What a waste of a life!

[Rincewind]

Setting up clinics and advice centres would cost less than sending a person to prison for smoking a joint or taking a few pills. It costs over 30k a year to keep a person in jail. More for women. Young offender prisons do not have the facilities for the treatment of drug abuse.

[JmorsonLCFC]

druggies aren't really criminals, it's more like a mental disease, once you take heroin that's it you're lost

[fuchsntf]

It was a fairly common thing in the 70s: it was known (somewhat confusingly) as a 'speedball'.

No it wasnt..a common thing.Highs lows speedies etc were still looked down on , with the kids on the street and Discos.

Mods and Rockers were only tuned into such things in films.

I come from and mixed in the milieu where such things would be offered, that would be any social stand from student parties,

to bring a bottle estate parties.It was around, it was offered, it was taken, but nowhere near common.

I went to black and white parties, seen some peddlers get thrown out ,even receive a good hiding.Under covercops and journalists sometimes, got a going over.Yes there were places one knew of, if you wanted that type of thing, but far from common.

[Ghost Troop]

Legalising and policing drugs would prevent these kind of things imo. Not only would the drug mix be controlled but sold in the right doses without the added rat poison and crap that gets added by dealers.

The government would be able to tax this also, which would rake in a fortune and make people that live off selling drugs have to work.

bit like extending licensing hours really put the brake on excessive or binge drinking?