Do you want better streets or a bigger ‘war on drugs’?

President Richard Nixon did not see the slaughter of innocents when he launched the “War on Drugs.” Of course, his staff thought he did it to punish hippies, anti-war protesters and blacks. Politicians invent wars as diversionary tactics when they choose not to take care of their citizens. They will even tell lies to do so. See Vietnam’s “Gulf of Tonkin Resolution” and Iraq’s “weapons of mass destruction.”

Now after 40 years and hundreds of thousands of deaths in Latin America, do U.S. citizens think they are free of this government crime? When politicians make activities illegal, they may create more problems than they solve. The dead who lived through alcohol prohibition could tell you.

Add the past heroin suicides of unemployed America to the future unemployment provided by automation and pretend that tough-guy wars work. Only for those who fail to look below the surface. Then consider guaranteed annual income or civilization’s collapse. If I owned a factory, I would automate.

On Millbrook Avenue, between Shaw and Teague avenues, I usually hit about 100 potholes. So do you want bigger “war” budgets or smoother streets in Fresno and elsewhere? Your choice.

This story was originally published June 23, 2017 at 1:04 PM with the headline "Do you want better streets or a bigger ‘war on drugs’?."