War On Drugs Analysis

Portugal's success would be the ideal model for Canada to base decriminalization of illicit drugs. Although Canada does not have as much of a drug epidemic that Portugal had before decriminalization, statistics show the country has rising rates of both heroin and meth use. Treating this evident problem with a different approach has been gathering heavy support over the years. Support behind this legal movement in Canada includes the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition and the Green Party of Canada. Not only were drugs decriminalized in Portugal, the entire system was reconstructed to aid those addicted. Both the reduce in law enforcement towards illicit drugs and the increase in funding towards treatment paid off greatly for Portugal. Overdose death went down by 72% while the spread of HIV went down by 94%. Canada has prioritized the war on drugs, although the method being followed does not prove effective. It might prove better to abandon this current war in favour for public health, following Portugal's lead in providing harm reduction treatment and treating the addiction as the public health crisis that it

For many years, a real push has been looming on the idea of legalizing now illegal drugs. This has become a hot debate throughout nations all over the world, from all walks of life. The dispute over the idea of decriminalizing illegal drugs is and will continue on as an ongoing conflict. In 2001, Drug decriminalization in all drugs, including cocaine and heroin, became a nationwide law in Portugal (Greenwald). Ethan Nadelman, essayist of “Think again: Drugs,” states his side of the story on the continuing criminalization of hard drugs, in which he stand to oppose. Whether it is for the good of human rights or not, decriminalizing drugs may be a good head start for a new beginning.

In July, 2001 Portugal 's Law 30/20001 decriminalized all drugs. Under the new law, possession of small amounts of drugs (~10 days or less worth of personal use), while still legally prohibited, were no longer grounds for criminal offense. This approach was taken from a public health perspective and was accompanied by a concurrent increase in treatment and harm-reduction options.2 The combination of decriminalization, taking drug-users out of the criminal justice system, and investment in harm-reduction, providing users with effective treatment options, led to material gains in public health, including significant reductions of drug overdose death and HIV infection.3

This weeks assignment explores the "War on drugs" and the effect that it has on those addicted to drug and those that sell drugs. The "war on drugs" gained popularity and momentum in the 1960's with action taken by President Richard Nixon in 1969 when law were enacted (Singer, p.289). This article surprised me greatly since I was under the impression that this 'war' was designed to improve health. wellbeing, and restore the values of the 'good ole days". However, little influence regarding society's wellbeing had little to do with the decision. Political, economics, and international relations proved to be the focus of the 'war'. Nixon attributed the decay of society to the use and distribution of drugs, labeling drug abusers as criminals (Singer,

The audience I aim to appeal and to inform would be college aged students (male and female alike) of the United States, namely in the age range of 18 to 25. This demographic of people are generally located anywhere in the United States. Many of these people are mostly working part time retail/food industry jobs or internships for many of the people do not have time to balance school and an actual full time job. College is often pricey, so this essay would be targeting namely those in the lower-middle to higher class. Because this demographic is attending school, all of these people have at least some college education. As for religious and sexual preferences, any and every type is present within this demographic.

Portugal is the perfect example of why the drug war should end, in 2001 Portugal was a country with a drug problem in Europe with over 1% of its population having a heroin addiction (Zeeshan, 2015) and the president decided to take action by decriminalizing all drugs. How Portugal handles its citizens with drug problems is very interesting and thought out. If you are caught with a small supply of drugs you are sent to a commission for the Dissuasion of Drug addiction. Here social workers, lawyers, and medical professionals will help you with treatment rather than jail time. Before taking action Portugal had over 40 HIV

Lastly, the author stated that the war on drugs was an influence for this particular law. The author also states (Yassky) The effects the bill has on people caught in between the war on drugs. Some people are in prison just for some minor offense like smoke marijuana and other small acts. This law made simply made it possible for the smallest crime to be prosecuted to the fullest extension of the law. For example in one was caught smoke marijuana ones can go to prison for that simply act. In addition, they are other options like boot camps. There are many more programs other than these two but these seem most popular. In the end, the war on drugs as me on mixed emotions but what I can say I do agree with the author that the bill should be

