Federal And Illegal Drugs : Why Do Americans Make War On Some Drugs And Build Fortunes On Others?

For many years, drugs have been the center of crime and the criminal justice system in the United States. Due to this widespread epidemic, President Richard Nixon declared the “War on Drugs” in 1971 with a campaign that promoted the prohibition of illicit substances and implemented policies to discourage the overall production, distribution, and consumption. The War on Drugs and the U.S. drug policy has experienced the most significant and complex challenges between criminal law and the values of today’s society. With implemented drug polices becoming much harsher over the years in order to reduce the overall misuse and abuse of drugs and a expanded federal budget, it has sparked a nation wide debate whether or not they have created more harm than good. When looking at the negative consequences of these policies not only has billions of dollars gone to waste, but the United States has also seen public health issues, mass incarceration, and violent drug related crime within the black market in which feeds our global demands and economy. With this failed approach for drug prohibition, there continues to be an increase in the overall production of illicit substances, high rate of violence, and an unfavorable impact to our nation.

Dangerous illegal drugs have plagued American citizens and their youth for as long as the country has been in existence. These harmful drugs are not only responsible for countless amounts of deaths, but the corruption of the American society in general. All too many times have these drugs been blamed for insanity, racism, rebellion, and straight up violence. Today the government is spending approximately $19.179 billion in one year to combat these evils (Gifford). Unfortunately, even with all of this effort going in to stop illegal drug use, the “War on Drugs” is yet to produce almost any positive results. Because of this, politicians are urging the government to spend even more money to combat the seemingly

As the variables above are added up it, quickly becomes apparent that the “war on drugs,” during the mid 1980s-early 2000s had a negative impact on American life. With all the money spent and lives ruined, the United States came no closer to solving drug issues it had faced in the years prior. Citizens took the biggest brunt of this “war” with the fact that not only did they have to forcibly financially support the “war on drugs,” but in some cases, they had their civil liberties encroached upon or even completely violated. It could be argued that retrospectively looking at the “war on drugs” makes criticizing our country and the officials in charge easy, but when you actually look at the statistics and events surrounding this time period criticism

In the past forty years, the United States has spent over $2.5 trillion dollars funding enforcement and prevention in the fight against drug use in America (Suddath). Despite the efforts made towards cracking down on drug smugglers, growers, and suppliers, statistics show that addiction rates have remained unchanged and the number of people using illegal drugs is increasing daily (Sledge). Regardless of attempts to stem the supply of drugs, the measure and quality of drugs goes up while the price goes down (Koebler). Now with the world’s highest incarceration rates and greatest illegal drug consumption (Sledge), the United States proves that the “war on drugs” is a war that is not being won.

Today’s world is changing at a rapid pace. Things never thought to be possible are becoming very real. One of the popular subjects of wanting change is the legalization of drugs. There has already been a small amount of change in the drug legalization process with marijuana now being legal in a few of the states. Vanessa Baird in her work “Legalize Drugs- all of them!” argues for the legalization and decriminalization of drugs. John P. Walters counters Baird’s argument for legalization in his piece “Don’t Legalize Drugs.” Both authors take an extended look into the harsh reality of the drug war and the small progress it has made since it began.

The war on drugs in our culture is a continuous action that is swiftly lessening our society. This has been going on for roughly 10-15 years and has yet to slow down in any way. Drugs continue to be a problem for the obvious reason that certain people abuse them in a way that can lead to ultimate harm on such a person. These drugs do not just consist of street drugs (marijuana, cocaine, ecstasy), but prescription medications as well. Although there are some instances where drugs are being used by subjects excessively, there has been medical research to prove that some of these drugs have made a successful impact on certain disorders and diseases.

The War on Drugs, like the war on Terrorism, is a war that America may not be able to afford to win. For over forty years the United States has been fighting the War on Drugs and there is no end in sight. It has turned into a war that is about politics and economics rather than about drugs and criminals. The victims of this war are numerous; but perhaps they are not as numerous as those who benefit from the war itself.

From “Just Say No to Drugs” programs in elementary schools to minimum sentences for drug crimes, America has tried to contain its usage of illicit substances. The goal of anti-drug programs and policies are to deter people from using and abusing drugs. On the other side of the country’s schizophrenic relationship with illicit mood-altering substances, drugs can be found in most communities in America, from sketchy side alleys to upper class neighborhoods. When drug policies are pondered, several main questions arise. (1) Are drug laws helpful, do they accomplish the goals they aim to? (2) How do we as a society treat those who abuse drugs; are addicts criminals? (3) What are the costs/benefits, social, financial and otherwise, of our current

