Decriminalize Drugs Essay - 1192 Words

One the many controversies in our country today, regards the prohibition of illegal narcotics. Deemed unhealthy, hazardous, and even fatal by the authorities that be; the U.S. government has declared to wage a war on drugs. It has been roughly fifteen years since this initiative has begun, and each year the government shuffles more money into the unjust cause of drug prohibition. Even after all of this, the problem of drugs that the government sees still exists. The prohibition of drugs is a constitutional anomaly. There are many aspects and sides to look at the issue from, but the glaring inefficiency current laws exude is that any human should have the right to ingest anything he or she desires. The antagonist on the other end believes†¦show more content†¦The vast majority of all people, addicts and alcoholics included, do not consume drugs as a means of destroying their lives. Nor do they consume them intending to become addicted to them. Abuse and addiction are the adve rse consequences that sometimes occur when drugs are consumed at habitual or routine levels. They are the survival-threatening features of the behavior in question, not the functional or pleasurable features that fundamentally motivate the behavior. The most important factor for the spread of crack and heroin is that when opiates and cocaine are illegal, low potency versions of these drugs become extensively expensive. Thus, consumers are induced to switch to more intensive and more harmful drug forms and delivery systems. Absent the incentives created by current policy, consumers will revert to the modes of consumption that are less damaging. The rise of illegal drug use that began in the 1960s was accompanied by the growing opinion that drug use should be legalized. This feeling remained strong though the middle of the 1970s when the existing research on drugs such as marijuana and cocaine did not clearly point to health hazards. Those who favored legalization thought that certain drugs could be used responsibly by most people who would otherwise be law-abiding or even model citizens. In other words, they believed most drug use to be a victimless crime. Some of the arguments for legalizing the sale and possession of drugs haveShow MoreRelated decriminalize drugs Essay1198 Words   |  5 Pagesunhealthy, hazardous, and even fatal by the authorities that be; the U.S. government has declared to wage a â€Å"war on drugs.† It has been roughly fifteen years since this initiative has begun, and each year the government shuffles more money into the unjust cause of drug prohibition. Even after all of this, the problem of drugs that the government sees still exists. The prohibition of drugs is a constitutional anomaly. There are many aspects and sides to look at the issue from, but the glaring inefficiencyRead MoreThe War On Drugs And Its Effects On The United States1324 Words   |  6 Pagesnon-violent drug charges (drug policy, 2015). These people’s lives are now forever changed because of a mistake they made. This mistake is continually made every single day and Americans are being punished in extreme ways for a non violen t crime. The United States needs to decimalize all drugs because the drug war is costly, causes high incarceration rates, and isn’t effective as European drug solutions. In the 20th century, the United States would begin a disastrous campaign called the War on Drugs, thisRead MoreDrugs Are A Very Controversial Topic Containing Many Grey1735 Words   |  7 PagesDrugs are a very controversial topic containing many grey areas. Some may argue that all drugs should be illegal, but does this also include prescription drugs given to one by their doctor. Others may say that drugs like anti-depressants are an acceptable addiction, however, drugs such as heroine are not. There are others that advocate for all drugs to be legal so that it can become a safe and regulated process, but questions arise on whether that would help or hurt the drug users and the communityRead MoreWar on Drugs818 Words   |  3 Pagesunderstatement to the punishments given to drug dealers for their drug related offenses. Mandatory minimum drug sentencing was arguably established to target higher level drug dealers but recently the majority of cases have been low level drug dealers. Distributing narcotics is a serious offense, but do these people who are trying to support themselves, a family, or an addiction deserve to spend close to a lifetime incarcerated? During the 1960’s drugs became a symbol of â€Å"youthful rebellion, socialRead MoreShould Marijuana Drugs Be Legalized?932 Words   |  4 PagesThe subject of drugs has certainly been an issue that has been widely discussed. Over the years, it has always boiled down to whether all drugs should be legalized or not. While the United States has been arguing over the topic of for many years, countries, such as Portugal, have taken an alternative and very unique way to fight the war on drugs. In 2001, the Portuguese government decided to flip its war on drugs strategy entirely: It decriminalized them all (Aleem). At first, this strategy was greatlyRead MoreThe Impacts of the War on Drugs1075 Words   |  4 Pages The War On Drugs has lasted many years, including before it was officially called â€Å"War On Drugs.† The prohibition of drugs first got its start in the late 1800’s with anti-opium laws, focusing on chinese immigrants. This was common with the first anti-drug laws. It entirely about scientific based facts on what the effects or risks of the drugs, rather who was associated with the use of the specific drugs. For example, the anti-cocaine laws in the early 1900’s were directed at black men, and theRead MoreThe Drug Prohibition Of The United States Of America1629 Words   |  7 PagesThe cohorts of drug prohibition argue that the benefits of the prohibition are self-evident and undeniable. The basis of this assumption argument is that without prohibition the consumption of drug would skyrocket, and therefore, lead to disastrous outcomes. However, there is no evidence on the commonly held belief. The empirical evidence that exists does not support the notion of s ouring drug consumption. For instance, in the Netherland and Switzerland, where marijuana is legalized, the consumptionRead MoreShould Marijuana Be Legalized?1331 Words   |  6 PagesWar On Drugs Decriminalization provides a solution the problems related to drugs. Decriminalization is not making drugs legal, it is treating the drug addicts as a patient instead of making them feel like they are criminals and putting them into a jail although selling drugs is still illegal. Drugs must be decriminalized because decriminalization has proven that the death rates and crime rates have decreased and the use of drugs have decreased in decriminalized countries such as PortugalRead More Drug Laws of the Netherlands Essay1344 Words   |  6 Pages -Drug Laws of The Netherlands – Is a Permissive Legal System Better than a Restrictive One in the Case of Drugs? Introduction The Netherlands is one of the most highly developed countries in the world. It is an international, well-integrated country with policies that are among the world’s most liberal. In fact, The Netherlands has perhaps the most liberal view on drug use than any other country and has even gone to the extreme of extraordinarily relaxing its laws regarding ‘soft’ drugs. HoweverRead MoreThe Prohibition Of Intoxicating Substances1786 Words   |  8 Pageshistorical model of modern-day drug prohibition. Just like with alcohol during its tenure of illegality, the flow of drugs is not being stopped simply because of the laws and policies in place barring trafficking, sale, and consumption. Just like with alcohol during its’ prohibition years, a black market is thriving on sales of illegal substances, that in turn puts money in to the pockets of criminals. From the 1.5 billion dollars that the federal government allocated to combat drugs in 1985, the amount has