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Persuasive Essay On War On Drugs

676 Words3 Pages

An estimated $1 trillion has been spent by the United States on the war on drugs, according to the US Department of Justice (2010) the usage of drugs has not changed over the past 10 years. Approximately $350 billion is spent per year on the war on drugs, only $7 billion of that $350 billion is spent on prevention programs sponsored by the federal government. We spend most of our time fighting rather than preventing. Crime preventing may not be immediate, however it is the most efficient. The war on drugs campaign has been unsuccessful in preventing the illegal drug trade. As a result, the campaign has caused social and economic harm. The war on drugs is more of a failure that places restrictions and prohibitions on drug offenders and has not …show more content…

For example, cocaine can go for around $1500 per kilo in Colombia, which is around two pounds. Often times the price of cocaine in America can go for a retail price of around $66,000. These prices even for just cocaine are what keep the drug cartel’s going, because of the huge profit (Zill and Bergman, PBS). According to Narconon there are many reasons that drugs are used and abused. Causes for addiction can be boredom, the urge for experimentation, social pressures, and many more. In the various studies done by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill there have been numerous outstanding side effects done by drugs. All drugs have side effects, similar or not. For instance, cocaine has many different long term side effects like tremors, seizures, psychosis- which is a loss of reality (Medical News Today)- heart or respiratory failure. Marijuana also has many long term side effects that are not quite the same, despite what people believe. Some side effects are infertility, weakened immune system, possible lung damage, and cognitive issues (Medical News Today). Some drugs do not have long term side effects, the fatalities they can cause are just as

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The use of cocaine short term effects include loss of appetite, increased heart rate, blood pressure, breathing or body temperature, loss of sleep, nausea, Hyperstimulation, Violent behavior , hallucinations, intense euphoria, anxiety, paranoia, depression, panic, psychosis, Convulsions, seizures and sudden death. Long term effects include permanent damage to blood vessels of heart and brain, high blood pressure, heart attacks, strokes, death, liver, kidney or lung damage, destruction of tissues in nose, respiratory failure, infectious diseases or abscesses, malnutrition, weight loss, severe tooth decay, auditory or tactile hallucinations, sexual problems, reproductive damage and infertility (for both men and women), disorientation, apathy, confused exhaustion, irritability or mood disturbances, increased frequency of risky behavior, delirium or psychosis, severe depression, tolerance and addiction (even after just one

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