Should we legalize drugs?

Question

Every year our country pours billions into fighting illegal drugs, and every time we lock a drug dealer up another one takes their place. The system doesn't really seem to be working. If we legalized it we could regulate the production and make tax revenue off of it. The same thing happened in the 20's and 30's when alcohol was illegal, which created a huge market for gangs and the mob, just like narcotics do today. And once it was legalized the violence decreased, just like it would today.

Also, I don't see how ethically it is the place of the government to tell people what they do with their own body if it does no harm to anyone else. Tobacco and alcohol can be just as addicting and harmful as marijuana, and yet they are legal and it isn't. Lastly, I also think if it was legal it would have a lot less appeal to people. As a teenager I can tell you that the only reason a lot of people do it in the first place is to rebel against their parents and society because it is illegal. I just think its too dangerous not to regulate, what do you think?

Answer 1

No drugs kill.

Answer 2

i agree, im 15 so im a teen and i know if this stuff was legal there would be a lot less of it being used.

well i think weed should be legalized, and im convinced the only reason its not is because the US does not produce the best cannabis. if it did, there would be SOOOO much profit to be made. but i dont think heroin and more sirious stuff like that should be legalized, that stuff realy does ruin lives, and families.

Answer 3

Well - I have a different suggestion.  To me it seems that the problem is one of supply and demand == we pour money into the supply side but do nothing about the demand.

So if we were more aggressive with the demand - we would reduce the supply. So I think we should

    --- Execute all Drug dealers - will reduce supply if instead of jail you get death.

    -- legalize pot.  Most common drug and without societal effects - only the user is affected.

    ---for all other Drugs.  Users: first offense - mandatory rehab.  If they are caught again, death. it will reduce demand as well as reducing the prison population which will free up tax money that was previously spent on prisons and the justice system.

Voila -- no one would start using because of the risk AND people who are already would be eliminated.  Plus, family members of drug users would be much more aggressive in getting their loved ones off drugs and keeping them off.

I know everyone always likens the drug war to Prohibition but it really isn't.  Prohibition made something illegal that was used/drank by the majority of the population and in limited amounts has some health benefits.  In addition, for thousands of years ale/beer was an alternative to dirty water supplies.  

Only about 4% of the population in the US actually uses illegal drugs

so why legalize it - it will only increase the number of uses.  Many drugs have incredibly addictive and have incredibly negative effects (meth causes tooth decay; overdose potential of heroin, meth or crack ).  

  

Answer 4

Well to correct you marijuana is not as harmful as tobacco and has never been proven to be physically addicting. What I mean is you will never go through with drawl if you try to quit it. That being said many people find it to be emotionally addicting and can't even get out of bed in the morning without taking a hit.

Also, to correct you again many illegal drugs are not victimless. For instance if someone is on PCP they have close to super-human powers and many times do hurt people.

But one of the biggest reasons I can think of that drugs are illegal is because of the fear of people driving. In fact, the reason why the legal drinking age is 21 is because the reduced number of drunk driving accidents especially people under the age of 21.

Also, I think your 100% right that so many less people would use drugs if the weren't illegal. Just look at how many people drink under age, and its mainly because the can't do it. We as humans, always want what we can't have.

Personally, I am in favor of legalizing marijuana because it is such a harmless drug. Marijuana is the most widely used/abused drug in the U.S.

As for the "gateway" drug theory, only 25% of habitual marijuana users try harder drugs. This includes people who only do harder drugs once in their life.

Harder are though harmful to your health any many times cause people to kill themselves since they feel like nothing bad can ever happen to them while they are high.

But I can understand why you think all drugs should be legal. I think that many of the government money being spent on the drug war would be greatly reduced if only marijuana was legal. The number of people that use hard drugs versus the number of people that use marijuana is so small that i think only legalizing marijuana would be enough.

I hope that helps!

Answer 5

Have you ever seen what crack cocaine can do to someone? Nobody cares about marijuana. Marijuana is weak and can actually be used for medicinal purposes. If you get caught with it by a cop all you get is a ticket. Get caught with ice and your going to jail.

Ice, crack, etc. None of these drugs have benefits from long term use.

Its highly addictive and will destroy your life. Only 1% of crack addicts kick and stay sober. Wtf does that tell you?

No it shouldnt be legalized in my opinion.

Answer 6

Yes.

If drugs are illegal, then only criminals will have drugs.

Answer 7

Yes, since America imprisons the HIGHEST NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN THE ENTIRE WORLD and 70% of those people are imprisoned for DRUGS, America should legalize and regulate all currently illegal drugs.

You hit the nail on the head with the points you've made. I can't tell you how good it is to see young people thinking freely about the War on (some) Drugs! America will be in your hands soon, and it will take people like you who are concerned about liberty and are willing to analyze failed policies like Prohibition V.2 and work to change them to better this country.

I see you've taken a lot of flack for asking this question, and it's not surprising. I asked the same question on here in the Law Enforcement section and got my *** chewed six ways to Sunday. The typical answer was: "imagine if we weren't fighting..." Yeah, imagine that, drug warriors would be out of a job! People think that they KNOW what is best for others, and that kind of thinking is more dangerous than ANY drug!!!

When America finally repeals its foolish Prohibition V.2, it will be a matter of personal choice...in other words, if you don't like drugs, don't do them! That, my friends, is true liberty: having the choice to do what you want as long as no one else is deprived of life, liberty, or property! Last time I checked, no one has tried to force me to drink liquor (which kills many more people a year than heroin, cocaine, and MDMA, btw!)

