Guest Post By Carla Renae. In the style of A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift.
The original "A Modest Proposal" was written in 1729 by Jonathan Swift, it proposed cannibalism to prevent the starvation and death of millions, but the true proposal he was asking for was in the conclusion about what people should not approach him about. One of my final papers for school is to write my own proposal and how it would work with my true suggested proposals at the end. Please read this and tell me what you think. :)
An Imitation of “A Modest Proposal”
For the reduction of Murders, Political Corruption, Drug wars and expense of drug related crimes and to produce additional taxes.
It is a sad day when one considers the number of drug offenders incarcerated in the United States. We spend approximately $15 billion a year on anti-drug campaigns, incarcerating offenders and cleaning up demolition created by drug wars. There are many advantages to legalizing drugs in the United States and enacting laws against crimes like robbery, murder, and drug wars. There are approximately 200 million incarcerated people in the United States, of which 50 million are drug offenders, convicted of selling, buying, smuggling, growing, creating, DUI, robberies related to needing money for drugs, etc. I propose we legalize drugs, make them available at every purchasing center, whether it be a gas station or a Wal-mart.
This will be in an effort to reduce demolition due to drug wars, murders, expense on the US, political corruption and produce additional taxes to help with the deficit. Of the proposed $15 million spent on miscellaneous drug campaign items, $10 million is spent on incarcerating offenders, $2.7 million is spent cleaning up drug related fights, wars and crimes and $2.3 million is spent battling drug usage. Despite many efforts to keep drugs out of the US, they are still available to nearly every American. Why continue to fight them the same way and spend millions of dollars unnecessarily?
I propose we legalize each type of drug from cocaine to marijuana. These drugs could be produced by drug companies and farmers. With safeguards against inflation and inspections to verify the safety of the drugs. Producers of these products would not be able to charge absurd amounts to create/grow the product due to laws that could be enacted.
The stipulations to these readily available drugs: First, you must present ID and have it swiped into the computer, which will register your purchase with authorities. Second, pay for the purchase using cash or debit card, no credit cards will be accepted for these purchases. Third, you must be 21 or older and sign an affidavit that pops up on the credit card machine. This affidavit will require you to acknowledge and agree that you will not use these drugs prior to driving, while driving, or at work. It also requires you to acknowledge that if you are caught committing a crime such as DUI, robbery, or murder you understand that you may a. loose your license, b. loose a limb, c. be incarcerated for 30 days d. be put to death.
The laws that could be enacted are as follows: If you are found driving under the influence, the first time is $300 fine. The second time is incarceration for 30 days at the government farm. The third time your license is suspended for life, with weekend probation at the government farms. If you commit a robbery, under the influence or for money for drugs, incarcerated for 30 days the first offense at a government farm until time is served. At the government farms, your labor will repay your debt to society, you will work for free, your work earns your food and shelter. Runaways will loose 1 finger or a toe at a time. The second offense will earn you a government work camp job for 1 year. The third time, the one hand will be chopped off and limbs will continue to be removed until the action stops. There are preventative disability regulations for individuals who loose their limbs due to robbery. For murder offenses, you only get one chance. If you are found guilty of murder you will be put to death in the same manner in which you killed the victim.
There would also be laws for growing and creating, each government owned farm would be forced to get licenses for growing and creating. Each license would be specific to the trade, if you grow crops of marijuana, you have a marijuana license, etc. There would be inspections monthly of each site to verify codes and standards. If individuals were caught growing and selling without the liscense, they would be grossly fined and would go on a list for the authorities to track. Without proper liscensing if you are caught more than one time, you would then serve time at the government work camp helping produce crops for the US. The first time would be a year, the second time would carry a life sentence.
Cost at the point of sale for each type of drug would vary, but prices would be mandated by voting from the US citizens. Once the price has been decided by a majority vote by US citizens, each sales center is required to carry the product at that price. There would be no room for inflation or profit by the retailer. Taxes placed on these recreational items could be as high as 10% in some areas. The taxes made on recreational items would go directly towards debt payment.
No one need approach me with suggestions of a level tax across all classes, alleviating multiple taxation's of citizens monies so that they can afford to live, of creating laws to prevent inflation, laws that would minimize exorbitant profits from multi-million and billion dollar corporations, laws that prevent tax breaks from multi-million and billion dollar companies, of laws that regulate the price of nearly all products to stabilize our country, or laws that prevent outsourcing American jobs.
Therefore I repeat, no one need approach me about these proposals unless they are high hopes that they should be acted upon for the greater good of our country.
I am not so hellbent on my own opinion that I would reject a proposal by a wise person that could be found as sound. Prior to this wise persons suggestion I would like for them to consider how else the US could pay back the absurd debt that we have without destroying the middle and lower classes that carry the majority and should our economic system fail how would we feed the millions of Americans we have living here.
I confess I have the least personal interest in the proposed within, as I make less than $20,000 a year. My only influence is the ludicrous debt our society has and the possibility of preventing a recession.
By Carla Renae http://www.facebook.com/DietCoke?sk=app_296328391504#!/profile.php?id=100001119690050
