I recently binge-watched the series Dope, which was a fascinating insight into the war on drugs in America, from all angles - the users, the dealers, the kingpins and the police.

This series has got me thinking about how we should be fighting drugs, and other societal problems.

Fight the cause, not the problem itself

I am a huge advocate for fighting the cause of the problem rather than the actual problem. Rather than pumping millions of dollars into fighting drug dealers, we should be spending that money on providing support and education for those most vulnerable to addiction. In pumping millions into taking down the dealers, the cops might get lucky and take down a massive supplier, but if there is still a demand for drugs then there will always be someone else willing to take huge risks to make money. It seems like a neverending cycle to me.

A classic example of this is the case of The Silk Road and the lifetime imprisonment (without parole) of Ross Ulbricht (a.k.a The Dread Pirate Roberts). It seems that law enforcement were trying to send a strict message that this won't be tolerated. However, within months copycat websites have popped up. Again it seems where there is money to be made people will take the necessary risks.

Fighting the cause means providing extensive education to those most vulnerable - going into communities with known high rates and offering counseling, free seminars and education about the path of drug abuse. Often drugs come from gangs, so it also about educating vulnerable people that there are other options than heading into the gang life.

Extreme measures

Some countries (such as Portugal) have gone to the extreme of decriminalizing all drugs back in 2001. An article by The Guardian suggests that this has been successful, leading to reduced rates of drug-related crimes. The new law means that those who are found with a personal supply won't be arrested but might be given a warning or a small fine. The money that would have gone into policing drug trafficking is now going into other areas of education and prevention, such as needle exchanges, counselling.

It seems (to me anyway), one of the reasons this has been working is it not only educates and helps people talk about drug abuse, but it also takes away the stigma. It is a drastic change and it will take decades to see the full effects of how powerful the changes may be, and whether it is an option for other countries to follow.

Where to from here?

The use case of Portugal starting to suggests that 'fighting fire with fire' doesn't seem to be the best way moving forward. However, with any changes like this, there needs to be a long-term mindset, as the intended changes might not occur until the next generation. Getting towards the root of the problems and fixing them is always going to be the best way forward.

As always I would love your thoughts on this!