food stamps, and other anti-poverty programs have no helped to lessen poverty by any measure in the past 50 years. "But 16% of families are in poverty!" you exclaim. 16% will always be in poverty, by definition. The measure of poverty is that the family must be one standard deviation below the median income level. By statistical definition, that is ALWAYS 16%. These 16%, though, are part of the top 1% wealthiest in the world, with their DVD players, cell phones, heated homes, and guaranteed meals.

The War on Drugs involves crowded prisons by non-violent offenders, crimes that are violent by those seeking illegal drugs for their high black market value, and permanent scars on the lives of those who make stupid choices early in life. An early attempt of the War on Drugs was passed during the Progressive Era, as the 18th Amendment to the US Constitution. This amendment is commonly known as the Prohibition, a period when all alcohol possession and consumption was illegal. This gave rise to some of the most notorious mobsters in history and some of the most violent crimes. The Prohibition was overturned with the 21st Amendment in failure.

Linkage
It may not seem apparent at first, but these two wars are very closely linked, and they just lead to more problems in their combination. Statistically, crime rates and drug usage rates are considerably higher for those in poverty than those well-off. A vicious cycle continues as those with a criminal record for drug usage cannot find work, so they live on long-term government assistance. Those who do not work do not have the drive to pull themselves above the situation, since there is no financial need or no perceivable way. Those individuals have children who see the lack of work ethics. Those children get bored and roam the streets, getting into drugs and crime.( Keep I mind that these are statistical probabilities, but there are always exceptions.)

Who Suffers?
Those directly suffering are the families directly involved. This ripples to families in the neighborhood and the city, who become targets of local crime. Property values drop as the more affluent are able to leave, so tax revenues drop. Thus, taxes are hiked at areas of increasing radius to cover public works and safety, hitting families outside the immediate area.

Statistically, those hurt most by the immediate effects are minorities, particularly Blacks. Before you cry racism at me, pay attention to this, then make up your mind: Black families survived the horrors of slavery for centuries. This kept them strong in family units, where they developed some of the best work ethics (through awful means, obviously), the strongest faith, and the closest families, of any ethic group in the United States. This survived for centuries. Before the War on Poverty and the War on Drugs, over 80% of Black children were born to nuclear families. They had the lowest divorce rates and abortion rates of all ethnic groups. Today, only 20% of Black children are born within marriage. Half of prison inmates are Black men. The abortion rates in large cities, like New York, are even higher than the birth rates. Murder rates in cities like Detroit, Chicago, and Washington, DC, are higher between Blacks than the total murder rates in many other developed countries, as drug-related gangs launch their turf attacks on each other. The Black family survived as the pinnacle of society for centuries during the atrocities of slavery, just to be destroyed in two generations by these two "wars".

Now, that was just one specific ethnic example, but all ethnic groups have considerably suffered during these two "wars", and it just keeps getting worse. Why does this happen? Government has replaced the father in the household. Many men see no need to be responsible to their children, when government will take care of them, so they flee. Women see no need to have men in their lives, since government will provide for the family.

The Solution?
Obviously, these families can't suddenly be off government assistance. There needs to be a transition period of, perhaps, a generation. Those with minor drug infractions on their criminal records can have those records purged, if they have no repeated the offenses (and have an otherwise clean record) for some period of, say, 10 years. This would allow job searches to be much easier.

Historically, the American people have been the most generous and charitable in the world. Think of all the hospitals, schools, etc., that have someone's name in the title. Those were all due to massive donations. How about hospitals with "Saint", "Jewish", "Methodist", etc., in their titles? Those are all non-profits that are sponsored by religious institutions. Before the War on Poverty, there were soup kitchens, homeless shelters, orphanages, and plenty of other places for the poor and the needy. How about charities like Good Will and the Salvation Army? What about community groups, like the Shriners, Boy Scouts, Heritage Girls, American Legion, etc.?

Education is the biggest factor keeping people in poverty: Teach a man to fish, and he will eat for life. The public school system is broken. Do away with the Department of Education so that schools are brought back to the states so that they can choose how best to handle their individual needs. The Federal government doesn't know what's best for all 50 states. Tenure of bad teachers has been hindering good education for a long time, due to corrupt union rules. Promote the good teachers, and fire the bad ones. Allow parents to become more involved in their children's education and choose to which schools their children go. Vouchers will do this well.

Now, what is the solution for those who can't make it on their own? The vast majority of people can work. We are in the digital age when work can be done at home to earn a living. Most of welfare programs can be transitioned to workfare programs. Yet, a few people will be disabled and unable to work. A small safety net is most likely needed at all times, but charity will always cover most of the needs.

By cutting all these government costs, taxes could be lowered, causing a boom in the economy, as business moves back to the US. Taxation on softer drugs, like marijuana would bring in more revenue, as well.

There we go: $1,000,000,000,000 saved per year, making a balanced budget!

I would like to hear everyone's comments on the matter.