Legalization On Drugs

Drug decriminalization is opposed by the majority of Americans. Leaders in drug prevention, education, treatment, and law enforcement are against it, as are many political leaders. However, pro-drug advocacy groups, who support the use of drugs, are making headlines. They are influencing legislation and having a significant impact on the national policy debate in the United States. Although, pro-advocacy groups claim decriminalization of drugs will lower incarceration rates and boost the economy, drugs must stay illegal in America, if not, more people will use, causing negative effects on health, families and communities.

As the variables above are added up it, quickly becomes apparent that the “war on drugs,” during the mid 1980s-early 2000s had a negative impact on American life. With all the money spent and lives ruined, the United States came no closer to solving drug issues it had faced in the years prior. Citizens took the biggest brunt of this “war” with the fact that not only did they have to forcibly financially support the “war on drugs,” but in some cases, they had their civil liberties encroached upon or even completely violated. It could be argued that retrospectively looking at the “war on drugs” makes criticizing our country and the officials in charge easy, but when you actually look at the statistics and events surrounding this time period criticism

The United States has more citizens imprisoned than any other country on earth. Based upon data collected by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, there are over 1.5 million people incarcerated in either state or federal prisons. Of those in federal prison, 46.4% are drug offenders (Bureau of Prisons). Drug offenders represent a significant number of prisoners in the United States. I personally believe that through the use of the non-intervention perspective, that the total number of prisoners in the United States can be drastically reduced. One of the main tenets of the non-intervention perspective is the legalization of “… nonseries victimless crimes, such as the possession of small amounts of marijuana.” (Essentials of Criminal Justice Pg. 19) Nonviolent drug offenders account for a

Even the U.S. is considering loosening up on drugs right now, over half of americans support marijuana for its recreational and medicinal purposes, it’s already been legalized in two states so far, setting up legalization for more states in the future (Huey). Huey also claims- “Drug reformers nationwide continue to argue that legalization will free up more resources to fight harder drugs, deny traffickers billions of dollars in profit, and generate tax revenues for prevention and treatment through state-controlled marijuana sales” (Huey). If there are more resources to fight harder drugs than funds used only to punish minor drug felons, there would be a lot less problems with the prison system and inmate

In 2015, 1,488,707 people in the United States were arrested on drug charges. Nearly 84 percent of those arrest were for possession only. As one can imagine these arrest impact the American justice system greatly. Within America's prisons in 2010 more than half of all inmates were serving time based on drug related charges. The prisons within America are greatly overcrowded, and I believe that decriminalizing drug use could offer assistance in this situation.

For many people, the thought of making drugs easily accessible for consumption by the masses may be frightening. After all, we have drug laws in place because they have the potential to be harmful. It also may not be difficult to imagine that it could very well be subject to failure due to a numerous amount negative externalities that may occur. Our nation has been engaged in a war on drugs for several decades now. The effectiveness of this war, however, is a topic that has continuously been debated. Some argue that universal legalization of drugs, an alternative that has never been tried, may have a greater benefits when compared to the present state of the war on drugs. On the other hand, the opposition believes that legalization would only pave the way for a vast amount of crime and many wasted resources.

As a nation we face a serious enemy that is not on foreign soil but here at home. The drug problem in this country has truly affected many lives and families. This enemy has no limits and affects our domestic tranquility. All drugs should not be legalized because they have the ability to impair judgment and do much bodily harm. Drugs have been a dark shadow lingering over our country for many years. In recent years, the heroine epidemic has spread throughout the nation; it has taken many lives and hurt many families along the way.

On January 1st the states of Colorado and Washington officially began the regulation of legal marijuana sales. Thousands of people from all over the country including tourists from Wisconsin, Ohio, Chicago, and even Georgia lined up out front of dispensaries to make a purchase. Recreational marijuana is being regulated and monitored like alcohol; you must be at least 21 years old to make a purchase. The drug, which is controversial in many states’ legislations, is currently legal for medical use in 20 states, but Colorado and Washington were the first to approve of recreational use (Healy). The geographical concepts involved in the legalization of marijuana include migration, movement and flow, and private/public space.

America is the land of the free; it’s ironic that America also by far has more incarcerated citizens than any other country in the world. America is at war. We have been fighting drug abuse for almost a century. In 1972 president Nixon declared a war on drugs. Unfortunately, we are not winning this war. Drug users are still filling up our jails and prisons, now more than ever. The drug war causes violent crime and criminal activity due to prohibition, not the drugs themselves. Children in all of this are left neglected or without parents. The only beneficiaries of this war are organized crime members and drug dealers. The United States has focused its efforts on the criminalization of drug use. The government has spent billions of dollars in efforts to rid the supply of drugs. Even with all this money and effort of law enforcement it has not decreased the demand or supply of illegal drugs. Not only being highly costly, drug law enforcement has been counterproductive. Current drug laws need to be reviewed and changed. The United States needs to shift spending from law enforcement and penalization to education, treatment, and prevention. The war on drugs has caused many problems in the United States, family problems, financial problems and has increased crime, after forty years in this war it’s time for a change.

