New Member Tournament: Drug Legalization

I am going to attempt to show that there is no reason to make drugs illegal, though I will assume that criminalizing something without reason is immoral. If my opponent believes otherwise, I will address that. However, I do not believe that will be an issue. I will start off by addressing the popular misconception that drug use leads to crime. 1. Drug use does not cause crime. There is a link between drug use and crime. About 25% of criminals had used drugs on the day of committing the crime[1]. However, this does not mean that drugs caused the crime. Believing this without sufficient evidence is known as the correlation-causation fallacy. An example of the correlation-causation fallacy is the Pirates and Global Warming graph[2]. Since 1860, global temperature has been steadily rising while pirate numbers have been steadily dropping. This does not mean that the rising temperature lead to less pirates, nor that less pirates lead to a rising temperature. Research shows that using a number of factors (i.e. personality disorders, poverty, association with drug users and/or criminals) can be used to predict who will become a criminal and a drug user[1]. What this basically means is that drug use does not cause crime, nor vice versa, even though many drug users are criminals and vice versa. It is just a correlation. By banning drugs, you will not reduce crime, because drug use does not cause an overall increase in crime. Obviously there will be some who commit crimes due to the effects of drugs, but they are in a minority and any increases in crime will be offset by crimes committed in the illegal drug trade. An analysis of drug related crimes in New York found that 14% were probably caused by the pharmaceutical effects of drug use, while 74% were found to be linked with the illegal drug trade[1]. In addition, drug use is predominantly associated with theft and other similar crimes, while alcohol is predominantly associated with homicide and other violent crimes (this does not mean that I am saying that they are caused by their respective drugs)[1]. 2. It is not the government's role to prevent drug use. Another argument for drug criminalization is that it would protect many from the negative effects of drugs. Though drugs do have some negative effects, so what? What gives the government, a casual observer, the right to control what someone else ingests, especially if it harms no one else? The government's role is not to protect harm, no matter what the source. If that was true, the government should force all overweight people to go on a diet. After all, an estimated 300,000 people a year die from obesity[3]. The government's role is to protect rights. You can do whatever you want as long as you do not harm others in the process. Imagine you buy a car. I state that it is your car. However, you decide to paint your car red. I say that you cannot paint your car red, even though it is not mine. That is essentially what the government is doing when it bans drugs. It is not respecting your rights, it is trampling over them. Cross-examination: What is the government's role? 3. Drug criminalization is immoral. Why is it that the government is able to dictate over certain portions of our lives, even if we believe otherwise? What gives the government the right to decide what is right for you, and then force you to do what they want, even if you believe otherwise? A small group has decided what is right for society, and then forced everyone else to follow suit. Doesn't that sound wrong? The government is not supposed to be your parent, watching over every step you make. It is supposed to protect your rights. Conclusion There is no reason to criminalize drugs. Drug use does not lead to crime, and it is not the governments role to protect you from all harm, whatever the source. If something is banned without a compelling reason, it is immoral. Given that there is no compelling reasons for drug criminalization, why do it? Isn't freedom our default? Sources [1] http://www.parl.gc.ca... [2] http://www.seanbonner.com... [3] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov...