Sen.Bonham: Lost generation due to our drug social experiment

Oregon has lost a generation due to our soft-on-drugs social experiment
By Oregon State Senator Dan Bonham,

As Oregon moved back to the recriminalization of drugs last month, policymakers are starting to reflect on the devastation of our deadly social experiment. In 2019, before decriminalization, the statewide overdose deaths were at 280. 2023 reported 1,392, with still more to count – a 397% increase. Some counties were reporting up to a 500% increase in deaths.

These death rates are devastating. The secondary consequences are tragic as well. Communities were torn apart. Our streets became zombie-like wastelands of human suffering and addiction. Residents no longer wanted to leave their homes to go into city centers, or even take their children to a local park. We unraveled the fabric of our society at every level.

I am glad to see our state change course. This serves as a reminder of the dangers of extreme policies that ignore experts in the field just to try something new. As I have mentioned before, many liberal donors like to use our state as lab rats because we are small, liberal-leaning and cheaper to control.

And this experiment literally cost us a generation.