What Is Harm Reduction?
Harm reduction is a movement with the intention to minimize the casualties and spread of disease associated with drug addiction and the "drug war." Some of the argument has merit, but other parts can be detrimental to both addicted individuals and communities if not examined with the intention to work toward the best overall outcome. On one hand, harm reduction supports more money being spent on treatment and education instead of law enforcement and prisons. This is a good thing. On the other hand, they often want to legalize and regulate many drugs, hand out clean needles and even provide safe injection houses, which can seem counter-productive, although it is all relative to the situation and the environment of the individuals or groups that the practices are being applied to.
Possibly a saner approach would be to have more of a compromise between the two extremes. Cut back on prosecution and prisons as well as some of the eradication efforts and divert more people to treatment programs that actually work (rather than telling them they're hopelessly diseased) and provide effective drug abuse prevention programs to young people in our country that can also demonstrate their worthiness. This way the money goes to something that gets results, and a successful treatment and prevention plan can reduce a lot more harm overall.