Drug Legalization

The War on Drugs is a failure. In fact, all wars on drugs have and will be a failure. It has not had any real effect on drug use, and even if it did, it is still immoral, still costs thousands of lives, billions of dollars, and still leads to a deterioration of society. The war on drugs mirrors prohibition- in everything from "bathtub gin" and "designer drugs" to gang activity fueled by the alcohol and drugs, Al Capone and the drug cartels, lives lost and crime. Why is it that we memorize dates and names from history, not the actual lessons? Before I begin my argument, I'd like to ask my opponent a) Is the war on drugs different from prohibition and why and b) If it isn't, is the war on drugs justified? 1. The drug war has a immense cost- in lives, money, and to society. 1A. Lives and money The war on drugs costs the US an estimated $52.3 billion and 15,000 lives a year[1]. When we are facing a debt crisis, throwing money around is hardly fiscally responsible. In fact, $52.3 billion a year is almost enough to pay for universalized health care. It also has lead to approximately 23,000 Mexican deaths by June 2010[2]. The figure has only continued to rise. 1B. Society Gangs Drugs are made profitable by the War on Drugs, and gangs like these profits. One cartel is estimated to make $7 billion a year in the US alone[3]. A lot of gang violence is due to fighting over drug dealing territory. Making drugs illegal leads to an increase in price, and this is very tempting to many. This money, in essence, is the "food" that lets gangs grow and thrive. The Justice System In addition to feeding gangs, the War on Drugs has lead to a deterioration of the US justice system and America in general. Cops have inflicted horrible injustices. A SWAT team in a drug raid recently fired 71 bullets at an innocent man[4]. 60 hit and the man is now dead. In addition, Americans are very likely to be imprisoned for nonviolent crimes, presumably to protect them from themselves. Over 50% of federal prisons are in there for drugs[6]. Since the beginning of the war on drugs, the US incarceration rate has quadrupled[9]. No knock searches are where the cops come in at night with little or no warning, hence no knock searches. This is typically justified by saying that they need to surprise the suspect in order that he doesn't destroy evidence. In a no knock search, they converge on the house in the middle of the night, and destroy the door with a battering ram or explosive. They then run in, force everyone to the ground at gunpoint, handcuff them and search the premises. If they do decide to announce their attacks, it is only a few seconds before attack[5]. An obvious problem with this is that the people being raided often do not realize that they are being assaulted by the police (as if that makes much of a difference). They then go to defend themselves and WAMMO! Another 60 bullets in another innocent man. These cases are unfortunately quite common. Another death was Todd Blair. The police break into his house, and one sees him holding a golf club. Needless to say, another one bit the dust[5]. Songs such as Drug Raid at 4 A.M. and No Knock Raid show how the common man (and woman) are beginning to fear the American justice system. Like No Knock Raid says, "For my protection? Who's gonna protect me from you?" 2. The War on Drugs has been having little success and will have little success. The war on drugs does not have much effect on the amount of people using drugs. Since the war on drugs began in 1971, we have experienced an approximate 3-4% change in marijuana use for students in 12th grade[7]. In fact, marijuana is used more commonly than cigarettes among 12th grade students. The Netherlands hasn't had any real problems with weed, even though it is legalized. Americans have used it approximately twice as often lifetime and in the last year as occupants of the Netherlands[8]. Clearly, legalizing marijuana does not lead to runaway use or greatly increased use. In fact, a vast array of governmental and academic studies show that legalization does not lead to any substantial difference in drug use and frequency. 3. The War on Drugs is immoral. I have saved the best for last. What is it called when one person(s) owns another? That's easy, it's called slavery. Can we truly say that we actually own ourselves and that the government doesn't when the government dictates what we are and are not allowed to ingest? We are nothing but the slaves of the government if they can dictate what we can and can not ingest. Why is it that the government should be our nursemaid and master? Why should people be able to dictate to other people what is good for you and force you to follow that belief, even if you believe otherwise? How is it and why is it that a small group of people is able to decide what is good, and then force the rest of the society to follow suit? If that's not morally wrong, then I don't know what is morally wrong. Many people say the failing of democracy is that it has the right for 51% to rule over 49%. If illegalizing drugs is a textbook example of this, which it definitely appears to be, then we should rectify it as soon as possible. Conclusion The War on Drugs and all other wars on drugs will all be costly and immoral failures. Why should we continue with policies that are both immoral and costly, especially when we know that we will fail? The government is not our nursemaid. If you disagree with ingesting drugs, then don't use them! What gives you the right to force your beliefs on other, especially when others believe otherwise? Sources [1] http://www.esquire.com... [2] http://www.bbc.co.uk... [3] http://www.time.com... [4] http://azstarnet.com... [5] http://www.copblock.org... [6] http://www.drugwarfacts.org... [7] http://drugabuse.gov... [8] http://drugwarfacts.org... [9] http://en.wikipedia.org...