The Philosophical Argument Against Prohibition

May 31st, 2011 • 1 Comment

Before one can decide whether or not making certain drugs illegal is an appropriate course of action, one must consider the principle question behind it: can government tell citizens what they can and cannot do as long as their actions do not impinge on the rights of other citizens?

On one hand, people have the right to personal autonomy. If we do not allow individuals autonomy we cannot say that they are morally responsible for anything that they do. Without autonomy a person cannot retain their dignity as a human being, and without their ability to determine their personal behavior people cannot be considered to be free in the customary sense of the liberal-democratic heritage. In Canada this heritage is expressly acknowledged by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms which in §.7, guarantees the right to life, liberty, and the security of persons. There is, however, a limit to what the Charter provides, and as a society we give up parts of our liberty for rules to help protect us from the actions of others. The question is where to draw the line in surrendering aspects of our freedom. Continue reading ‘The Philosophical Argument Against Prohibition.’

History of Drug Prohibition in Canada

May 31st, 2011 • 1 Comment

The Canadian government has been experimenting with different laws prohibiting drugs since 1908. As more drugs came to the attention of authorities, laws were modified to deal with their impact, real and imagined, on Canadian society. While at first there were laws on specific types of drugs such as opium, there was a gradual movement towards more comprehensive laws.

Some were in part a response to a political backlash against the import of foreign labor. Following an influx of Chinese labor in the mid-nineteenth century there was a downturn in the number of jobs available, because Chinese laborers without families could work for lower wages than Canadians. They were in effect prohibited from bringing women over from China by the Chinese Head Tax levied between 1885 and 1923 of $50, which they could not afford to pay. This was done to protect white laborers, but it did not slow the immigration from China, just limited it to mainly men. These same workers brought with them opium, which they had become accustomed to smoking in China. Continue reading ‘History of Drug Prohibition in Canada.’

Was the Industrial Revolution Necessary?

May 29th, 2011 • No Comments

The Industrial Revolution was a period of great invention, innovation and change. However, the real revolution did not occur in industry – that was more of an evolution of technology and procedure and the way that business is conducted. The revolution occurred in the way that people live their everyday lives. The implications of the Revolution were so far reaching that it is near impossible to grasp exactly how much it affected. In some ways the changes were massive – changing the way that families are structured; women’s role in society; the way we improve industry; where populations were centered. It altered the idea that each family, for the most part, was completely economically independent, producing everything they needed to survive. These areas of life are so important that the monumental changes forever redirected how we deal with these kinds of things. It also left a mold that is followed even to this day. The Industrial Revolution is perhaps one of the most singularly significant eras in human history, and thus should be remembered as such for the way that it changed the direction of the world’s development. Continue reading ‘Was the Industrial Revolution Necessary?.’