...“We Should Legalize Drugs” It is frequently stated that illicit drugs are "bad, dangerous, destructive" or "addictive," and that society has an obligation to keep them from the public. There is nowhere that you can find reliable, objective scientific evidence that they are any more harmful than other substances and activities that are legal. In view of the enormous expense, the carnage and the obvious futility of the "drug war," resulting in massive criminalization of society, it is high time to examine the supposed justification for keeping certain substances illegal. Those who initiated those prohibitions and those who now so vigorously seek to enforce them have not made their objectives clear. Are they to protect us from evil, from addiction, or from poison? The concept of evil is derived from subjective values and is difficult to define. Why certain (illegal) substances are singularly more evil than legal substances like alcohol has not been explained. This complex subject of "right" and "wrong" has never been successfully addressed by legislation and is best left to the pulpit. Addiction is also a relative and ever-present phenomenon. It certainly cannot be applied only to a short arbitrary list of addictive substances while ignoring an overabundance of human cravings - from chocolate to coffee, from gum to gambling, from tea to tobacco, from snuggling to sex. Compulsive urges to fulfill a perceived need are everywhere. Some people are more susceptible to addiction...
Words: 983 - Pages: 4
...Title: Harmful affects of illicit drugs Claim: Illicit drugs should stay illegal Argument: P1: Drugs are addicting and can cause overdoses P2: Drugs have harmful impact on the body. C: Legalizing drugs would give the wrong message to young adults. Discussion: Illicit drugs are non-medical drugs that are prohibited by law. "Drug abuse kills about 200,000 people worldwide each year, according to a new United Nations (UN) report. Global treatment for drug abuse would cost $250 billion per year if everyone who needed help received proper care, according to the UN" (drugfree.org). (P1), Drugs can be addicting, especially to teenagers because they are going through a rough change in life. Most teenagers turn to drugs to help them cope with the challenging difficulties they face. Some are peer pressured into using illicit drugs. Young adults can be hooked onto these "frenemies" and be distracted from their life goals. However, it only takes one mistake to put all their life to an end when they are "unknowingly" handed and overdose of that drug. If illicit drugs were legalized, the it would give more reason to...
Words: 650 - Pages: 3
...A drug is a substance that will cause a physiological change to your body when it is consumed. It interferes the brains and affect the way of how a body works. People believe that legal drugs are medicine that they consume when they are sick. These drugs are allowed by the doctors to prescribe to the patients to buy and consume them. Illicit drugs are known as the drugs that are illegal to make, use or sell as they are addictive. Speaking of drugs, people usually relate them to drug abuse, drug addiction and drug-related issues. People do not realize that a number of illicit drugs are actually scientifically proven to be medically useful to treat diseases. There has been numerous of arguments about the legalization of drugs and there is not a solution to this issue yet. There are actually a lot of pros and cons of legalizing drugs which most of the people did not notice of. Drugs may be advantageous in economic perspective by decreasing the...
Words: 1538 - Pages: 7
...Pros and Cons of Legalizing Drugs In a study for the Cato Institute, Jeffrey A. Miron, senior lecturer on economics at Harvard University and a senior fellow at Cato, and Katherine Waldock, professor of economics at New York University, estimate that legalizing drugs would save the government approximately $41.3 billion annually on expenditures related to the enforcement of prohibition. Legalization would reduce state and federal deficits by eliminating expenditure on prohibition enforcement, arrests, prosecutions, and incarceration and by allowing governments to collect tax revenue on legalized sales. Many people are concerned that the legalizing of soft drugs such as marijuana would lead to the legalizing of other harder drugs such as cocaine, heroin, or even crack. Stoned driving and other dangers would be increased. Marijuana use isn't truly a "victimless crime" when you consider all the crimes that may be committed when the user is under the influence of the drug. Drunk driving is still a major problem in our society despite all the education and stiff penalties. "Driving high" would be even harder to detect. Unless the user has been smoking in the car, there isn't as distinctive of a smell as there is with alcohol. Also, there's always the possibility that the lapse in judgment caused by drug use will lead to harder crimes like rape or robbery. Legalization would increase the chances of the drug falling into the hands of kids. Even unhealthy legal items such as cigarettes...
