Drug Legalization Essays - Drug Control Law, Drug Culture

Drug Legalization Essays - Drug Control Law, Drug Culture Drug Legalization The debate over drugs and drug legalization is an increasingly important political issue as we proceed into the twenty-first century. It is important that we proceed into this era with a keen sense of direction on this issue. Whether we increase our current laws or we proceed in the direction legalization. It is obvious that some reformation of our current policy is needed. But, the drug legalization debate is not a issue that should only concern our political officials and law makers. It should concern all of us, since all of us are affected by the laws governing the trade and use of drugs. In this paper I will address the drug legalization debate from the view of the anti-legalist and the view of the legalist. I will also address the historical issues and arguments that lead to the prohibition on drugs and the subsequent War on Drugs. Before we look ahead to the debate over legalization, we should first look back at what took place to bring about the current drug prohibition. The drug hysteria first started around the turn of the century, by Orville Marshall who documented San Franciscos opium dens. In his report he documented the people who frequented these dens of sin. He found, that a significant number of the patrons were criminals of varying degree and classified the rest as the undesirables of society. What he proposed was for federal intervention in an attempt to lower crime and rid society of the scourge that drugs represented. The report lead to the Harrison Act of 1914, which restricted the use of opiates and cocaine to medicinal uses only. The Harrison Acts language is relatively vague leading to varied interpretations and throughout the years has become the cornerstone of the American drug prohibition. Leading to the formation of the DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency), in 1974. It has also allowed for further restrictions on the use of drugs for both personal and medicinal use. In recent times it has also served as a spring board for much of the recent legislature regarding mandatory minimums and the expansion of asset forfeiture laws. Which allows drug enforcement agencys to confiscate any and all property that is suspected to be related to the transportation or distribution of drugs. In most arguments regarding the legalization of drugs they are quick to point out that the drug prohibition is doomed to the failure of the Eighteenth Amendment (alcohol prohibition). Anti-legalist point out that this is not the case. That much like the prohibition on alcohol, in 1919, it is unrealistic for us to think that we can totally prevent the use or sale of drugs. But, much like the prohibition on alcohol our goal is to limit the consumption of drugs and thereupon lessen its effects on society. According to Mark(1) Moore, Alcohol consumption declined dramatically during Prohibition30 to 50 percent Cirrhosis death rates for men were 29.5 per 100,000 in 1911 and 10.7 in 1929. Admissions to state mental hospitals for alcoholic psychosis declined from 10.1 per 100,000 in 1919 to 4.7 in 1928. Further more, it is not to say that society was wrong to repeal Prohibition. A democratic society may decide that recreational drinking is worth the price in traffic fatalities and other consequences. But the common claim that laws backed by morally motivated political movements cannot reduce drug use is wrong. If the prohibition on alcohol really decreased alcohol use by 30 to 50 percent, in such a short time (14 years). The obvious question is, by how much has drug use been curtailed in the last 80 years of the prohibition on drugs? And, if it is a significant decrees wouldnt it be the most beneficial policy to keep on the road that we are currently on. If not increase the current penalties for drug violations. I should also add that after the repeal of prohibition alcohol use tripled and one year later had settled at a higher rate of use than before prohibition. Though we do not have any reliable information on the number of addicts before drug prohibition. There has been speculation that the misuse of drugs was at or above current levels of drug use. Raising the