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Maximizing Harm: Losers and Winners in the Drug War

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Meticulously documented scholarly treatises are supposed to be dull. Not this time. In making his case for ending our government's 25-year war against drugs, Stephen Young has written a book that is fascinating, shocking, frustrating, heartbreaking, sometimes downright horrifying - but never dull.

Young tells us that dozens of attempts to eradicate the use of drugs have been documented throughout the ages - including executions of tobacco users in 17th century Russia. All of them failed.

Lest you think that we have become wiser and more civilized in recent times, Young points out that as recently as 1989, William Bennett, the nation's drug czar at the time, while appearing on the "Larry King Live" show agreed with a caller who suggested that drug dealers be beheaded

In such a climate, Young argues, it is not hard to understand how our civil liberties have been among the first casualties of the drug war with mandatory harsh sentences for drug users, resulting in the overcrowding of our prison system. The eighth amendment is supposed to stop "cruel and unusual punishment," yet we are now seeing multi-year sentences for possession of small amounts of illegal drugs.

Ever hear of Melinda George? Neither did I until I read this book. She is serving a 99-year prison sentence for the sale of one-tenth of a gram of cocaine!

To relieve the prison overcrowding caused by prisoners such as Melinda George, we have seen reduced sentences and early releases for non-drug offenders, including violent criminals. This puts career criminals back on the streets sooner, ready to commit more crimes.

Young poses the question, why does this counterproductive drug war continue? He suggests the answer: That certain powerful special interest groups benefit by its continuance, like large pharmaceutical companies that would suffer financially if certain of their drugs were forced to compete with a cheaper and more effective medicine such as marijuana.

I urge everyone to read this book!

This is the first book I've read on this topic, and the author was able to sway me to believe that the war against drugs is not only harmfull, but worse than the actually drugs themselves. I really don't have time to write more, because I'm suppost to be writing a 5 page book report, but this book was worth every penny. It is a wide collection of data from a variety of sources and it brings up ideas that aren't even thought of in our "just say no" generation. I really wish people would take time to read a book like this, because its really easy to just sit back and think "the drug war is a neccesity" when you have the information the government keeps spewing out. The truth is that the drug war doesn't stop drug use, it increases drug use and the harm associated with it..

I'm not 100% converted, but this book has got me off to a great start. Thanks.

-Seth

Steve Young explains in an easy to understand format, how US drug policy is clearly responsible for everything it is supposed to prevent. The book is a treasure trove of facts, which paint a stinging indictment of America's most terrible pork-barrel disaster and exposes those who cash in at the expense of a nation, the drug war profiteers.

"Maximizing Harm" is a must read. Makes a great gift, for those who just can't seem to see through the smoke and mirrors of the drug war facade.

This book is not just for people who do drugs, but for anyone who wants the violence that the illegal drug trade brings to stop. It has some conspiracy theorys, but they are backed up by facts. I found this book inspirational, because while reading it I wanted to go out and alter the drug laws. I recommend this book to everyone, because it helps clear up some of the propoganda that the government has been feeding us for many years. There also is a web site www.maximizingharm.com with more information (it's free, go there now!)