How much would Cocaine cost if it was fully legal ?

Del2005

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121542179#Comment_121542179

The war on drugs is causing more suffering than legalising them would and treating addictions. We've failed countries in Central/South America and parts of Asia where people are killed because cartels are fighting to control the drug trade and people are slaves to some of the cartels. Legalizing it would remove the power of the cartels so countries could rebuild if they aren't fighting a lost war.

The vast majority of people who take drugs legal or illegal don't get addicted. Taking drugs at the weekend isn't addiction, taking drugs to go to work is. The only reason why there's social stigma is because they are illegal. We've bigger social issues with burying our heads in the sand with addictions, how many young people are addicted to gambling yet nothing is done about that. Any addiction is bad not just illegal drugs.

How many billions of Euro are spent on the war on drugs instead of on addiction treatments. A Black Hawk would pay for the treatment of lots of addicts. There's multiple naval vessels doing drug interdictions all over the world yet they only get 10% at best, how many treatment facilities for addicts could we get instead of sending ships out to let 90% through.

Decimalising drugs still keeps the cartels and dealers in business, legalising it will drive most of them out of business.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121542490#Comment_121542490

Regular cocaine users can be absolute nightmares, arrogant and narcissistic

Dugs don't make people nightmares, arrogant, narcissists or violent. Drugs just remove the veils people put up and shows who/what they really are.

Coke was always popular, it's just gotten a lot more open recently. But when the head shops where open no one was buying coke, speed, pills or weed from the dealers. Coke is only part of the problem, people are openly taking heroin and crack on the streets of Dublin and they are what's causing the ODs. We can't make drugs safe, have you seen how much damage alcohol does / cars are extremely dangerous / a lot of household chemicals are lethal , we just have to manage them. People have been getting off their heads since we discovered mind altering substances, making them illegal never worked.

Gregor Samsa

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121542171#Comment_121542171

Yeah, remember the peace and tranquility we had when head shops were legal:

https://m.independent.ie/irish-news/latest-head-shop-attack-sparks-organised-crime-probe/26651766.html

martingriff

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121542812#Comment_121542812

So if Ireland suddenly legalised drugs all those worries for the South/Central American and Asian countries would be solved?

Alkers

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121542692#Comment_121542692

No but if something is a rampant as cocaine or alcohol even with the vast resources spent trying to combat it as is currently, you have to realise the approach is wrong.

Legalising it takes the value out of it and reduces the cash cow for the criminal gangs. I'm not suggesting they disappear but the avenues for them to make so much money are significantly reduced.

The resources in terms of court and police time and money can be instead spent tackling crime and addressing the harmful aspects of drug use (outside of criminality).

What else do you think is compatible to cocaine use which is as widespread amongst otherwise law abiding people? I'm not talking about the gangs here.

Alkers

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121542425#Comment_121542425

Well it depends on why the thing is illegal doesn't it. Having cocaine illegal is causing more harm in terms of the revenue streams for criminal gangs than it would in terms of user harm were it to be legalised and regulated as per alcohol.

Oscar_Madison

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121543468#Comment_121543468

I guess it’s a world problem, not just an Irish one - legalising or even decriminalising it will solve very few problems and will create a lot more, especially social and psychological ones. There will definitely be a huge increase in users for starters which in my view is not a good thing. But as others have said, it won’t end a black market in cocaine - it will reduce it yes but not eliminate it .

But more importantly, there are new drugs out there on the way to these shores- fentanyl is now confirmed as being in Ireland- that’s a fcking serious piece of sh1t drug - it’s obvious we need to up our game and legislation on how we tackle the kingpins of the drug world.

New max security prisons, massively harsh sentences for the crime bosses, increased shore patrols with significant investment in our Navy, , much quicker freezing of assets (and indeed distribution of those assets into the state coffers) will go some way - but tackling the end users of cocaine considering the well healed are the ones supporting this industry should also be done - shop them all to the guards is my view- let them receive a criminal record for drugs and let’s see just how well healed they remain.

