The focus of current drug policy lies between ambiguity and abstinence; the state prefers repressive measures compared to social measures and treatment programs, since the latter are difficult to control and monitor. Whereas the production of and trafficking in drugs is generally subject to severe prosecution, sanctions for the possession and consumption of soft drugs extends from factual permissivity in the Netherlands to rigid control in Sweden, the United States, and Japan. The general ineffectiveness and undesired consequences of a repressive state drug-control strategy have contributed to support for a more liberal drug policy, usually in the form of a "prescription model." This model, however, has also been ineffective in reducing drug trafficking and the power of organized crime. Methadone treatment is helpful only for a limited category of persons. The failure of all drug-control models is due largely to the nature of drug addiction, i.e., dominance of the addict's will and the voluntary participation of the victim in the offense. Still, the ambiguous effects of all drug-control strategies are deemed by most states to be preferable to unrestrained drug trafficking. 136 footnotes