The war on drugs has been a well-intentioned failure. The world’s desire was to keep people away from dangerous substances and to eliminate the violent practices of the drug producers and distributors. Instead of the war on drugs achieving its objectives of eliminating violent crime and reducing a number of people were taking drugs, the war has mainly just resulted in a dramatic increase prison population with little effect on the supply side of this illegal industry. Statistics collected by the justice department suggest that the US government is not focusing on its main goal of eliminating the production of illegal drugs. According to Table 346 of the Statistical Abstract of the United States, in 2009 the US government had a total arrest rate of 416.0 people per 100,000 in the general population for drug abuse violations. The arrest rate for possessing illegal drugs was 339.1, yet the arrest rate for selling and manufacturing drugs was only 76.9. In data collected for 1990, 2000, and 2005 the same type of situation happened where the amount of people arrested for possessing drugs were significantly higher than the amount of people arrested for selling and manufacturing drugs. Governments around the world have lost billions of the taxes payer’s dollars on yearly fighting a war that has dragged on for almost five decades with no end in sight. The best alternative to finally bring an end to this war in the Americas would be to legalize drugs across the American continent.

Addiction and substance abuse is a crime that has plagued the U.S. ever since the early 1900 's and from that point on has been an uphill battle for the U.S. to stop. But even with everything the U.S. has tried nothing that has been done has even made a dent in the drug war. Drugs just continue to hit the very streets that innocent people live on. Today people walk right outside their house and just around the corner, there is some guy that has the ability to sell them drugs. That is why the war on drugs in the U.S. has failed miserably because the number of people and high schoolers that are using drugs is still increasing, drug tests do not do anything to discourage using drugs and almost everyone knows how to cheat the tests, and legalizing drugs, such as marijuana and other low level drugs, would allow the U.S. to have more control over drugs in the end.

The, “War on Drugs” has been an ongoing debate in many circles for much longer than most people know. Starting in the late 1800’s, drug regulations and laws have been imposed upon American society and, although they have changed and been manipulated to fit different policies, by different politicians with different agendas, they are still in effect today. These laws and regulations may be in place for the safety of society or, according to some, are a way for the federal government to control the American population. With the many different effects, uses or styles of drugs available both legally and illegally there are countless reasons why these regulations are in place, but equally as many examples of why they are not needed or are detrimental to our culture. The more recent regulations have brought about more negative issues in society than the positive result they were intended for. The initiation of the War on Drugs as a peacemaking criminological approach to drugs in an effort to eliminate illegal drug use has failed resulting in overcrowding and dangerous prisons, increased violence and fatality rates in the underground drug trade and unjustifiable costs to the American taxpayer for the treatment and incarceration of those targeted. A look at a brief history of drugs in America will help put this failure into context.

The so-called “War on Drugs,” as declared by the Nixon administration in the signing of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970, marked the beginning of the current era of mandatory minimum sentencing, racism, privatized prisons, and a powerful constituency that profits as a result of the prohibition of drugs. Psychoactive substances have been apart of the human experience as long as humans have walked the earth. There is little hope that drug production will ever be curtailed, so long as there is a demand; a demand that has remained steady even though it has been forty years since the beginning of said war. As Judge James P. Gray from the Superior Court of Orange County has so plainly put it: “Where did this policy

According to Sanho Tree, director of the Drug Policy Project at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, D.C., “The American war on drugs is not only failing, it's actually perpetuating drug trafficking, profiteering and drug use all over the world.” The more we fight this war, the cheaper the drugs become, the more available they are and the higher the purity. One doesn't need to resort to conspiracy theory to know why this war is failing. It is time the administration faces the problem first hand. The United States is too focused on the Middle East and the war for oil to have spent too much time and energy on the War on Drugs, which inevitably evolved into the War on Terrorism. The government is continually shelling out more money to support the war on drugs, but this was is not one that can be purchased. With an annual budget of twenty billion dollars, we cannot afford to give more money to this war, particularly when it is not helping. This is a war that needs time and energy devoted to brainstorming so that we can develop a new way of dealing with the War on Drugs, a way that works.

The War on Drugs is a current conflict that has been going on for many decades. It is a movement organized by the United States Government in attempts to reduce the amount of illegal drug trafficking in the country. The War on Drugs enforced strict drug policies that are intended to reduce both the production, distribution, and consumption of illegal drugs. The term was first used by President Richard Nixon, during a press conference concerning the nationwide drug abuse issue, in which Nixon announces to the Congress that drug abuse was, “public enemy number one”. Illegal drugs are certainly dangerous; addiction and death are two but many factors as a result of drugs. However, even though the War on Drugs might sounds justifiable, in truth, it is actually making the drug issue worst in the country.

The “War on Drugs” is the name given to the battle of prohibition that the United States has been fighting for over forty years. And it has been America’s longest war. The “war” was officially declared by President Richard Nixon in the 1970’s due to the abuse of illegitimate drugs. Nixon claimed it as “public enemy number one” and enacted laws to fight the importation of narcotics. The United States’ War on Drugs began in response to cocaine trafficking in the late 1980’s. As the war continues to go on, winning it hardly seems feasible. As stated by NewsHour, the National Office of Drug Control Policy spends approximately nineteen billion dollars a year trying to stop the drug trade. The expenses shoot up, indirectly, through crime,