• Gosplan14 [any]
      ·
      3 years ago

      Doubtful. Drug prohibition is viewed pretty negatively across the entire left nowadays.

      Even if Tobacco smoking is awful and should be reduced to a minimum, criminalizing it and hitting people with fines or even jail time for smoking cigs is yikes no matter which government does it.

      • SolidaritySplodarity [they/them]
        ·
        3 years ago

        I'm cool with a country that went through a century of humiliation and opium wars having shit to work through regarding drugs.

      • budoguytenkaichi [he/him,they/them]
        ·
        edit-2
        3 years ago

        I've seen other "nanny state" stuff get support here, and the site sometimes overcompensates in defending China, so I don't think it's too much of a stretch to say those factors would equal a non-insignificant percentage of people here going "well, it's okay when China does it, I'm sure they have their reasons".

      • MarxistMaths [he/him]
        ·
        edit-2
        3 years ago

        No one is gonna go to jail or be fined for smoking cigarettes.

        Capitalists building a profit-making enterprise out of selling cigarettes - maybe.

      • Awoo [she/her]
        ·
        3 years ago

        I don't think many in the left have a problem with prohibition per se, but the implementation of it must be actually good. The implementation of prohibition most of the time however is usually just an attempt to imprison people in for-profit prisons without doing anything at all to address the material conditions creating the drug use.

        Prohibition that isn't criminal but sends people into programs that also act as a signal for wider issues with societal conditions in an area could be effective. You need to do it without ruining lives further than they already may be suffering though.

        • SoloboiNanook [comrade/them]
          ·
          3 years ago

          yeah im sure my life is gonna be totally fine when im mandated to attend a program for smoking fuckin cigarettes lol

          • Awoo [she/her]
            ·
            3 years ago

            Your life isn't but the state can use it as a signal for issues in your area of residence that needs to be addressed.

            With a state that actually gives a fuck this would result in changes being applied to the conditions that brought about your problems.

    • BynarsAreOk [none/use name]
      ·
      edit-2
      3 years ago

      This comment is nothing but bait. What answer are you expecting exactly? NZ is not an AES but it is possible for some small amount of good to happen anywhere in the world regardless.

      Government policy can be used for good, it all depends on implementation. This article is nothing but a copy paste of this previous article.

      Maybe we need some native NZers here to tell us what the left is thinking but it seems the only ones complaining are right wingers and libertarians with the usual "but mah small business owners" and "but but big government supposed to be bad!11!".

      I can understand why some people react negatively too, we are accustomed to being doomers, everything sucks or everything promising will eventually prove to be shit.

      I understand and sympathize with the struggle with addiction and I hope NZ is prepared to help people quit like one of the other proposals mentioned is gradualy reducing nicotine.

      But at the same time I have to say is that the pandemic should have already proven that only decisive government action actualy changes the world and if NZ is finaly doing it then good for them. I'd say the same thing if it was alcohol too. Spending another 50 years arguing among the """"""left"""""" about whether or not it is actualy good or shitty to forcibly stop people from ruining their bodies is another 50 years of people losing their family and friends to shitty capitalism induced preventable diseases.

      At the same time you can rest assured you wont have to think too much about this because there is zero chance places like the US could ever even consider an actualy good public health policy anyway so.