Ubbquittious

Cocaine will be still expensive if legal. You see we are constantly maximum power point tracked for the enjoyment we get out of things by the government and the megacorps.

If you were able to experience euphoria by eating grass the government would step in to try and reduce its usage. They'd tax it or ban it and grass would become a hot commodity. They do this to make sure people keep showing up to work and continue to strive for getting their kicks from consumerism.

If any new thing appears that gives a very high amount of enjoyment with little spend it will pose a risk to the capitalist system so the government is automatically inclined to kibosh it in order to protect the system.

Del2005

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121543622#Comment_121543622

New max security prisons, massively harsh sentences for the crime bosses, increased shore patrols with significant investment in our Navy, , much quicker freezing of assets (and indeed distribution of those assets into the state coffers) will go some way - but tackling the end users of cocaine considering the well healed are the ones supporting this industry should also be done - shop them all to the guards is my view- let them receive a criminal record for drugs and let’s see just how well healed they remain.

This is what happens now, it doesn't work and cost billions. Jails in the USA where so full of people convicted for drug offences they deported them all home and have made several central American countries some of the most dangerous places in the world. The US Navy and Coast Guard have ships, helicopters and satellite technology trying to stop drugs and they only get <10%. There's a huge narco sub graveyard around the Canaries and Azores from all the drugs that get though. The "massive" haul last week here was a tiny percentage of what gets into the EU.

Why don't we invest the money in treating addictions instead of criminalising people?

Mr. teddywinkles

Tenner a kee

dxhound2005

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121544190#Comment_121544190

Are you smoking grass man.

taratee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121542413#Comment_121542413

I agree that legalization would never work. However, I disagree with your point about the government. It'd cost a small fortune to run those stores in Ireland and the support services for people who become dependent on their drug of choice would also need to be included in the price. The drug gangs will always be able to undercut any legal competition.

taratee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121543622#Comment_121543622

I didn't realise that fentanyl was confirmed in Ireland. When did that happen? That could snowball into an absolute nightmare in a few years.

_Whimsical_

Surely it would cost more?

It would need to be regulated and adhere to manufacturing and public health standards, so there'd be an onus on producers to comply, and complying generally is an expensive enough process?

Oscar_Madison

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121544646#Comment_121544646

Article in the paper just before Christmas - a couple of people hospitalised - it’s not widespread yet by any means but it’s here

Str8outtaWuhan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121541974#Comment_121541974

War on drugs is lost because we are fighting the wrong enemy. Target the users and the war is won. If society treated drug users the same way we treat child rapists, there would be zero demand for drugs. Our society is too weak to stomach the necessary steps to eradicate demand.

Cheddar Bob

There are too many variables to legalising cocaine that make it incomparable with legalising cannabis.

What purity level will chemist coke be sold at per gram? Do we ban people with a poor BMI from taking it?

It's damn hard to overdose on alcohol- you try downing two, three bottles of vodka in 2 hours and your body will save you by spewing it up.

Cocaine doesnt have that mechanism. The government will not be legalising something that when used excessively can kill instantly.

Strumms

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121544795#Comment_121544795

I agree, the user needs to be hit more, targeted more…but I doubt that’s ever going to be possible….

you need prison places to go that route…. Something which we don’t have. And will not have for probably decades. The rate at which our population is exploding and will continue to… our prison population as of September gone was 4,612 according to the IPRT.

that number exceeds the last publicised prison places available figure which is or was at around 4,300 people….

