Jeff Wang Blog

For the past few decades, targetting the sellers has been very ineffective in stopping the sale of illegal drugs.

When you arrest the sellers, it only exacerbates the issue.

The fundamental law of economics that controls any market is supply and demand.

Stopping drug sellers decreases supply, making it more scarce, while the demand remains the same, or more often rising due to the scarcity of the drugs. Prices rise, and the sellers who are now in jail are replaced by newcomers who see the potential to make a big profit in the now scarce economy.

People want what is rare, and what is rare is expensive, and people will flock to the money.

If the ultimate goal here is to eliminate illegal drugs in society, perhaps we need to change our focus from targetting sellers to also target buyers. Cutting demand means there is no incentive to sell, and if both sellers and buyers are slowly eliminated together, the whole economy will collapse quicker.

Perhaps the solution to other problems in our life is not the one we have been focusing on.

Change your focus and see if there is a difference

Good Luck.