Gore Vidal and Legalization of Marijuana

In the essay “America’s Unjust Drug War” by Michael Huemer, Huemer discusses the facts and opinions around the subject on whether or not the recreational use of drugs should be banned by law. Huemer believes that the American government should not prohibit the use of drugs. He brings up the point on drugs and how they harm the users and the people in the user’s life; he proves that the prohibition on drugs in unjust. Huemer believes that drug prohibition is an injustice to Americans’ natural rights and questions why people can persucute those who do drugs.

Drug policy is a crucial topic in the country today. Substance abuse, as well as drug-related crime rates, are a huge problem. This is a fact. The way to fix the problem of substance abuse, however, is widely disagreed upon. Some think that stricter laws regarding drug possession and use would solve the problem, while others believe that loosening the restrictions would be a better option. The issue of legalizing drugs, especially marijuana, is one that is debated all the time. In fact, in 1995, a survey was conducted on the most important policy issues and eighty five percent of the country placed drugs at the top of the list (Falco 1996). Many states are actually beginning to decriminalize, and even

What would be your solution to end drug addiction? In the essay, Drugs: Case for Legalizing Marijuana”, Gore Vidal argues his solution, to legalize all drugs along with marijuana, to end drug addiction. Marijuana along with other drugs should not be legalized because they will cause more harm than good, begin leading to drug after drug, and would forever affect the world.

Isaac Campos wrote this book in order to provide a background history of Mexico’s use of marijuana and the effect it had in Mexican society. He displays marijuana’s extent both, socially and politically. He scripted his book to carry the reader from the arrival of cannabis (would later be referred to as marijuana) in Mexico through the substance’s prohibition in 1920. With this book, he attempts to “decipher the psychoactive riddle of cannabis in nineteenth and early twentieth century Mexico” (p.8). The “psychoactive riddle” is the way the drug, set, and setting are imposed on the resulting influence of marijuana. Home Grown is significant in understanding the War on Drugs and the impact marijuana has had on society in North America. It provided history of notable events due to the production and prohibition of the drug ranging from its introduction until the 1920s when it was banned. Campos argued that the negative stereotypes of marijuana, often thought to have originated in the United States, actually originated in Mexico as a way to control the use of the drug. Citizens of Mexico related the drug to causing the users to go mad, hence the reason of the term “Reefer Madness.”

There are many differing viewpoints in the United States when dealing with drug policy. Within the political arena, drug policy is a platform that many politicians base their entire campaigns upon, thus showing its importance to our society in general. Some of these modes within which drug policy is studied are in terms of harm reduction, and supply reduction. When studying the harmful effects of drugs, we must first to attempt to determine if drug abuse harms on an individual level of if it is a major cause of many societal problems that we face today. In drawing a preliminary conclusion to this question we are then able to outline the avenues of approach in dealing

He also describes how the United States views as a voice and forceful supports of prohibitionist drug controls in international policymaking. In addition, in the United States the discussion on surrounding drug control policy is one of the most extremely disputed matters of our current eras. The author mentions in the article how the strictly enforced US prohibitionist drug was unable to control the Narcotic drugs which happened to create many negative and harmful consequences for the people in the world. The negative consequences that were created when they failed to control the narcotic drugs happened to increase the violence, government dishonesty, and public seizure; therefore, these consequences to the economy growing are very harmful and dangerous. Narcotic drugs have long preserved, which has impacted many people lives in the world. A main purpose of this article is about the unaffordable drug control normally employed by the United States. The United States has spent way too much money abroad and local just thinking that they will be able to decrease the level of illegal drugs; however, they happened to fail at

Vidal explains how it’s the United States Governments fault because the crime spree would be decreased. Vidal also believes that fighting against drugs is nearly as a big business as trying to stop them because people always want what they can't have. By legalizing drugs will enable people easier access to them but also, taking away the thrill of getting them. For example, giving people their wants only makes the person lose less value of their excitement which has to do a big role in reverse psychology. To confuse people of their wants and needs.

