"The kaleidoscope world that the law has created and from which the law offers no protection."

I don't want to give an argument for the legalization of drugs.

You've got your own brain.

But this controversial topic is inevitably linked to any discussion of Ben Elton's High Society.

I had no idea who Ben Elton was. I picked up this book in Phnom Penh minutes before a ten hour bus trip because it was either that or New Moon. It looked like a nice, flimsy read. A poor man's Trainspotting, I surmised.

Never judge a book by its cover.

High Society puts forth one main argument.

The legalization of ALL drugs would destroy entire international criminal networks.

I agree that:

1. Traditional drug policy has failed mainstream society. This is why we have homeless junkies, discarded needles and parts of Sydney that you wouldn't let your dog walk alone in. If you legalize all drugs then you can cut out large amounts human trafficking and prostitution, which are fuelled by the illegal drug trade. Drug usage is now safer and out in the open, instead of in a back lane in Redfern.

2. Legalizing drugs would mean that individuals who choose to take drugs are not automatically deemed criminals. In most Western nations, it doesn't matter if you're a forty year old professional who enjoys the occasional toke on a Sunday afternoon, in the eyes of the law, you are a filthy drug user, the same as any heroin junkie.

The restrictions of society can create ugly, poisonous environments. If you thought that Edinburgh in Trainspotting was ugly, take Elton's depiction:

"This is Edinburgh, right? Edinburgh in Britain, forth richest economy on earth, right? Not Beirut, not the Gaza Strip, not fooking Croatia, an' I'm in a flat wi' a man who carries a machine gun. Not only that but the mum comes out next wi' a sawn off! It's Bonnie an' fookin' Clyde except this couple are about as sexy as a dog's arse, sad drug-fooks the both of 'em, but heavily armed sad drug-fooks."

I can hear you already.

But surely if we legalize drugs we will have grandmothers out in the street tripping balls on LSD! Four year olds with lighters and spoons!

Simple rebuttal:

Alcohol is legal. Is everyone an alcoholic? Alcohol has induced just as much, if not more, misery and suffering than heroin and crack combined throughout history.

"I saw this documentary once, it were called the "The Wet House", about the irredeemable winos at the very bottom o' the heap, people for whom recovery was not an option, people with literally rotting limbs, and semi-shut down bodies whose only fully functioning part of their system was their ability to swallow alcohol. Well, do you want to know what the greatest danger these people faced was? These bits of disabled and incapable human wreckage? Other people, that's what. Pissed-up yobs setting 'em on fire for a laugh. True, that's what they faced. The more utterly debased you are the more chance there is of some drunk bastard casually killin' you as he passes by."

But I don't totally agree with the legalization of drugs either.

Not because I think there is any chance of four year-olds shooting up heroin. Because logically the government stands to profit from the legalization of drugs. The implementation of such a law would inevitably involve a shit load of tax. As one of the ministers in Elton's novel puts it, "we could import it at the cost of tea and sell it at the cost of caviar, all at an immense profit to the treasury."

Legalization would also help any government maintain their power. Income tax could be cut in half because of all the money coming from now legal drugs. This means plenty left over to win the next election.

It is a very complex and sensitive argument.

But High Society is a good read whether you agree or disagree with the legalization of drugs. Sometimes I find it hard to remember that you can enjoy a novel without having to get up on your soap box about it.