IGNORING EXPERIENCE - REPEATING FAILURE: ILLUSTRATION FROM ITALY:

In 2006 a bill known as the Fini-Giovanardi Law was passed in Italy, “heralding the mass criminalization of drug users in spite of the success of a 1993 referendum to de-penalize the personal use of drugs.” The result: in less than three years prison overcrowding has reached record levels – some 40% above official “capacity”. There has been a 7.45% increase in arrests, and/but “confiscation of drugs has fallen by 10.5%.” The estimate of addicts behind bars in Italy has risen from 8,363 in December 2006, to 14,743 by Jan 30, 2008. When will they ever learn...
Full story (in Italian)