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The War on Drugs...do you think it's effective?

Palax · 2008-03-06 03:39:29

The War is failing miserably, it's costing us a fortune, and we are locking up non-violent citizens. It seems as if our government instigates this war on drugs to artifically inflate the prices of drugs. It also paves the way for corruption and violence especially when you deal with the more expensive narcotics. It wastes the valuable time of our police force who should be protecting our cities from violent criminals. I've always had the philosphy that if a person wants to get high then there is nothing that's going to stop that person except for a little self-control. Making the drugs more expensive only makes things slightly more difficult The whole idea of having to spend so much money on a plant that grows in nature is ridiculous. You can buy a head of iceberg lettuce for about $1.00. On the other hand a few grams of marijuana can cost $10.This is just like the War on Terror. This is not a war that can be won, and it's entire existence is here to give us a false sense of government responsibility.That's just my opinion though, and I really want to hear yours concerning this very important issue. I am hoping that one day we can all come together with the conclusion that this war needs to be disbanded.Below is a Wiki link showing some of the costs and effects of The War on Drugs.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_on_DrugsThe cost :'The U.S. government estimates the cost of the War on Drugs by calculating the funds used in attempting to control the supply of illegal drugs, in paying government employees involved in waging the war on crack, and to satisfy rehabilitation costs. This total was estimated by the federal U.S. government's cost report on drug control to be roughly $12 billion in 2005. Additionally, in a separate report, the U.S. government reports that the cost of incarcerating drug law offenders was $30.1 billion—$9.1 billion for police protection, $4.5 billion for legal adjudication, and $11.0 billion for state and federal corrections. In total, roughly $45.5 billion was spent in 2005 for these factors.[2] The socioeconomic costs, as well as the individual costs (i.e., the personal disadvantages in income and career), caused by the incarceration of millions of people are not included in this number. Nor are the many real wars fought in the name of the 'War on Drugs' included. In 1998 the total cost of drug abuse in America was estimated at $143.4 billion.[3] This number, however, includes indirect costs and includes some costs of drug policy enforcement, and so is not directly comparable.'The effects :'Drug use has increased in all categories since prohibition.[4] Since 1937, the use of marijuana, once an activity seemingly limited to Mexican immigrants and jazz musicians,[5] has become one undertaken by up to 50% of the youth of the United States.[4] Between 1972 and 1988 the use of cocaine increased more than fivefold.[6] The usage patterns of the current two most prevalent drugs, methamphetamine and ecstasy, have shown similar gains.[4] ''In 1994, it was reported that the War on Drugs results in the incarceration of one million Americans each year.[12] Of the related drug arrests, about 225,000 are for simple possession of marijuana, the fourth most common cause of arrest in the United States.[13] In the 1980s, while the number of arrests for all crimes was rising 28%, the number of arrests for drug offenses rose 126%.[14] The United States has a higher proportion of its population incarcerated than any other country in the world for which reliable statistics are available, reaching a total of 2.2 million inmates in the U.S. in 2005. The U.S. Dept. of Justice, reporting on the effects of state initiatives, has stated that, from 1990 through 2000, 'the increasing number of drug offenses accounted for 27% of the total growth among black inmates, 7% of the total growth among Hispanic inmates, and 15% of the growth among white inmates.'

Zero5000X

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#201 Zero5000X

Member since 2004 • 8314 Posts

People are jerks. I don't see why anyone should tell me what I can and cannot do as long as it doesn't effect anyone else. I like smoking marijuana and nobody should be able to tell me I can't.

16 years ago

effthat

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#202 effthat

Member since 2007 • 2314 Posts

Of course it's not effective. The "drug" problem is created by our stance on drugs. It is associated with criminals because *duh* it's been made illegal and it's a market that people willing to break the law can get into easily with almost zero competition and no taxes.

Legalize and regulate the use of drugs and you free up billions in a year, create legal taxable vocations, allow police to focus on issues that affect us more (rape, murder, etc.), lessen the strain on our prison system, and get this! Instead of spending all that money on a blanket campaign, you can offer rehabilitation! That's right! The taxes from drugs help pay for teach addicts control, get their life on track, and become a valueable part of society! Not to mention feed the homeless, buy better safety gear for our troops, and fund educational initiatives (none of that "no child left behind" crap).

If running our country is best summed up as making decisions to help better the nation, than legalization and regulation of drugs is a great first step.

16 years ago

swizz-the-gamer

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#203 swizz-the-gamer