FREE ESSAY ON DRUG LEGALAZATION

DRUG LEGALAZATION

A LOOK AT DRUG LEGALIZATION
John Hardwick
Philosophy 305
Louisiana Tech University
February 21, 2000
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Table of Contents 1
A Look at Drug Legalization 2
Bibliography 9
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A LOOK AT DRUG LEGALIZATION
The United States is by far the richest and most powerful country in the world. We
citizens take for granted luxuries that people of other countries can only dream. Yet in
our society there are serious social issues that for reasons unknown are not being
addressed. One of the most important issues that typical politicians are afraid to
address is that of what to do with the nation's illegal drug problems. Although we hear
terms like The War on Drugs and Drug Treatment, a fresh approach to this issue is
overdue. The country should take a new look at drug legalization as a solution to a
problem that has been long out of control.
Addiction and drug abuse are such buzzwords these days that a clear clarification is
needed of what is meant by these terms. Addiction has crossed the line from being defined
as a physical dependency on drugs to include such classifications as religious addiction,
shopping addiction, food addiction, work addiction, television addiction, and love
addiction. Although a person may feel that he or she can't live without their particular
addiction, there is no scientific proof or medical test for an addict. To keep things in
the broadest perspective, addiction will be defined here as the continual repetition of a
normally non-problematic behavior to self-destructive access. This 
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definition leaves room for a broad range of behaviors without physical cause that will
allow for a search of the real problem behind the behavior and not the excuse of saying
that it is the result of a disease.
Since addiction is believed to be a social problem then an attempt at cutting off the
source of addiction, drugs in this case, is thought to cure the problem. If that be the
case then gambling and food abusers should be treated the same as addicts. Since drug
legalization is the topic of this essay let us focus on alternatives to the War on
Drugs.
One possibility for controlling drug abuse is to legalize illegal drugs. In the 1920's
alcohol was made illegal by the eighteenth amendment better know as prohibition. This
experiment at cutting off the source of alcohol to alleviate alcohol abuse was a dismal
failure. From it stemmed all sort of crime, illegal alcohol sales, gang controlled
territories, police shootings and above all, most people continued to drink. In contrast
to today's society where drugs are illegal there is not much difference. We have the same
type of violent crime and gang control as in the roaring twenties, and people continue to
use drugs. Another result of prohibition was an increase in binge drinking, much the same
as we have the binge drug user today. 
Countries where alcohol is considered a normal part of life, such as Greece and Italy,
have low occurrences of alcoholism. However, where alcohol is looked upon as a moral
problem, such as the United States or Finland, alcoholism is rampant. This is the result
of social conditioning much like Pavlov's dogs. Since drugs are considered the demon here
in America, citizens use as a method of rebelling as well as out of curiosity of 
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what the big deal is. Contrary to popular belief, using a drug for its euphoric effect is
not a bad thing and dates back historically to the beginning of time. Hundreds of test
have been conducted on addicts and the result is that the setting and mind set are the
reasons for addiction. For example, a patient in a hospital may be given large doses of
drugs over a long period of time but when he is released he suffers no withdrawal
symptoms nor drug cravings. This is the result of the attitude that it is ok to take
drugs in the hospital. However, taking the same drugs out of a hospital for recreation
purposes causes a person to become hooked because this is what he has subconsciously
learned. What should be done is to build a cultural setting of more tolerance and less
guilt.
Legalizing drugs is a viable alternative to the current policy on drugs in America. If
the government would legalize and regulate drugs a substantial industry and tax income
would result. The jail overcrowding problem would be reduced by fifty per-cent in some
estimates and violent crime would decline. Of course there are those who believe that
legalization will turn our whole country into drug addicts. There is no evidence to
support this. In fact, the drugs that are legal in the United States such as alcohol and
nicotine are used in the lower dosage form. The alcohol distribution method of choice is
beer or wine which contain low doses of alcohol while cigarettes are the most popular
form of nicotine distribution which also contains a very low dose. These Americans are
not considered addicts although they may drink or smoke everyday and are damaging their
bodies a great deal. Making something illegal only creates a taboo, which people
challenge and break because they know its wrong. It is morally wrong to arrest and jail
people for taking drugs. This is invasion of our right to privacy guaranteed us by the
fourth amendment. 
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Advocates of incarcerating people for using drugs say that this is a deterrent to drug
use and an effective way of controlling drug usage. Studies show that this is not true.
Of the 
people that are arrested and jailed for using drugs, eighty per-cent go back to using
again once they are released. The government should not be allowed to prosecute
non-violent offenders for consensual crimes committed in their own homes thus complying
with the U.S. Constitution.
