I was walking back home from the station the other day, past my local pub when I noticed a police van parked outside it. Then I noticed a fair number of uniformed plod wearing bullet-proof vests. Now, bearing in mind where I live, this is not something that you expect to ever see. It really is a quiet and peaceful part of Greater London; its ABC1 and has been a Tory stronghold for about 30 years.
As I get nearer, some bloke is handcuffed and there are police stationed outside every pub exit. Obviously being a nosey bastard, I'm staring as I go past and trying to see what all the fuss is about. I then see two more police and another police car further down the road.
Odd.
I found out the next day that it was a "drugs raid". I also learnt that they found precisely fuck all.
Now, I'm no policeman (thank God) but I reckon that I could have told them that my local pub, in the area it is in, was NEVER going to be a good bet for a drugs raid. At the very best they would have found a couple of 18 years olds with a few spliffs worth of weed.
Which brings me to this question; did the police really investigate this "tip off"? Did they send someone in plains clothes down there on a Saturday night to investigate this alleged den of inequity? I would suggest not because if they had, they wouldn't have wasted their time, the taxpayers money and the pubs patrons evening on such a pointless exercise.
This whole "War on Drugs" thing is such a bunch of crap as well. I mean, you're not going to win it. Honestly, you're not. The US spend $50bn EVERY YEAR on the "War on Drugs" and still make no dent into the inflow of narcotics. Drugs will always be available and if someone wants to take them, then they are going to irregardless of their legality.
Personally I say legalise them all. Cut out the organised crime, make them safer than the crap that gets sold on the street, tax them and then pump the money into Education, Pensions and Health. This would improve the quality of life in this country, cut down crime by a massive amount as the mafia would then have no substantial source of income, and also save lives.
Bit too radical for most people though; DRUGS ARE EVIL, DRUGS ARE BAD, etc.
People getting addicted to drugs are symptomatic of the ills of society, not because drugs are available (illegally or legally). If you address the social issues, then people won't walk down that path in the first place. So legalise drugs, make society better, and then just get on with your life.
Simple.