Under the influence of the drug Ice a man knifed his mother to death and then took the life of his seven year old nephew. The effect of this drug varies from person to person but it is known to increase the strength factor and rage of users and many believe it inflicts a temporary state of insanity. It is not unusual for users to try and inflict murder on paramedics, police or even innocent bystanders. Ice users are not under any form of self control.
We have been warned that if we do not succeed in getting Ice under control it will do irreparable damage to Australia as a nation. It is flooding onto the market, both as an import from overseas and from drug labs in our suburbs. This flourishing drug trade is delivering big money to suppliers and there is no shortage of willing customers.
We are a civilized country and our attitude to drugs has focused on rehabilitation for those addicted. We certainly inflict punishment on those caught manufacturing and trafficking these illegals but the rewards are so overwhelming that the drug trade accept prison as a reasonable tradeoff. A successful drug trader lives the life of a movie star - and often becomes a darling of the media.
When Australia abolished the death penalty it was widely conceded that the threat of execution did little to reduce the murder rate. Today, the sentence for murder is usually about twenty years, and only about half of this is served before the murderer is given parole. A century ago the contention was that murder deserved the gallows - and a life for a life was the appropriate punishment.
Our attitude to drugs is changing. Marijuana is fast becoming decriminalised and those addicted to Heroin are put of a Methadone programme to ease their cravings. The difference is that Ice is a totally different drug that changes the mental balance of users - and users can easily be set on a murderous rampage that takes the lives of others.
No doubt the thoughts of some people will turn to reintroducing the death penalty to stamp out this scourge. That is unlikely to get public acceptance, but if it were to be applied to Ice it would need a very different protocol to the protracted years on death row and innumerable appeals that now see many of those convicted die of old age before the execution is scheduled to happen.
It is an interesting thought to imagine just how the drug trade would react if anyone caught importing, manufacturing or trafficking in Ice was put before a judge, convicted - and sentenced to death, and that death sentence was carried out within seven days. No appeals. No second chances.
Of course there would be howls of protest from the civil liberties people. What if by some tragic mistake an innocent got convicted ? What if a person with a mental disorder tragically got involved in drugs ? What if the prosecution setup a sting - and a simple minded person grabbed the bait ?
Of course, it will never happen ! We are far too civilized to implement a solution that might actually seriously dent the Ice trade. The really big operators distance themselves at arms length from the operational side, but it would certainly make the chemists brewing Ice in small quantities stop and take notice, and the pushers might think the risk factor to reward was suddenly very negative.
At the very worst, it would rid society of people who would not be missed !
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