Thread: Colombia

I know this forum is about Panama but let's face it, Colombia does have it's influence.

Call to help Colombia's displaced


Amnesty International has denounced what it says is a dramatic rise in the number of people being displaced by Colombia's armed conflict.
The human rights group notes that 380,000 people were forced to flee in 2008, a rise of nearly 25% on 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk

Since 2000 the US has spent about $6bn (£3.8bn) fighting drug production in Colombia and training its army to battle rebel groups.

The centrepiece of Plan Colombia has been the aerial spraying of coca plants, which yield the raw material for cocaine - which then helps finance the rebels.
Colombia is the world's top cocaine producer. Yet the US plan has proved highly controversial. Policymakers argue it is in the national interest to fight cocaine at its source and to stabilise Colombia. Critics agree - but say the current plan is ineffective, targets desperate farmers and has worsened an existing human rights crisis. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4627185.stm

keeping drugs illegal doesnt seem to stop the supply of drugs, but does add a lot of crime related to drugs - murder, violence, corruption, theft. better to end the drug war and let people take responsibility of their own bodies and what substances they put in them.

Originally Posted by zog

keeping drugs illegal doesnt seem to stop the supply of drugs, but does add a lot of crime related to drugs - murder, violence, corruption, theft. better to end the drug war and let people take responsibility of their own bodies and what substances they put in them.

Even after 20+ years of "war on drugs" a person in the US can get pretty much whatever they want if they look hard enough. Even if there has been a small dent in cocaine or heroin getting imported into the US it has been replaced with crystal meth and legally prescribed oxy-codone type medications.

users also cannot be assured as to exactly what they are taking due to lack of quality control. ending the drug war would lead to quality control, and probably more users. it is a question of weighing up the pros and cons - is an end to drug related crime worth the increased dependency that may very well ensue? I'd have to say yes, because an increase in the number dependent on drugs is worth a reduction in murder, violence, corruption and theft.

the issue is even more important for cannabis. it is already becoming widely accepted that viruses and bacteria play pivotal roles in cancer, just as they are known to play pivotal roles in other diseases. cannabis is known to have anti-viral and anti-bacterial properties, and yet is extremely difficult to get hold of as a potential cure to at least some of these diseases. and yet technically you could grow the stuff in your garden.

what exactly are governments afraid of? violent outbreaks of attacks of the munchies? people fighting over chocolate bars in the streets? yet go out every weekend in some city centre in the UK and you would fear for your life with the amount of alcohol related violence.

Colombia could become a legitimate source of important drugs and make money that way.

I personally don't feel legalization would actually change the amount of users since it can be gotten anyway. Unfortunately the "war on drugs" employs many people, police, lawyers, judges, etc. Plus it financially props up many Latin economies.

Well, there is not much chance that things will change anyway.

Very true

Legalizing the stuff would put back into play the oldest rule of nature. Survival of the fittest. Those who want to play with the hard stuff would surely kill themselves off using, and alot of the harder users would go away quickly. prolonging lives because we can is not necessarily right, and prolonging the life of a user is certainly not helping anyone.

Prohibition increased alcohol related crimes at the turn of last century. Prohibition ended, and the economy was boosted by the increase in legitimate business. Good for everyone. Drugs could, and would in my opinion be the same way. Legalize the stuff, and let legitimate business boost a currently deplorable economy. let he users erode their own numbers, and let everyone figure out what is right for them as it happens.

D

Surely, if legalising drugs, the point would be to keep the user alive as long as possible for economic reasons. Allowing users to kill themselves reduces overall demand. As with smoking and cancer, i imagine there has been a lot of effort on the part of tobacco companies to find a safe and economic way to provide the nicotine hit, just as they also try to find ways to ensure continued dependency through manipulation of tobacco with other chemicals.

I wonder if we would see adverts with doctors injecting themselves with heroin?

I think legalization would also assist with the advertising industry that his been hit so hard. You could have different vendors of heroin, marijuana, coke, etc competing for market positioning. Besides, when you look at all of the side effects of "legal" drugs, is illegal drugs truly any worse? Here are some interesting stats on drug related deaths: Drug Overdose - Drug Overdose Deaths Double in Five Years

It seems that the "legal" drugs are what people are overdosing on.

It is amazing how the world changes. The first drug war was to try to guarantee a regular supply!

The Truth About Victoriana: Substance Abuse in the Victorian Era

Drugs have always been a money maker and governments have been benefiting from it financially for a long time. Lobby groups are the reason that some drugs are "illegal" and some are legal. I found out shortly after moving to Panama that my neighbor's wife that was on prescription OxyContin (aka Oxycotton) overdosed and died shortly after I moved. She had a legit use and prescription for the stuff but accidentally took one to many pills one night and did not wake up.

A Colombian judge has sentenced 15 soldiers to up to 30 years in prison for killing civilians and presenting them as rebels.

BBC NEWS | Americas | Judge jails 15 Colombian soldiers

Timeline: Colombia BBC NEWS | Americas | Country profiles | Timeline: Colombia

Portugal decriminalized everything and it seems to be going well.

Drugs in Portugal: Did Decriminalization Work? - TIME

Intresting post about portugal....

Thank

More love and joy out of Colombiahttp://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8585645.stm

Originally Posted by MRWOOHOO

Drugs have always been a money maker and governments have been benefiting from it financially for a long time. Lobby groups are the reason that some drugs are "illegal" and some are legal. I found out shortly after moving to Panama that my neighbor's wife that was on prescription OxyContin (aka Oxycotton) overdosed and died shortly after I moved. She had a legit use and prescription for the stuff but accidentally took one to many pills one night and did not wake up.

Unfortunately MRWOOHOO is exactly correct and the "drug wars" being conducted in the USA is a joke as the legal drugs+powerful lobbyist for big pharma=addiction of dangerous substances. Over 100,000 deaths in US per year due to prescription drugs according to AMA stats!!

Seems very hypocritical to stage a war on drugs not regulated by FDA-especially in other countries. Just one more good reason USA is not the same place our forefathers fled Europe for. I for one am ready to find another "new world"

I moved the continuation of this thread to "Off the subject with Prince Albert".

Villavicencio, Colombia is not exactly a tourist magnet. Apart from a heavy military and police presence which goes back to the time when left-wing Farc rebels controlled large swathes of this eastern area, there is not much to see in this town of 400,000.

BBC News - Audio slideshow: Cowgirls in Colombia

Columbia has ONE major reason for tourists to go there... We all know what that is.

Matt

Rodeos?

Actually now there are three reasons people go to Colombia, rodeos being the third.