Words: 337 - Pages: 2
...Heather Wilburn 10 September 2013 Pros and Cons of Legalization of Marijuana Marijuana has been debated for decades all over the world, and it still unsure what is the best option for the people, either make it legal or keep it illegal like in almost all the countries. But here I am going to explain and show you some facts of each side of the coin. For the pro side there are many aspects that show how legalizing the marijuana can bring more benefits than keep it illegal; for example, there is evidence that show how marijuana helps some illness which means is good for medical use, there is also a fact that combating the Marijuana the governments spend tons of money, and also comparing the effects and causes of marijuana to the effects and causes of alcohol and tobacco makes thoughts easier to see legalization of marijuana makes the things better; On the other hand, looking to the other side of the coin, we got this drug which causes bad things in our bodies, it has immediate bad effects right after using it, it has also long-term effects, it seems also as a gateway drug in our society. The positive side of legalize the Marijuana. It has proved that Marijuana can be used as a treatment for many illness and bad symptoms of illness; for example, for those people who has Cancer Chemotherapy treatment and causes extreme nauseas and vomiting to them, Marijuana reduces those extreme symptoms, and it also alleviates pretreatment anxiety. For those people which because of their sickness...
Words: 1155 - Pages: 5
...Why Marijuana Should Be Legalized Most people believe that drugs such as marijuana, molly and cocaine should be illegal. They say that these drugs are dangerous and that people should not use them. However, we have to keep in mind that people have every right to do what they want to their own body. Of course, by people it is inferred that we mean adults. Children cannot be permitted to use drugs because they lack the ability to fully understand the consequences of drug use. Adults have the capacity to understand the consequences for their actions. It is not illegal to make mistakes or have poor self-regard. If a mentally competent adult wants to use drugs he or she has every right to do so. In the article from the USA Today, “Don’t legalize pot just for the high of it,” the author makes a bold stand against the legalization of marijuana. The article states that it is to high risk to legalize marijuana and should remain illegal. “Modern marijuana can be very powerful, potent enough to make it dangerous to drive or operate other machinery under the influence (Editorial, 2012)”. Last time I checked driving under the influence of any kind of drug poses a risk. People drive while under the influence of prescription medications all of the time. The article states that marijuana is very potent. Legalizing marijuana would provide a higher level of regulation of the farming of the product. The government will have control over its potency. Because the government is regulating it the...
Words: 656 - Pages: 3
...To a sports fan, it might seem as if with every news broadcast comes another suspension; some athlete, old or young, loses half of his or her season after failing a drug test. In professional sports, where job performance is the primary factor in an athlete’s salary and is practically the only aspect of the athlete that sports fans and owners care about, many professional athletes turn to performance enhancing drugs to gain a competitive edge. One sport in particular that has been overwhelmed with the use of performance enhancing drugs, commonly referred to as PEDs, is Major League Baseball, or the MLB. The issue of PEDs in the MLB has been a long-lasting one, and several of the most famous names in baseball, such as Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire,...
Words: 1514 - Pages: 7
...Marijuana Should NOT Be Legal in America All Americans have their ideas on legalizing marijuana, yet they need to make sure they have done substantial research using past experiences the American people have already experienced from using this drug; also they need to take a good look into what the actual outcomes are of smoking marijuana, before making a final decision on whether or not to legalize marijuana for medical purposes or any other reason. Americans will look at health and social issues as well as review money matters concerning legalizing marijuana and realize it is not right for the United States . First, Americans should know what marijuana actually is before they would even consider legalizing it. Marijuana, also known as pot, is a dried out weed that mixes the leaves, stems and even the flower of the cannabis, or the hemp plant and taken into the human body. It can be taken in by either smoking it or it taking it in with food. The main ingredient in marijuana is THC, which is short for delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (National Institute on Drug Abuse). THC is the most psychoactive compound found in marijuana (Taylor). “Marijuana is the most commonly abused illicit drug” (Wilbur, J). The ingredients in this plant are very dangerous and unhealthy for the human body. Now that Americans know what marijuana is, and some of the ingredients in it, they should consider the negative effect that marijuanahas in the health of the human body and...
