Drug War Costs Vs. Benefits

Ethan Nadelmann questions the benefit-cost ratio of the war on drugs.

The real problem is that today's drug control policies foster more harm than good; indeed, they probably cause more overall harm than drug abuse itself.

Discussion Question. If drugs were legal and subject to tax, we could refer to the tax as a tariff. When drugs are illegal, the model is closer to that of a quota. How can you compare these two regimes by using the economics of tariffs vs. quotas?