Cannabis and the control of complexity

Abstract

The War on Drugs is a control system conceived throughout last century. As such, it follows the industrial logic: it proposes a mass solution, standardized, hierarchical and rigid. The problem is that this approach does not work properly with complex systems that are diverse and multifaceted and call for flexibility. Few things are more complex than cannabis, a multiple substance used in countless contexts by diverse actors. Responding to this complexity, new models are appearing in places like Portugal, Uruguay and the United States that are post-industrial, more flexible, and have its intelligence distributed in networks.