Jimmy Carter on drug laws and the War on Drugs (INFOGRAPHIC)

Jimmy Carter wanted marijuana de-criminalized

The man who in his presidency declared the White House to be “dry” and repeatedly told reporters that no liquor, only wine was served on state dinners, did continue drinking the occasional martini (as staffers have confirmed.) But, this man is one of the first people to have said the drug laws were too strict and needed to be changed. And we honor him here.

Treatment and not punishment

The 39th president of the US, sent a message to Congress in 1977, saying the country should decriminalize the possession of less than an ounce of marijuana, with a full program of treatment for addicts. Further in his message, he summarized it perfectly: “Penalties against possession of a drug should not be more damaging to an individual that the use of the drug itself.”

His ideas were widely accepted at the time, as eleven states had decriminalized possession of up to an ounce of marijuana for personal use. So, are his ideas and principles of tolerance something that we can learn from? Also, are we progressing or regressing in terms of national drug sentencing laws?

A lack of balance or insight?

In the 80’s, the War on Drugs became a big deal. The balanced drug policies that included treatment and rehabilitation of addicts were replaced with continuous efforts to try to control drug imports from foreign countries. If you look at this from today’s perspective, you come to ask yourself, “Is the so-called Drug War really working?”

What are your standing points on this issue? If you have any comments and questions, feel free to post them in the comments section at the end. We try to answer all legitimate inquiries with a personal and prompt response.

About the author

Lee Weber

Lee Weber is a published author, medical writer, and woman in long-term recovery from addiction. Her latest book, The Definitive Guide to Addiction Interventions is set to reach university bookstores in early 2019.