As a major policy issue in the United States, the War on Drugs has been one of the most monumental failures on modern record. At a cost of billions of taxpayer dollars, thousands of lives lost and many thousands of others ruined by untreated addiction or incarceration, America's policy orientation concerning drug laws is due for reconsideration. Indeed, the very philosophical orientation of the War on Drugs and of the current drug policy in the United States has been one of prosecution and imprisonment rather than one of decriminalization, treatment and rehabilitation. As our medical and scientific communities characterize addiction as a disease, the United States government continues to characterize this disease as a crime. And in doing so, it has created an unnecessary criminal class in the United States. The research, supplemental political cartoons and proposed research will set out to prove that stiffer drug laws will only have the impact of criminalizing countless drug addicts who might otherwise benefit substantially from rehabilitation and other treatment-based strategies. With a specific focus on the prohibition of marijuana even for medical use, and using the Toulmin model for putting forth and completing the argument, the research will set out to demonstrate the irrational

In the beginning of Gore Vidal's essay he starts off by telling people that making all drugs legal is the right choice. He also stated that by putting the warnings on the dug bottles will prevent people from getting addicted. I believe his reasonings are not believable. People will get addicted to drugs even with the knowledge off the bad side effects. Drugs are terrible for a person's health and even if the United States makes them legal people will misuse them. Although Vidal stated that he tried every drug and didn't get addicted to any of the, but he only tried them all once. Some people do not have a strong willed mind to stop at just one use. On the other hand, the legalization of marijuana is more realistic. Marijuana is still a very

Although some people argue for the legalization of drugs, addiction to these substances has caused a huge increase in violent crimes in the home, at school, and on the street. Many people do not understand why individuals become addicted to drugs or how drugs change the brain to create compulsive drug abuse. They mistakenly view drug abuse and addiction as strictly a social problem and may characterize those who take drugs as morally weak. One very common belief is that drug abusers should be able to just stop taking drugs if they are only willing to change their behavior. This is a false and uneducated belief. Drug abuse may start as a social problem or social escape but one the addiction has taken ahold of a person

Marijuana is probably the most recreational and illegal drug in the world. The most significant ingredient is delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinal, it is commonly referred to it abbreviated form THC. This drug should not be legalized because it would lead to hard core drugs, there would be an increase in obesity, and it affects the heart, lungs and the brain. There are legal, social, and medical reasons that marijuana should not be decriminalized.

The book that I read “This is Your Country on Drugs: The Secret of Getting High in America by Ryan Grim” tells us the stories and relationship among Americans, their drugs and the government, which is a drug literature. The book and author will give us a tour in an illicit world of drugs use in the United States. The Americans dilemma of love-hate relationship with psychotomimetic substances extended from the nations commencing until the present time.

Drug legalization is an enduring question that presently faces our scholars. This issue embraces two positions: drugs should not be legalized and drugs should be legalized. These two positions contain an array of angles that supports each issue. This brief of the issues enables one to consider the strengths and weakness of each argument, become aware of the grounds of disagreement and agreement and ultimately form an opinion based upon the positions stated within the articles. In the article “Against the Legalization of Drugs”, by James Q. Wilson, the current status of drugs is supported. Wilson believes if a drug such as heroin were legalized there would be no financial or medical reason to avoid heroin usage;

The article, “Hooked on Just Saying No”, was written to address the problems of the War on Drugs. It discussed the problems with prohibition. Back in the early 20th century, America’s prohibition of alcohol failed; it caused social and economic problems all over America. When alcohol became legalized, bootleggers ended up becoming legal brewers and distillers, becoming wealthy from the profit. However, “prohibited drugs could yield even bigger profits than prohibited alcohol” (the Economist). Therefore, after marijuana becomes legal, it should be controlled and regulated, to prevent the monopolization of the market. Taxation of marijuana and less incarceration for marijuana would yield economic benefits to the government, leading to more funding for productive activities such as better education and drug rehabilitation.

A number of movements to legalize marijuana have been gaining attention lately. Currently there are 14 states where marijuana is legal for medical use (medicalmarijuana). 41% of U.S. citizens believe marijuana should be legalized (drugpolicy) but others are still concerned about health damage. American society has lost the war against marijuana, and that's okay. We should stop wasting time and money trying to reverse history and instead legalize both medical and recreational use of this mild narcotic widely seen as no more harmful than alcohol.