Words: 1997 - Pages: 8
...DRUGS What is drug? A substance that alters the nervous system and consumed without a prescription, may be addictive and its use usually is socially or legally prohibited or restricted to the field of medicine. A legal drug complies with the rules or the laws established by the U.S. Department of Food and Drug Administration. Illegal drugs is contrary to law or is not permitted by law, it is illegal and is punishable in court with jail against crime to health to enforce the controlled substances laws and regulations of the United States and bring to the criminal and civil justice system of the United States the Drug Enforcement Administration is in charge of that. Both illegal and legal drugs have a big impact in society, but their effects are different with individuals and in the society. Drugs not only hurt the person taking it. A lot of other people around you suffer the consequences. The drugs interfere with the relationship with the environment, family and work, and they can seriously compromise the learning process, especially for youth and adolescents. In addition, the drug increased the risk of all types of accidents. Therefore, in addition to the individual consequences, is the whole society (in varying degrees) that suffers from drug problems. And these problems are of all kinds: health, economic, cultural, of insecurity. No wonder, therefore, that drugs pose a collective concern and that, to deal with its consequences, many countries have implemented policies...
Words: 1335 - Pages: 6
...The debate on legalizing the recreational use drugs included four debaters, two of which argued to legalize drugs, while the other two argued against it. I felt that each speaker differed in character, opinion, speaking style, and even body language. I also felt that they all had very good points, however each of them had a different way of approaching the debate. I think that overall, Asa Hutchinson who argues again legalizing drugs did the best job at arguing and supporting his opinion in this debate. The first speaker, Paul Butler based many of his points on his career as a prosecutor to argue for the legalization of drugs. Butler used real life scenarios and his own personal experiences to help explain his opinion on this debate, making his points easy to relate to. He...
Words: 486 - Pages: 2
...Will legalizing all drugs reall make any change in the way things are now or will everything stat the same? In "Legalize It All" Derrick Briggs states that "if some drugs are leagal, then all drugs should be legal". Briggs also believes that "legalizing drugs [will] help reduce organized crime and generate significant national revenue" As someone who doesn't have as much f an interest in drugs, it would make no difference if they were legalized or not, whether drugs are available privately when they're illegal or sold in store when they're legal, the crime rate wont change. Not all people who do drugs fall under the stereotypical type, which is generally jobless and hopeless but these people are stil going to struggle with money especially if they're going to have to pay the big bucks. Having more access to drugs could be beneficial to only the people that do drugs but very non-beneficial at the same time. This being said, the more drugs available, the more money you spend buying those drugs meaning you may have to do more illegal things, like stealing to get these drugs....
Words: 436 - Pages: 2
...ISSUE #2: Should the United States Put More Emphasis on Stopping the Importation of Drugs The War on Drugs has failed. If it were a business, it would have been shut down a long time ago. This is not what success looks like. The idea of eradicating drugs form the world by waging a war on those who use them is basically flawed. It does not reduce drug taking. The standard response is that we must continue on our course. Maybe if a few more people are arrested, or seize more shipments then the Government has achieved a victory. This is NOT true. It is like playing a game of Russian roulette. The government attacks one major supplier allowing for another to build up. The cycle is never ending. Where there is a demand there will always be a supply. We are not stopping drug supply because it moves. We could never get the resources to shut down the entire hemisphere. It is a simple as the law of supply and demand. No matter how many more billions of dollars are spent, or lives lost, history has proven that as long as there is a demand for drugs that there will be a supply for them. If alcoholism is supposed to be considered a public health issue then why is drug addiction considered a national security threat? The United States tends to declare war on things that it considers harmful or bad; for example the War on Cancer, The War on Drugs, War on Poverty, etc. Yes, you may be able to reduce poverty, prevent most terrorist attacks, cure many types of cancer, and even reduce...