It seems that our government is in the business of drugs. The Iran/Contra affair showed
how deeply involved we are in the illegal drug business. Even President Clinton,
Vice-President Gore and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich have admitted to
experimenting with marijuana and presidential hopeful George W. Bush, Jr. has been said
to have used cocaine not to mention ex-mayor Marion Barry of Washington D.C. It seems the
government is saying one thing and doing another. If such a negative attitude of drugs is
really what the country wants why then drugs should not be glamorized by celebrities and
politicians. Perhaps the criminal justice system wants to keep collecting fines and
politicians kickbacks for building new prisons. Capitalism is not known to turned down
easy money such as would be created by legalization. If the government believes it can
win the war on drugs then it has failed to provide hard proof.
Should drugs be legalized, we can expect several immediate results. First, the government
will be forced into taking a look at the real issues. For too long policy makers have
used prohibition as a smoke screen to avoid addressing the social and economic factors
that lead people to use drugs. Most illegal and legal drug use is recreational. Poverty
and despair are at the root of most problematic drug use and its only by 
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addressing these underlying causes that we can hope to significantly decrease the number
of problematic users. Opponents believe that deterrence will do the trick, but drug use
continues to increase even though tougher laws have been passed. 
Next, the criminal drug market will dry up. The market for drugs is one of supply and
demand and people demand illegal drugs. Organized crime has moved in to fill this vacuum
and is making billions of dollars. Legislation will force organized crime from the drug
business. In return, the government can regulate the market by licensing, enacting laws
on sales to minors, and monitor the quality of the product. Besides that, taxes similar
to alcohol and tobacco, could be implemented bringing in billions of dollars.
Crime would be dramatically reduced by legalization. Most of the violence associated with
illegal drug dealing is caused by its illegality and disputes over territory. Dependent
users would not have to resort to crime to get their supply since it will be regulated
and the price lowered. Since they are often cheated by street drug dealers they would be
less likely to need extra money through crime to try another buy to get what they want.
Our legal system would be freed up and our prison population dramatically reduced saving
billions and leaving law enforcement to catch and prosecute violent criminals. This would
be similar to the cigarette market. Smokers do not have to steal to support their habits.
Critics complain that this will cause a nation of drug addicts, but this is a half truth.
Remember that most users prefer the low dosage that doesn't interfere with their personal
lives. Face it, a drug dealer faced with killing a cop or 25 years in jail for drug
distribution may prefer to kill the cop.
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Legalization will send the message that drug use is normal and that its a social issue,
not a criminal justice one. How it is dealt with is up to the society. We must face the
fact that drug use is already up among every age group and that legislation for
decriminalization would change the setting for drug use and thus the setting will change
the mind set resulting in lower addiction rates..
Drug laws have led to stigmatization and marginalization of drug users. Countries that
have ultra conservative drug policies, like the United States, have the highest rates of
HIV and Hepatitis C infection. Regulating drugs would give users access to clean needles
and a known drug potency reducing overdose chances. There is no argument to this except
that the myth that more people will become addicts which has not been proven. In Holland,
where drugs laws are more flexible, drug usage has not gone up.
The current drug laws makes criminals out of millions of otherwise law-abiding people who
choose to use drugs in the privacy of their homes. Legalization restores our right to use
drugs responsibly to change the way we think and feel. It puts controls and regulation in
the hands of the government to protect the vulnerable from dangerous drug dealers. The
argument that drug users are criminals does not hold up since these law-abiding citizens
don't break other laws.
One more area that legalization will affect is that of race. Black people are ten times
more likely to be imprisoned for drug offences than whites. Police officers discriminate
and use racial stereotyping in whom they arrest. Legislation removes a whole 
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set of laws that are used to disproportionately bring black people into the criminal
justice system. It would force blacks into other enterprises to make legal money and
change
society as a whole. Opponents say lock up drug dealers but we are running out of room in
our prisons. Its time to take away drug dealers source of income and force government to
address the underlying poverty in our country among minorities and the uneducated.
Legalization is not a cure all but it does allow us to address many of the problems
associated with drug use, and those created by drug prohibition. The time has come for an
effective and pragmatic drug policy. Its time to take a look at legalization, end the war
on drugs, and approach it from a point of what is best for society and humanity as a
whole.
Bibliography
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Kronenwetter, Michael 1995. The Users, The Suppliers, The War on Drugs
Prentice Hall
Ragge, Ken 1998. The Real AA
Sea Sharp Press
Silverberg, Ivan 1998.
BBC News On Line Network
The Drug Reform Coordination Network 2000.
http://www.drcnet.org