The Bill Bennett story reminds me why I'm opposed to decriminalizing so-called "victimless" crimes and going back to prohibition. These behaviors are thought to be victimless because "nobody gets hurt." That's only true if you assume that we don't have any obligations to each other, which seems to be the siren call of libertarianism.

But society is all about obligations. There is a website dedicated to bringing about the extinction of the human race, by urging people not to reproduce. (Go for it, guys!) We're supposed to be productive and support those we bring into the world and those who brought us into the world when they grow too old to support themselves. We're supposed to produce sufficient surplus to pay taxes, and put aside something to sustain us when we can't work anymore. We're supposed to raise future citizens who are inculcated with the same sense of responsibility as we were.

If I knew that we could have legal recreational drugs without having to wonder who on the highways is high, or whether my doctor, surgeon, accountant, pilot is under the influence, I might feel less opposed to them. But I've seen too many disasters of battered women, traffic deaths, etc. There just isn't any way to assure that anything we do can be truly victimless. All we can hope for is that we can make up some of the damage so as to be forgiven our failures. What did we think "no man is an island" was all about"?

I don't really believe that we can ever assume that our acts or failures to act are without an effect on anyone else. When we waste our lives or become dependent on others, or blow $8 million that could have been put to some productive use, I think we hurt ourselves, our families and our society and ultimately mankind. Of course, that principle can't be applied too strictly. We have to forgive and acknowledge that we all have failures. Nevertheless, "a man's reach should exceed his grasp" (Robert Browning). That's what made America great. When we overdose on liberty and forget its corollary, duty, we set our whole society on a downward path.