Argument for legalizing the adult use of cannabis was to stop the harm caused by disproportionate enforcement of drug laws in Black, Latino and other minority communities.
Argument for legalizing the adult use of cannabis was to stop the harm caused by disproportionate enforcement of drug laws in Black, Latino and other minority communities.
To “decimate” means “to destroy 10%.” I agree with you that “decimate” would be inaccurate, in the sense that the destruction wrought by the drug war easily exceeded 10%.
people have been using “decimate” to mean “to remove 90% and leave only 10% remaining.” When I was younger I was surprised to learn it didn’t mean that.
We already have a different word to indicate “to remove 10%” : tithe.
That might be your tithe, other places, groups, and organizations have different levels of tithe. Decimate has been to destroy 10 percent since the Romans used the word and killed every tenth man in a legion as punishment. This is not a new thing.