Global Crime

As I was unable to attend the meeting on Sunday, I will share my thoughts on Global Crime on the blog.

First things first, I would like to say that America is not just a victim of global crime, it is also a cause of some things. Before I say any of this, I would like to stress that I do not advocate any of the following things, but they must be taken into account when considering Global Crime.

Drugs...

We read a lot about Colombia and cocaine. We read that the US is fumigating coca fields and doing everything it can to eradicate the crop at its source. However, US attempts at fumigation rob farmers of their livelihood, and antagonize others as they resent foreign intervention into one of their customs and traditions. Ever since 1961, when the UN outlawed coca exports, the US has done what it can to eradicate cocaine production...but in actual fact, US attempts have led to contrary. We are trying to stop global crime, but our efforts are contributing to it. We need other ways to help out these areas that are producing narcotics that are dispersed around the world.

Trafficking...

The scale of this growing crime is disturbing. We need to provide something, anything, that would provide some alternative to those that a. are doing the trafficking and b/ being trafficked. I know this can be seen as a stupid thing to say, but I cannot provide another alternative. I know it is only a film, but Taken gives you an idea of what is going on in human trafficking. It is incredibly worrying the extent to which this crime is disrupting society. It is all good and well saying that we need international cooperation to stop this, but is that really going to happen? Does the UN have the power to implement harsh punishments?

This may be a ridiculous statement, but some of these crimes would not be an issue if they were legalized. Before you view me as crazy, I am not condoning the legalization of child trafficking, but for some issues, like some drug use and prostitution, there are ways round it. Look at the pragmatism of the Dutch in legalizing prostitution and marijuana in Amsterdam...drug abuse and underground prostitution has dramatically decreased since implementation. In our increasingly more global community, some things will have to change, or global crime will continue to rise...

These issues are too large for the opinion of one man, and I regret that I was not at the meeting to discuss these further...it looks like it was a great presentation...good job guys.