Words: 503 - Pages: 3
...inner-cities, to the suburbs of the heartland, drugs are destroying lives in many ways. Wherever you find drugs, problems are sure to follow. We will examine legalization of drugs from the standpoint of three common sociological theories in an attempt to determine if it would make more sense to continue on our path of banning controlled substances or if legalization would be the key solving our problems. We, as Americans, should step away from our ethnocentric mentality and explore alternative methods to combat drugs in communities across America. Functionalist perspective, as explained in our text book, states, this perspective, “Emphasizes the way in which the parts of a society are structured to maintain its stability” (Schaefer, 2011). With that in mind, legalizing controlled substances would lead to several aspects of society being drastically changed. A counterculture of legalization would eliminate the power of drug cartels. Producing and selling our own drugs via legalization would lead to tax revenues generated from the legal sale and taxation of such substances. These tax revenues could lead to more funding in government infrastructure, such as programs to help addicts kick their habits. Educational programs and jobs could also be generated from tax revenues. The tourism industry would grow as a result as well. Legalization would also bring the drug subculture to the forefront and remove the stigma that is attached to drugs. Crime would be significantly dropped due...
Words: 830 - Pages: 4
...Cliff McGlon ENGL 1101 8:00 Professor Hargon November 9, 2005 Benefits Outnumber The Risks Every year thousands of people die from illegal drug overdoses, but ten times that number die from legal drug overdoses. Given this fact, the classifications for legal and illegal drugs are quite unbalanced. Marijuana is currently an illegal drug. Its primary contents are the cannabis plant and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Along with cocaine and heroin, marijuana is classified as a Type 1 drug, meaning that its use can result in maximum penalties in state or federal prison. Currently, the only states with legal authorization to medically administer the drug are California and Arizona. Marijuana use should be legalized in all states because the reason for its previous abolition is nonexistent today, research supporting its use is kept hidden from the public, it is safer than most legal drugs, it does not contribute to the use of other drugs, and it proves effective in the medical field. The use of marijuana should be legalized because the government’s reason for prohibiting it does not apply today. According to Charles Schaffer, founder of the Schaffer Library of Drug Policy, “Marijuana was outlawed in 1937 as a repressive measure against Mexican workers who crossed the border seeking jobs during the Depression. The specific reason given for the outlawing of the hemp plant was its supposed violent ‘effect on the degenerate races’” (Schaffer, sec. 1). Government used the prohibition...
Words: 1777 - Pages: 8
...This country’s structure is made up of morals and politics, so anytime an issue receives mixed responses coming from two different points of view it always become controversial. Legalizing marijuana is a controversial topic; however, there many positive arguments to support the idea of legalizing marijuana. First of all, it’s very expensive to keep marijuana illegal. According to Jeffrey Miron, a senior lecturer at Harvard University who studied about the impact of drug legalization, it cost the government almost about 20 billion dollars every year for keeping marijuana illegal. There is no good reason for marijuana not to be legal. From a philosophical point of view, people deserve the right to make choices for themselves. The government only has a right to limit those choices if people’s actions endanger someone else, but marijuana does not The current laws are doing more harm than good, legalizing marijuana would benefit the country in many ways. The government should not tell individuals what to do as long as they not harming others. From a philosophical point of view, individuals deserve the right to make choices for themselves. According to the philosopher Herbert Spencer, what equal freedom means is that: firstly people will have the responsibility for their own lives, rather than surrendering this responsibility to others (or pretending that they have given up responsibility, which is every bit as destructive), secondly since that will be true, fewer mistakes will be...
Words: 1089 - Pages: 5
