There’s not much doubt that the war on drugs has been a bitter failure, both in terms of what’s it’s done to American cities and to the often war-like environments in regions that produce drugs. But like drugs themselves, kicking the drug war habit is not easy. And just decriminalizing drugs might not be the high we’re after. Jim Hinch in The Atlantic: What Happened When Oregon Decriminalized Hard Drugs. “Early results of this reform effort, the first of its kind in any state, are now coming into view, and so far, they are not encouraging. State leaders have acknowledged faults with the policy’s implementation and enforcement measures. And Oregon’s drug problems have not improved … In a nonpartisan statewide poll earlier this year, more than 60 percent of respondents blamed Measure 110 for making drug addiction, homelessness, and crime worse. A majority, including a majority of Democrats, said they supported bringing back criminal penalties for drug possession.” But is it too soon to give up on alternatives? From bad to worse back to bad doesn’t seem like a good route.