Although it is clear that society is unhappy with current efforts to stop

illegal drug smuggling, illegal drug use and distribution, no one seems to know

what should be done. With drug use and drug related crime on the rise, some

Americans argue that current drug law is too easy on drug offenders. Society at

large asks, "Can we ever stop illegal drugs and their use?" It is a

question that unfortunately has no easy answer. More and more people in America

feel that if this country cannot stop illegal drugs, drugs should be legalized

and controlled. Many people feel that this will eliminate the senseless violence

that often goes hand in hand with illegal drugs. Although moral issues collide

head to head with the idea of legalizing drugs, it seems legalization is the

answer to the problem, but it is this proposed solution that has society

divided. People often blame the criminal justice system for not doing enough to

catch drug offenders and incarcerate them. At times they feel that if the

problem is out of their sight, it disappears. The truth is that even if the

justice system locks up every drug offender, the problem is not solved. Even

inside jails and prisons, drug offenders continue their illegal sales and drug

use. The fact that drugs are still used and sold in correctional institutions is

evidence that building more prisons will not stop America's drug problem (Ostrowski

28). The call for legalization or decriminalization is not new, but until

recently, the legalization issue was carried by only a few proponents, including

libertarians, advocates of separate treatment of marijuana, and some cautious

economists.