It’s been well over two years since the state of Oregon decided to repeal a prohibition of illicit drugs that lasted almost 100 years. In doing so, they became the first state in the country to decriminalize meth, heroin, LSD, oxycodone, and more.
This way, if an individual is caught with any of these drugs on their person, they’re only given a small fine, rather than a criminal charge, after which they’re referred to the closest drug addiction services center.
Who could’ve known legalizing drugs would have repercussions?
The idea behind this horrible plan was it’s actually the legality of drugs that causes them to ruin people’s lives, not the drugs themselves. We can see that couldn’t have been further from the truth.
🚨A little glimpse into the new normal for Portland’s Emergency Medical Services. @tedwheeler @TinaKotek @CommissionerRG Portland #Oregon #Measure110 #Drug #Crisis -Scanner pic.twitter.com/w0xtlxqdod
— PDX_911_info (@momma_pdx) April 4, 2023
Oregonians celebrated the measure on its one-year anniversary, claiming it would do away with the life-altering consequences of a drug arrest, which often lead to loss of employment and educational opportunities.
One big problem right now is it hasn’t worked at all. It didn’t take long for Oregon to become the state with the highest amount of methamphetamine misuse and overdose-related deaths.
To no one’s surprise, save for the few Democratic figures pretending they couldn’t have predicted this, the change didn’t actually steer people into treatment centers. The majority of those caught possessing some of these drugs either ditched their court dates or never paid the fine.
Hard drugs were decriminalized here in Oregon 2 1/2 years ago and we are experiencing a crisis of overdoses, with fatal overdoses increasing 20% year over year. Crime and homelessness have also increased dramatically.
So far, the experiment isn’t producing desirable results.
— Kristen (@Kriscilicious) April 10, 2023
Oregon sets records one after another
If this wasn’t enough, the state’s government has been painfully slow at distributing funding to rehabilitation centers, meaning the few who actually went into rehab after the decriminalization didn’t get the proper treatment.
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler even admitted the change to legislation may have been a massive failure and the state of Oregon should simply move on to different plans.
Of course, Wheeler is no stranger to these rambunctious statements. He was the one asking for millions of dollars in police funding after crime in Portland reached record highs, despite being one of the biggest supporters of the defund the police movement in his city.
So, in summary, Oregon has banned: Vaporizers, Styrofoam containers, standard capacity magazines (unconstitutional and stayed in court). But shitting yourself in the street, using any drugs in public, camping in public, petty theft, and squatting on someone else's property are…
— Murdertown🪓 (@pdxmurdertown) April 4, 2023
In 2020, the Oregon Health Authority reported six alcohol-related deaths every day.
This is more than twice the amount of drug-related deaths in the state; whereas marijuana usage in Oregon hit record highs ever since it was legalized back in 2015.
It’s almost as if addictive substances are somehow the fuel for self-destructive behavior, but we wouldn’t expect the Oregon officials to know that, as it can’t have possibly been hiding in plain sight.
