NationStates Jolt Archive

Dear WA Members,
I am new(er) to this game and I just wrote a bill labeled "Drug Solution" and it doesn't look like it will pass. I do not feel bad about this though because that was an extremely rough draft of it. Please read and criticize my bill (be gentle) write about everything I did wrong and right. What things I need to remove or things I need to add. Critic me about every little thing! Also please tell me how stupid I am and point out all my grammar mistakes.

Drug Solution Bill
A resolution to ban, legalize, or encourage recreational drugs.


Category: Recreational Drug Use
Decision: Legalize
Proposed by: Toxocity

Description: Federal Monopolization and
Rectification of Misinformation
of Illicit Drugs


The World Assembly:

Defines: Drugs to be any substance with psychoactive affects.

Defines: Illicit Drugs to be any substance with psychoactive effects and unlawfully or illegally used by civilians.

Realizes the drug use is higher then ever and the current methodology of drug use prevention is failing to lower them,

Recognizes the amount of “misinformation” pertaining to illegal and illicit drugs ,

Observes the vast amount money involved in illegal and drugs that funds crime,

Notes: The Billions among nations incarcerated for breaking non-violent drug laws,

Recognizes the lack of research of the drugs because of legal issues,

Recognizes that Nation that have lax drug laws have lower drug and crime rates,

Applauds nations that have lax drugs laws.

Defines: Harmful Drugs that are highly addictive cause dangerous short term and long term health problems and have low medical use.

Defines: Harmless Drugs that have low addictive rates, little or no harmful short and long term health effects and have high medical use.

Hereby: Nation will fund unbiased research determining how harmless or harmful certain illicit drugs are, ones found harmless will be legalized. Legalized drugs will be produced largely by federal employed manufacturing plants. The sell and trade of these drugs will be taxed heavily and used to fund the illicit drug research, criminal rehabilitation and education. Legalized drugs may only be grown, made synthetically, sold or produced in anyway with a special attainable license. Purchase and us of drugs of persons under 18 years of age is illegal unless proscribed by a certified doctor.

Hereby: Drugs found harmful by the research will be manufactured by the nation and sold in small unadulterated amounts. This drugs will be sold in special nation owned facilities in which the user must stay for 48 hours or till the main psychological and physical affects are gone. These facilities will have clean needles, pipes, bongs and any other means of taking for the use of the patron. Medical attention will be supplied to the patron if needed. These drugs are illegal to use, sell, produce and to posses outside of the government facility.

Hereby: Nations must allow any researchers to produce and study drugs for science, the information gathered by these researchers will then be checked by a second civilian research company. This information will be compiled and used to educate Students of all ages. All drugs are available for medicinal purposes to certified doctors.

Hereby: Drugs laws become more lax, the maximum time spent for a non-violent drug crimes is 10 years. More money, the money collected from the drug taxes, will be spent in rehabilitation.


Thanks, ;)
Supreme Shaman of Toxocity

Dear WA Members,
I am new(er) to this game and I just wrote a bill labeled "Drug Solution" and it doesn't look like it will pass. I do not feel bad about this though because that was an extremely rough draft of it. Please read and criticize my bill (be gentle) write about everything I did wrong and right. What things I need to remove or things I need to add. Critic me about every little thing! Also please tell me how stupid I am and point out all my grammar mistakes.

I might not be able to be gentle, but I will endeavor to be professional and realistic.

Drug Solution Bill
A resolution to ban, legalize, or encourage recreational drugs.


Category: Recreational Drug Use
Decision: Legalize
Proposed by: Toxocity

The first problem is a fundamental one; drug legislation is extremely polarizing and is unlikely to ever survive a WA vote. I cannot think of a single (former) passed UN resolution that acted on drug policy. Second, you are very likely to antagonize the people who dislike any legislation that does not specifically address an international issue. You will have to have in mind several strong reasons why your proposal rises to the level of international in scope.

Description: Federal Monopolization and
Rectification of Misinformation
of Illicit Drugs


The World Assembly:

Defines: Drugs to be any substance with psychoactive affects.

Defines: Illicit Drugs to be any substance with psychoactive effects and unlawfully or illegally used by civilians.