There has been speculation that the decriminalization of all drugs in Portugal has caused a rapid increase in the number of crimes and homicides in Portugal. Between 2001- 2006, the number of homicides increased by 40% from 105 to 148 per year (Murkin, 1). This may be attributed to the fact that now that drugs are legal, drug availability is more prevalent making it much harder for dealers to compete for customers and eventually resulting in turf battles ending in homicides. This could also be a product of directly drug related murders since getting high, causing the person be have less judgment over his or her self, may lead to reckless actions. However, there has been no concrete evidence supporting that the decriminalization of drugs or drug use itself has had any impact on this rise in homicide rate. This is merely a coincidence statistically but may have deeper prevalence if examined much closer. Crime in general since 2001 in Portugal has increased as well, however, these are mostly associated with petty thefts and robberies (Murkin, 1). This, as well, seems associated with the decriminalization of drugs, but researchers have deduced that this increase in document crimes is due to the fact that police officers can now focus their efforts on dealing with these criminals and other offenders of the law rather then having to deal with drug related crimes everyday. This enables more dangerous criminals to be focused on and decreases the number of drug related offenders in

The author has explored several factors, which led to the prevalence of drug trade in America and other parts of the globe. This book exposes the issues that were affecting the dynamics of the American society. The source is important in conducting research since it contains data regarding the issue and how the issues were dealt with by President Kennedy.

For years the war on drugs has continued to be an issue of high debate and controversy in the United States. These debates and controversies have surrounded issues ranging everywhere from possible solutions for the ever prominent drug problem, to the legalization of certain drugs all together. Although the War on Drugs began its battle many years ago, the effects and implications surrounding it may be more evident today than ever. When people think of the war on drugs and the implications that it presents, they are likely to think of increased violence and increased spending by the government as two of the biggest issues. However, perhaps one of the bigger issues that often gets over looked is the disparate

Society’s view of drugs has vastly changed based on the sociological imagination of the times. Sociological imagination basically means that we are able to view ourselves as a part of one large group rather than individuals. Human’s behavior and attitude have evolved based on the social forces that have adjusted around them. This changing of ideas has been clearly apparent in the Americas and is a prime example of the prohibition of alcohol from 1920 to 1933. The illegality of alcohol provided the Mafia with an opportunity to produce liquor and therefore it had considerable control over those who wanted their alcohol and service. The part that the Mafia played in the 1920's has been developed into the drug dealers and drug cartel of this

The evolution of the war on drugs, why the policies have failed the American public; how the United States can change the war on drugs; to a health crisis instead of a war on drugs.

The war on drugs seems to have created a power vacuum south of the American border. Drug cartels are by their very nature are extremely competitive and violent organizations. The war on drugs has put away a lot of the big fish that once ran many of these operations and left lower ranking less experienced members of these same groups in charge. With less experience these members resort to a more volatile way of “doing business”. Where many of the founders of these groups may have handled things in a more entrepreneurial “businessman” to avoid undue attention from law enforcement, the new school cartels look to violence as a first and last resort. It seems that the war on drugs has all but done away with the more diplomatic side of these organizations

Drug use is an extremely dangerous issue around the United States, neighborhoods are terrorized, families are devastated, innocent people are affected everyday due to the war on drugs. My community around Damascus is greatly impacted by heroin, as we are very close to the highway and 27 cuts through Damascus which leads to Frederick and Mount Airy. This causes many lower class families to face the harsh reality of the drugs even if they aren't the ones committing the act.

Throughout the world, countries focus their drug policies in order to fight the “War on Drugs.” While most countries are fighting a war on drugs, Portugal has managed to break away and completely shock the world by taking an action that had the potential to make or break the country. Back in 2001, Portugal’s government made the decision to continue its war on drugs through a new approach. On the other hand, Iran faces a real drug problem because it is located next to Afghanistan, the world’s largest farming area. While a serious set of anti drug policies is arguably a necessity, Iran has used what some might consider cruel means to control the drug use in Iran. Not only this, but the authority in Iran is also known to be hypocritical in a way that they have a strict policy in regards to drugs, but they are known to be active in trafficking and distribution of many narcotics that have gotten so many of their people executed. With all of the drug use that has been happening in Iran, shared needles have also led to a severe increase in HIV/AIDS throughout the country. These diseases are even more prevalent in Iranian prisons. With the number of drug uses in Iran growing incessantly, it seems that their policies have been ineffective towards providing any significant changes in the Afghani drug trade that works throughout the region. Although the drug problem that exists or existed in these countries is very similar, the policies that Portugal and Iran have imposed on their