Prohibition crowds prisons with non-violent criminals, exposing otherwise innocent civilians to the dangers of prison life, and the mental and physical damage it does to not only their own livelihoods, but to their families’ as well. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, in 2011, out of 197,050 inmates in federal prisons, 94,600 were incarcerated for drug-related charges, while only 14,900 for violent offenses. That equates to 48% of the entire federal prison population being incarcerated for drugs, with violent offenders only adding to 7.56%. The FBI states that of all drug arrests in 2011, 81.8% were for simple possession, the remaining 18.2% for sale and distribution. Therefore, there are over 77,000 federal inmates that were non-violent civilians, whose only crime was carrying an illicit substance. With legalization (or at least decriminalization), neither the risk of incarceration nor the risk in becoming involved with illegal, and often

Throughout the United States, the use and abuse of legal and illegal drugs is very common. As Rosenberg states in “In Drugs We Trust: Why Do Americans Make War on Some Drugs and Build Fortunes on Others?” if something is called a drug, people will “nod their heads, understanding what you mean: You’re deeply attached to it and you can’t live without it, even though you suspect that there’s something wrong with it” (pg.2). The legality of various drugs has changed over time. The definition of a drug, is any substance that has the ability to influence one’s behavior. This could be done by altering one’s mood, feelings, and/or mental state. Although many people believe the use of illegal drugs is more common, the use of legal drugs is actually more common. Legal drugs include drugs such as alcohol and tobacco. As Rosenberg states in the 17th and 18th century, coffee was considered a big drug problem, however now caffeine and coffee is legal. For, legal drugs can cause both social and economic problems just as much as illegal drugs, such as with alcohol and drunk driving. As a result of increased drug use, the United States has created a “War on Drugs,” where it spends billions of dollars to try to “stop” the use and abuse of illegal drugs. However, this “war” is not getting at the root of the problem, for the war does not deal with the root cause of the issue. Instead, this war focuses on dealing with the surface problems, such as the distribution and possession. It does not

The current policy in use by the United States concerning illegal drugs is both outdated and unfair. This so-called war on drugs is a deeply rooted campaign of prohibition and unfair sentencing that is very controversial and has been debated for many years. The war on drugs is designed so that it will never end. This current drug was has very little impact on the overall supply of prohibited drugs and its impact on demand seems non-existent. United States’ taxpayers are spending billions of dollars on this failure of policy. They are spending billions to incarcerate drug users instead offering drug treatment which could help lower demand. Legalizing illicit would lower abuse and deaths from use and could have a positive economic impact on the United States. Certain industries are making massive sums of money by capitalizing on the drug war.

Federal Drug Sentencing laws: With stricter drug laws and longer sentencings with drug convictions has not have the positive effect on drug use in America that the law makers taught. Drug use has rising and drug costs have falling; Recidivism rate has not changed even with higher conviction rates for drugs. One thing has come out of the strict drug laws is a higher incarnation rate, the highest in the world. Over half the people in prison are in for some type of drug charge. The penalties do not always fit the type of crime committed.

The consequences of any drug conviction are severe, burdening people by sometimes breaking up families and always leaving them with life-long criminal records that make it nearly impossible to get applicable work or housing. The stress this issue holds against people usually paves way for them fall into depression which usually for actual recovering addicts leads back to drug abuse. Many people faced with the hardship of making decent money actually fall into the drug peddling business themselves. The government's supply reduction tactic has been proven counterproductive. Most addicts become addicts due to emotional turmoil in life and should not be punished for developing a bad habit as their stimulant. As long as there is a demand there will be somebody to fulfil the supply.

I personally do not think that drug use should be legalized. Some of the reasons the people who lobby for legalizing drug use give are 1) we are building more and more prisons to house minor drug users. 2) Making drugs illegal has not reduced the number of people using drugs, These 2 reasons maybe true to some extend. But the negative aspects of drug use far outweigh the reasons to make them legal. Do you want to drive your car next to a car or a truck driven by somebody under the influence of drugs?..smoking a cigarette does not impair your brain as much as smoking hashish, Some countries of course may have relaxed laws when it comes to drug use. Studies about drug use statistics in Portugal can not be used in a country like australia