Decriminalization vs. ProhibitionThe idea of Drug Prohibition made sense: lower the availability of drugsby the use of law enforcement. Unfortunately, Drug Prohibition means heavycosts while proving to be ineffective and counterproductive.
I was thirteen when I saw drugs for the first time. I was with some ofmy friends that live down the road from me. They asked me if I wanted to gethigh with them. At the time, I didn’t know what getting high meant, so I askedthem. One of them pulled ut a long slender object, similar to a cigarette, buttwisted on either end. They told me it was something special. I was stillbewildered. They said “It’s pot, you know, marijuana?” Immediately I said no.
I had seen several anti-dug commercials, all with the same motto, “Just Say No”. I felt so good about myself. I had done the right thing. I said no to myfriends, which is a very hard decision to make at that age. I was not going tobe one of those sad cases, where my life is wasted away. I was not going to bea crazed addict, who would stop at nothing to get a hit. I was not going to bedodging the law my whole life. I was going to be everything I wanted to be, anddrugs were definitely not going to get in the way. I promised myself I wouldnot end up like Jimi Hendrix, or Janis Joplin, both found dead after overdoses,because I had the power to say no. I had read stories and seen news flashesabout the side effects of some drugs. I had read newspaper articles aboutpeople in Rome, which is just a few minutes away, dying of heroin overdoses. Ihad seen people on TV that were alive, but were not conscious of theirsurroundings, because of drug use. Their lives were basically over. I hadlistened to speakers preach that drugs were one of the Devil’s tools. There wasno way I would even consider ever trying them, because once a person starts,they can’t stop.
It was a few years later that I heard the other side of the story. Ilearned that not only were we losing the war on drugs, but that the war had beencorrupted. The government was wasting money on something without a cause, orhope. It wasn’t long after that when I tried marijuana for the first time. Iremember it well. I was with my sister, who was the only person that I couldn’tsay no to. I took a hit. Within fifteen minutes, I felt the most exquisitefeeling I had ever experienced. I felt as though I was in a different world.
It was at this moment that I knew things would be different for me, but I wasstill unsure about it, because I had heard of the dangers of drug use. Idecided to do a little research. I looked in health magazines, I looked inRolling Stone magazine, and I read some computer articles about the sixties. Ialso casually talked to several people who had experience with drugs. It wasthrough this research that I found out some interesting facts. First was the mere cost of the war on drugs. The federal governmentspends billions of dollars a year on drug enforcement and billions more on drug-related crimes and punishment. The estimated cost to the United States for thiswar on drugs is $200 billion a year, or $770 per person, according to statisticsposted by CNN, and that does not include the money spent by state and localgovernments. Despite this expensive effort to enforce drug laws, the result israther poor.
According to the United States history, Prohibition has not only provedineffective, but also counterproductive, when referring to the eighteenthamendment. Not only is the illegality of drugs today also ineffective, it leadsto huge profits for drug traffickers, which leads to other crimes. Studies haveshown that while the amount of money spent on the war on drugs has increaseddramatically, so has the amount of drug use. A study conducted by CNN has showna twenty percent increase in the use of marijuana.
Another interesting fact is that most illegal drugs are less dangerous,and could be legal. Even harsh drugs, such as heroin and cocaine are proving tobe less dangerous. In fact, in the twenties, cocaine was viewed as a wonderdrug. It was an effective pain killer, it relaxed the body and proved todramatically reduce stress, yet it showed very few side effects. After a while,however, people started finding new ways to use it. These ways would not onlyperform the tasks the drug was intended to perform, they would actually give theperson a euphoric sensation. However, these ways of using it were not as safeas using pills or soft drinks, which also had cocaine in them. People diedafter inhaling too much cocaine. The government had to take action, so theymade cocaine completely illegal, taking away a very good drug.
Heroin is also not as bad as was originally thought. Heroin, likecocaine, is a very effective pain killer. The problem with heroin is that it ishighly addictive, and too much of it can kill. However, this is the case withmany prescription drugs. Too much Tylenol could kill a person, as ibuprofen isdefinitely harmful in large amounts. If heroin was used strictly for medicalpurposes, and was not only prescribed by doctors, but also regulated by doctors,it’s use could be an asset. There is also the issue of marijuana. Every year close to twentythousand people die of alcohol related incidents. Each year close to thirtythousand people die of tobacco related diseases, either lung cancer or emphysema,yet there has never been a death on record that is directly related to marijuana.
The only deaths related to marijuana have been murders associated with drugdealers and traffickers. If marijuana was legal, these deaths would cease tooccur. Also, compared to the side effects of alcohol, the side effects ofmarijuana are minimal. The only side effects of marijuana are induced hungerand what is referred to as “cotton mouth”, which is a dry, pasty feeling in themouth. The side effects of alcohol, however include nausea, possibly vomiting,loss of coordination, not to mention deterioration of the liver and stomach.
Marijuana, like cocaine and heroin, could also have medical purposes. THC,which is the chemical in marijuana that affects the nervous system, can be usedto counteract the side effects of chemotherapy for cancer patients. There isvirtually no solid reason why marijuana should be illegal.
I personally believe that some drugs should be legal. If they are beingused for medical purposes, the government should pass legislation tightening theavailability of prescriptions for these drugs, not make them completely illegal,taking away their good sides as well as their bad sides.
