Maher offers an alternative to the current approach on narcotics issues. The United States wastes money enforcing laws that do not solve the problem; if anything, they perpetuate it. The issue should be approached economically, by putting more money into poor neighborhoods and controlling world opium production. He proposes an overhaul of the prison system with a focus on rehabilitation, rather than the current approach that generates further crime. In addition, he suggests applying different standards to prisons depending on their individual situations, and reevaluating criminal penalties that reinforce social and economic inequity.