So the courts and Gardai have no scope to be knocking into pubs / clubs and having a look see in the toilets…because ultimately the judges won’t / can’t do anything about it…. Nowhere to put people that are committing everyday crimes, so starting a clampdown on rampant drug use…. It’s a losing battle…

build another prison would seem to be the straightforward solution but the country whilst might be able to build it, it’s costing the state and us taxpayers serious money.

again the IPRT tell us… “The rate of imprisonment in Ireland is approximately 89 per 100,000 of the general population (beginning of 2023). In 2022, the average cost of an “available, staffed prison space” was €84,046, a 4.6% increase from the year before .”

so really we are stuck between a rock and a hard place…

the people that call for legalising it to sort it ? If there was a major issue with rape, assault why not legalise those crimes ? If there is a problem, no just double down the efforts to eradicate it ! Might have to upset some NGOs and certain cohorts of people but it’s long time we refocus on identifying and solving issues in this country that taxpayers and citizens are faced with as opposed to what’s happening currently…

we a serious problem with leadership in the country, the lack of it….the word NO ! unfortunately has become a rather unfashionable answer to difficult questions and requests… there are very difficult times ahead for us all.

Str8outtaWuhan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121545119#Comment_121545119

We lock up fellas for importing garlic and refusing to use a preferred pronoun but we let drug users and pushers roam free.

notthereyet

Never tried the stuff myself but was at a party recently where it was freely available, I wasn't drinking and was drug free and was able to take in the atmosphere, Jesus it was mad stuff, no aggressiveness all hugging and kissing even lads that would have a lot of drink in them all lovey, dovey. Seems to make people very doseile and chilled. If you were around in the 80s and 90s after a night out the flaking that went on after drink was unreal, mid 50s now myself so won't bother with it at this stage.

pgj2015

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121542020#Comment_121542020

forget about what happened in blanch, its my nose falling off, id be worried about. disgusting drug in my opinion and people are foolish to waste their money on it.

hoodie6029

This is AH, not current affairs.

Legalise it and you’ll have the retailers trying to one up each other. Instead of shooting and stabbing each other in family restaurants it will be:

‘Ethically sourced’

’Modern day slavery free’

’Carbon neutral supply chain’

’For every acre of rainforest we destroy to plant this stuff we up the payout to the indigenous people by a kilo’

‘I can’t believe it’s not cocaine’

‘With laxatives so you can relive the pre-legalisation days’

It will just be endless marketing gimmicks and ruin the whole scene with commercialisation…

Cheddar Bob

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121545222#Comment_121545222

If you saw them put stuff up their nose and act like that it was MDMA powder they were on tbh.

That or they were sniffing coke but had already taken a good few yokes.

StupidLikeAFox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121545190#Comment_121545190

We locked that fella up for tax evasion actually, around 2m worth if I recall. Im constantly perplexed at how he is as some sort of working class hero

GSBellew

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121541974#Comment_121541974

It will be more expensive than it is at present, there will still be cheaper illegal supplies and more out of their mind twats off their faces on drugs.

Leg End Reject

Legalise drugs or not, pump money into addiction therapy or not, people will still do what they want.

There's no simple answer, same with alcohol and gambling. Even prescription drugs that have passed drug trials can cause health problems.

None of us are getting out alive.

cj maxx

Coke was that widespread in 08 , I saw lads putting it in coke joints and smoking it and acting high . When it has absolutely no affect doing it that way . Dumb people. And anyone who says different is talking nonsense.

it’s the same as burning a €50 and getting ‘high’

AndrewJRenko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121545190#Comment_121545190

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121545974#Comment_121545974

And no one has been locked up for refusing to use a preferred pronoun, regardless of how hard you try to play the victim card for the aggressive bully Burke.

silliussoddius

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121545847#Comment_121545847

Can you get gluten free cocaine?

hoodie6029

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121546179#Comment_121546179

Oh yes! Put that in a reusable packet or better yet get it at the ‘bring your own own packaging’ shop. Absolute winner. A gluten free line and a tumeric latte. Breakfast of absolute doses!

kirk.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121541974#Comment_121541974

The black market will undercut the legal trade as there's no taxes

It's happening right now with marijuana in the US