Making Drug Users Responsible
by
Matt Giwer (c) 1994 <10/3>

      Many people do not realize what a major contribution the anti-gun lobby has made to the drug problem. They have come up with a way to reduce the cost of the problem to the American citizen. They should be thanked profusely.
      Consider they argue that since there are costs to society from the illegal use of guns that guns should be heavily taxed to pay those costs. Thus honest owners would cover the complete cost of guns. It is obvious this can be applied to drugs.
      It is rather straight forward also. The drug industry in this country is around $17 billion dollars per year. That is on the same order as the money spent to combat illegal drug usage. Therefore a simple 100% tax on all prescriptions would cover the cost of dealing with illegal drugs.
      But drugs are essential to preserve life and health! As there are an estimated 200,000 uses of guns each year to preserve life alone and some 2 million total to preserve limb and property. Guns and drugs are certainly very similar in their health value.
      But you can't tax legal drugs to pay for illegal drugs! But so may illegal drugs are simply a different form of legal drugs such as pain killing variations upon opium and the stimulant variants upon cocaine. Many other legal drugs are a major staple of the illegal drug trade.
      But guns can be stolen! Many of the drugs on the illegal market are also stolen, almost all the illegal tranquilizers and opium based drugs are stolen rather than manufactured. These thefts are right from the warehouse or in transit. In many cases out of home medicine cabinets where they are kept instead of drug safes.
      And do not forget that the home medicine cabinet is where many children get their drugs just like the home is where they get guns. Perhaps we need a law requiring medicine cabinets to be locked at all times. And if their children are found with their parents drugs we send the parents to jail.
      But, but, but ... !
      It doesn't work that way. Every argument used to assert that gun manufacturers or owners should pay for the cost of illegal gun use applies without exception to the drug manufacturers and users. At whatever point the taxes are applied they have to result in doubling the retail price.
      But then retired people will not be able to afford their prescription! Then they will not be able to afford guns as a means of self defense either notably at an age when they are in the most need of guns for self defense. Perhaps there should be gun purchase co-payments under Medicare.
      The hypocrisy of the anti-gun types is apparent to single out guns while ignoring drugs for the same solution as there is exactly the same justification, that because there is illegal drug use, legal drug use must bear the burden of the costs to society.