Gerson, neocon that he is, uses Ron’s principled stand for liberty and against putting people in prison against him, as though rabid criminalization were somehow evidence of “compassion”. I politely argued otherwise;

“Congressman Paul was speaking of principles, not of policy. He has stated, clearly and repeatedly that the states can and should be the locus for any (slight) conditions under which adults can consume certain (or any) substances. And he makes the point within a framework where the choice to abuse drugs, being no longer supported within a welfare state, carries high personal and economic costs, high enough to be a deterrent to most people, even if his exposition was a tad too facile. The problem with Gerson’s allegedly more “complex” conservative response to drug use, prostitution, etc is it fails to consider any of these issues other than in a sterile vacuum. For most of our history drugs were legal, widely recognized for their dangers, and their use self-limiting. The medicalization of everything in our culture and the concurrent criminalization of certain substances has effectively subsidized irresponsible, widespread, and growing use of illicit drugs, while at the same time greatly increasing overall societal costs from their use. The current course is financially unsustainable, and deadly to personal and political freedom. Kudos to Dr. Paul for having the courage to finally declare it.”