For anyone who wishes to examine this issue further, here are som links:

www.leap.cc  -  Former DEA agents, Police, and Prison Wardens against the drug war.

www.drcnet.org  -  legal aspects and statistics on race, gender, arrest and incarceration in the US.

www.norml.com  -  help end cannabis prohibition in the US.

www.flexyourrights.org   -   learn how to stop illegal searches and avoid other unlawful police tactics.

www.ssdp.org   -  students for sensible drug policy.

www.lp.org  -  the ONLY political party that cares about YOUR FREEDOM!!!

I noticed an awful lot of people getting a "thumbs down" for their answers by people who disagree with them. That'll show 'em! Hahaha!

Answer 8

That issue has been talked about since I was a kid.  It makes sense when it comes to taxing drugs and putting the dealers out of business, but drugs also kill people.  If they were legal, you would see teenagers dying by the thousands everyday because of its legal acceptance.  It won't happen

Answer 9

NO KEEP DRUG ILLEGAL!

Answer 10

Dude i agree w/you 100%, people are gonna do whatever it takes to get their hands in drugs whatever form it maybe, now even over the counter pills are being considered as drugs for a person takes them to get high or forget about their problems in life...Marijuana came from the earth so why shouldn't it be legalized, but the other drugs out there such as crack/cocaine/heroin/meth are the ones i don't want out there legalized

Well i haven't heard of anyone getting killed over drugs (unless you overdose yourself, which was your choice) than i have over drunk driving and killing either yourself plus who knows how many else involved in the accident

Answer 11

No, Look what cigarettes have done, now imagine if they made you mentally handicapped.

Making it legal will not stop drug related crimes. Amphetamines are so addicting and they mess with your mind you steal from your family, everyone, anything to get the money to buy more drugs. You have mood swings, and hurt people. You do not think straight. Illegal or not that wont change.

In 20 years there will be no more illegal drugs being used because processing power will have reached a point where micro processors are the size of dust, able to put them everywhere, and our society will have no privacy. There will be no way to get away with illegal activities.

Answer 12

Okay first off tobacco and alcohol are both much more harmful and dangerous than marijuana.  There is an amazing amount of studies that show marijuana has no harmful effects.

Secondly, no it is not the place of the government to regulate this.  But they feel like if they don't control it, it will just get used by everybody.  "Oh my god!" they think, "If we legalized narcotics everyone in America would be a crack-addict pot head who does meth on the side!"  The federal government is too powerful and over-regulates pur lives.  We need to go to a free market system and let the market take care of everything.  A free market would solve most of our problems.  Don't believe me?  John Stossel wrote a whole book about it, called Give Me A Break, and Ron Paul touches on it in he new book, The Revolution: A Manifesto.

On a related note, have you heard of Ron Paul?  Because your question is exactly what he preaches.  If you are not a supporter already you should seriously consider becoming one.

Answer 13

Yes. The weak people will die of drug overuse while the genetically superior will continue to exist.

ZERO-TOLERANCE has been proven to be useless.

Answer 14

Yes because it would be easier to control......and it would put drug dealers outta bussiness and end alot of violent acts and it would save america loads of money  

Answer 15

We should. i would love it.. Marijuana all day it would be like heaven!  

Answer 16

We aren't doing enough to fight drugs, I don't believe. And drugs are not only harmful to the person using them. Watch one episode of Intervention. You will see the incredible pain the friends and families of these addicts are in. They worry. They're handing money over to these people so they can buy their drugs because it's better than having to imagine what they'll do to get the money on their own. They lose sleep. Their health suffers. Drugs have a massive negative impact on the user and everyone they know. People comment now on what a mess this country is. If we legalize drugs we'll bring ourselves down faster than anyone even believes is possible.

Answer 17

drugs wont be made legal because the goverment wont be able to tax it eg: marijuana: people will grow it and the ******** goverment wont because they wont make no money out of it,, its stupid that it is alegal... so god on the 7th day looked around,,,,, ooo shitttt,,, ive left ******* pot every where,,,, thats gonna give them the impression there SUPPOSED TO USEE ITT!!,,,,, i should never of smoked that joint on the third day,,  isint weird that the way they take away nature, is taking against free will,??? meany people dissagreee because they live the way the goverment wants them to live they use scear tactics so that is why so many people are against it, just once wouldint it be nice to here a possitive drug story? because there is more possitive stories about drugs that there is negative?

Answer 18

Yeah they should and the Gov should sell it so they could cut taxes and use all the money they made on their drug sales on their pet projects and the stuff i dont agree with. They could sell 100% unadulterated drugs and regulate how much a person buys a week or month. Just because its legal doesn't mean everyone will do it. Its easy as h**l for me to get weed and coke yet i don't because it isn't for me so those who are afraid everyone would start doing it because its easier to get are wrong.

Thats just my opinion

PS

It isnt the Gov's place to say what we can and cant do. A drugie is still going to do his drug so Legal or not its going to happen, just face it.

Answer 19

This subject is a good one for a debate, because both sides have some valid points.

90% of crime and nearly 99% of violent crime are drug and/or alcohol related.  Also, the argument that drugs is a victimless crime is total BS.  And, the argument that "people will just stay home and use drugs" is clearly false.  

So, no - even marijuana should remain illegal.  Druggies, alcoholics and potheads need to learn to live without getting high.

Answer 20

thats a good point , but also if they legalize drugs there will be alot more deaths, maybe they should legalize marjuana because 1/10 or something like that do it anyways

you have a point