Explain Why We Need To End The War On Drugs

Bertem Demirtas

Cupps

English 12 DE Block 5

11/30/17

Why We Need to End The War on Drugs.

In 1971 at a press conference President Richard Nixon declared drug abuse “public enemy number one in the United States.” During this conference he created the Special Action Office For Drug Abuse Prevention (SAODAP). Their goal was to prohibit drugs and drug trafficking in the United states, but the question is were they effective? Between the 1970’s and 1980’s the annual rate for drug related deaths was 2 people for every 100,000 in the U.S. But in the 1990’s it started to increase. By 2000 it rose to 4 deaths for every 100,000 and by 2006 it rose to 9 deaths for every 100,000 . Nixon’s War on drugs was not effective, in fact the war had the opposite

Also, legalize it. To set the record straight, most do not condone the use of any drugs and many frown upon the usage of 'hard drugs' and general addictions. It is strange that people have made it legal to drink alcohol ,but illegal to even have marijuana in your car. How often do people get drunk then wake up the next day not knowing what happened the night before because they drank too much? Only to find out they have warrants out for their arrest because they ran over someone because they drank too much. At least marijuana helps people with nausea and they don't black out when they smoke it. Alcohol is also one of the most dangerous drugs to detox from. When someone is addicted to pills, and they try to detox, they feel like they are going to die, but the chances are low. Its proven that there a 30% chance for alcoholics to die when they try to stop drinking. Alcohol is far more dangerous than marijuana so why is it

It also attracts foreigners that want to make a quick buck and crime. If it wasn't illegal these people wouldn't be attracted to the U.S.A. . They make millions of dollars from a plant. They are ruthless criminals that have connections all over the U.S. They kill innocent people to keep out of trouble. There is no way to ever be able to prevent people from smuggling them in. This will be an ongoing war until they can't profit off of it. They wont ever be able to arrest everyone. Marijuana is just another form of catching a buzz, an activity certainly most Americans can relate to, and has been misrepresented for years for moderately corrupt political and economical gain. Many personally believe it to be far safer than alcohol, less addictive than tobacco, and overall less harmful than the previously mentioned drugs (Yes, nicotine and alcohol are technically drugs). The American people are just throwing their money down the drain to combat an unwinnable 'war' in their homeland, a war that is not only labeling your average American as a 'criminal' but also imprisoning and killing these 'criminals'. Naysayers, who are worried about kids doing drugs, they will 'do drugs' (or more realistically experiment with 'drugs') whether they're legal or not. Marijuana isn't a terrible thing, they are not being protected from anything. Protecting them from abusing drugs is a