All drugs should be legalized (or decriminalized)

I as Con will simply be arguing the status quo. All drugs should not be legalized. I would also argue in fact some legal drugs should be made illegal. I will explain this in my "Arguments" section #3. DEFINITIONS & ASSOCIATIONS: Drug:"A medicine or other substance which has a physiological effect when ingested or otherwise introduced into the body[1]" [1]http://www.oxforddictionaries.com... Legal:"Of, based on, or concerned with the law[2]" [2]http://www.oxforddictionaries.com... Illegal:"Contrary to or forbidden by law, especially criminal law[3]" [3]http://www.oxforddictionaries.com... INTRODUCTION & PREMISES: I would agree with many things my opponent is stating. I think we disagree upon the proper way to go about doing things. My opponent seems to believe it would be wise to decriminalize or legalize drugs. I do share many of his conerns about many non-violent drug users being in prison[4]. But let us remember, first time offenders are not punished severely. In many cases, first time drug offenders are left off wth a warning depending on what drug they were using. I reconcile the appropriate way for the law to deal with non-violent drug offenders in section #4. Drug offenders should be treated as if they are going through a negative phase in life. This phase in a person's life should not be punished because their potential job future is killed by their sentencing. The phase should be rehabilitated. [4]http://www.drugwarfacts.org... ARGUMENTS: #1 The Effects of Illegal Drugs Are Unhealthy: People who are interested in radical drug reform should observe the effects of drugs before jumping the gun to stating they should be decriminalized an/or legalized. I will refrain from offering opinion to show what some of the hazardous effects of illegal drugs are.There is a reason why many are illegal. 1A. Cannabis(Marijuana): "Marijuana smoke contains 50% to 70% more cancer-causing substances than tobacco smoke. One major research study reported that a single cannabis joint could cause as much damage to the lungs as up to five regular cigarettes smoked one after another.........Studies in Australia in 2008 linked years of heavy marijuana use to brain abnormalities. [5]." [5]http://www.drugfreeworld.org... 1B. Cocaine: "Cocaine causes a short-lived, intense high that is immediately followed by the opposite—intense depression, edginess and a craving for more of the drug.....Permanent damage to blood vessels of heart and brain.....Liver, kidney and lung damage[6]." [6]http://www.drugfreeworld.org... 1C. Phencyclidine(PCP):" The use of PCP as an approved anesthetic in humans was discontinued in 1965 because patients often became agitated, delusional, and irrational while recovering from its anesthetic effects....Symptoms that mimic schizophrenia, such as delusions, hallucinations, paranoia, disordered thinking....People who have abused PCP for long periods of time have reported memory loss[7]." [7]http://www.drugabuse.gov... 1D. Heroin:"After the initial effects, users usually will be drowsy for several hours; mental function is clouded; heart function slows; and breathing is also severely slowed, sometimes enough to be life-threatening. Slowed breathing can also lead to coma and permanent brain damage[8]." 1E. Methadone:"The use of methadone with other drugs that suppress respiration such as alcohol can also be dangerous or fatal....After a while on methadone and after developing a tolerance to the drug, the abuser will not get high any more but will continue to feel drugged[9]." [9]http://www.narconon.org... #2 Why Drugs Should Be Discouraged: 2A. Drug Users can Potentially Kill Non-Drug Users Drug users are problematic when their drug usage effects others. A good comparison would be how non-smokers suffer from the effects of second hand smoke. Drug users can potentially suffer lung cancer as a result of the behavior of others[10]. Another comparison would be how some alcohol abusers jump in a car in a drunken trance and get into car accidents that hurt and/or kill other people[11]. [10]http://www.cancer.gov... [11]http://www.cdc.gov... As I have shown above in the effects of drugs section, drugs will affect the brain for the worse. Legalizing drugs can put others in potential danger just as the same way people suffer lung cancer from second hand smoke and how people die of drunk driving. 2B. Drug Users Can Become Aggressive I will use PCP as the best examples of how someone can become a danger to themselves as well as others[13]. I would argue the number of incidents is inconsequential but when the incidents do take place they are well worht noting. How often are car doors ripped off their hinges? Illegal drugs are no exceptions to aggression because alcohol may induce some of this behavior as well.Let us not forget the stories of how drunken husbands have came home to beat their wives and sometimes their children in their drunken states[14][15]. [13]http://www2.siena.edu... [14]http://www.dailymail.co.uk... [15]http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com... 2C. Drug Users Will Be Costly Drug users have to pay for their fix constantly if they are addicted to a drug. 2D. Drug Usage Will Be Addictive Many drug users suffer from symptoms which pressure them into getting more drugs. These drugs include PCP, heroin, and cocaine. This can be burdensome for the users as well as their relatives. #3 Punishments for drug users: I would agree with my opponent's skepticism for the drug users who are sent to prison. However, that does not make the case for legalization. When someone attempts to commit suicide, do the police send them to prison? No, the person who attempted to commit suicide is sent to rehabilation[16]. Drug users should be rehabilitated back into society through rehabilatation. There are reasons why people do drugs, there are reasons why people abuse alcohol, and there are reasons why people smoke cigarettes. It is not approprate to just ignore most of these people since they effect everyone else around them[-]. There needs to be proper outlets where these people can relieve their stress safely without harming anyone else. I would highly recommend psychiatrists or clinical psychologists to be used rather than abusing a substance. A person would be allowed to talk about their problems without using a substance or drug that may be unhealthy for them. This also should apply to legal drugs people are addicted to if it becomes burdensome on other people. Drugs should remain illegal but dealt with differently. They should be sent to a rehabilitation camp of sorts rather than a prison. Ignoring a problem is not fixing it. [16]http://www.brown.edu... [17]See section 2.