From the article...
crystal meth is a cheap date; it has been referred to as the poor mans cocaine. Cocaine and meth are both stimulants, so it is reasonable to assume that they appeal to the same subset of drug users. During cocaines heyday, meth was nearly extinct on the illegal market.
However, during the drug war this changed as it became cheaper and safer for those who traded in cocaine to switch to a cheaper product. And so was born the drug we know today as crystal meth.
This is a pattern in other prohibitions. The prohibition of a substance does not eliminate demand, it only changes the nature of the market. During the prohibition of alcohol in the United States moonshine became a substitute for previously legal alcohol. Although having the same desired effect of alcohol before prohibition moonshine contained higher levels of toxins and was regarded as more dangerous previously available alcohol. Like many government policies, the prohibition of illegal drugs is motivated by good intentions. However, the unintended consequences have been disastrous with more potent and dangerous drugs entering the market.
The government should move towards a policy that allows for the free trade of substances that are currently prohibited however brutal those substances are to their users. Such a policy, which moves towards total legalisation, would be effective in reducing crime and breaking the monopoly criminals have on the drugs trade, and reduce the tendency toward ever-stronger substances. A more realistic policy decision would be to move towards a system of decriminalisation as currently used in Portugal. A more liberal policy would allow for a safer environment for those who use the drugs, remove many stigmas currently attached to drug use, and make it easier for addicts to seek treatment.