One potential pitfall is that there is already a good definition for "drug", namely, "a substance used as a medication or in the preparation of medication" (Merriam-Webster). You will have to have a good reason to redefine a commonly used term before people will vote with you on it. Also, if you're going to define "drug" as you have, you will definitely need to define "psychoactive effects".

Realizes the drug use is higher then ever and the current methodology of drug use prevention is failing to lower them,

Recognizes the amount of “misinformation” pertaining to illegal and illicit drugs ,

Observes the vast amount money involved in illegal and drugs that funds crime,

Notes: The Billions among nations incarcerated for breaking non-violent drug laws,

Recognizes the lack of research of the drugs because of legal issues,

This is not necessarily supported by the majority of WA member nations. Some nations may ban recreational drugs but not withhold information about them: the opposition is due to moral reasons. Other nations may have no problems with the cost of incarcerating people for drug-related crime: they may fine (or execute!) everybody convicted of such violations.

Recognizes that Nation that have lax drug laws have lower drug and crime rates,

This may not be true of nations in NS.

Applauds nations that have lax drugs laws.

Defines: Harmful Drugs that are highly addictive cause dangerous short term and long term health problems and have low medical use.

Defines: Harmless Drugs that have low addictive rates, little or no harmful short and long term health effects and have high medical use.

To be "harmful", does the drug need to meet one of the three criteria you've listed, or all three? Your definitions are unclear.

Hereby: Nation will fund unbiased research determining how harmless or harmful certain illicit drugs are, ones found harmless will be legalized. Legalized drugs will be produced largely by federal employed manufacturing plants. The sell and trade of these drugs will be taxed heavily and used to fund the illicit drug research, criminal rehabilitation and education. Legalized drugs may only be grown, made synthetically, sold or produced in anyway with a special attainable license. Purchase and us of drugs of persons under 18 years of age is illegal unless proscribed by a certified doctor.

Why should a national government run drug production? You do realize that this proposal, as written, would eliminate any private sector competition in nearly the entire pharmaceuticals industry, right?

Hereby: Drugs found harmful by the research will be manufactured by the nation and sold in small unadulterated amounts. This drugs will be sold in special nation owned facilities in which the user must stay for 48 hours or till the main psychological and physical affects are gone. These facilities will have clean needles, pipes, bongs and any other means of taking for the use of the patron. Medical attention will be supplied to the patron if needed. These drugs are illegal to use, sell, produce and to posses outside of the government facility.

What about nations who have a more liberal drug policy, like Krioval? Would we need to restrict access to drugs to comply with your proposal?

Hereby: Nations must allow any researchers to produce and study drugs for science, the information gathered by these researchers will then be checked by a second civilian research company. This information will be compiled and used to educate Students of all ages. All drugs are available for medicinal purposes to certified doctors.

This appears to contradict an earlier part of your proposal. You mentioned that the government should control production and distribution, and now you mention that "any researchers" should have access to the compounds. Also, why the need for a special confirmation by a "second civilian research company"? Science relies strongly on peer review, wherein results are scrutinized carefully prior to their release (usually, there are flaws). And why should a military research institute be frozen out of the process?

Hereby: Drugs laws become more lax, the maximum time spent for a non-violent drug crimes is 10 years. More money, the money collected from the drug taxes, will be spent in rehabilitation.


Thanks, ;)
Supreme Shaman of Toxocity

You're trying to do way too much in one proposal. There's the drug legalization, prison reform, and research aspects to this proposal. Together they're an intractable mess. I think that you could pull off a decent proposal, but I'll be honest when I say that it would take a lot of work (like any other proposal). Best of luck to you.

The main issue is what constitutes an acceptable threshold of 'harm', under what conditions. Almost no substance on Earth is 'harmless'. And you're not differentiating between 'use' and 'abuse'. Furthermore, if users have a reasonable knowledge of the potential harm - such as through education or through warning labels - then I'm not sure we should require governments to protect people from themselves.

I think that is the main issue to resolve, all policy differences notwithstanding.

-- Samantha Benson
Quintessence of Dust, Delegate of Wysteria

The first problem is a fundamental one; drug legislation is extremely polarizing and is unlikely to ever survive a WA vote. I cannot think of a single (former) passed UN resolution that acted on drug policy.

I can, the UN Drug Act (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=12131355&postcount=192) whose purpose was to insure that drug laws were determined at the national level.

Bob Flibble
WA Representative