Should the US legalize the use of drugs? Alcohol is legal, so why aren’t drugs. Alcohol is just as dangerous and deadly as
drugs (according to some). Would it be
so bad if people consumed marijuana, cocaine, or ecstasy legally? In my opinion, yes it would. Personally, I believe that taking drugs is
very unhealthy, and no one should ever use drugs. Now, I don’t drink alcohol either, but I
think alcohol is something this country would riot over if the government banned
it… again. I also think it would portray a bad image of Americans if we legalized
drugs. We would then be known as a
country that freely drinks and gets stoned.
That is not what I want our country to be known as. America is known for people having the
freedom to do ALMOST whatever they want.
However, the government has to provide for the common good of the people. I don’t think legalizing drugs would be for
the common good of Americans.
I know one of the arguments is that if drugs were legalized,
people would not be as interested in it since it isn’t illegal. It would not be a way of rebellion. Here is my statement back. Alcohol is legalized. When alcohol was outlawed, there were
bootleggers like today there are drug dealers.
Now, alcohol is legalized and anyone over the age of 21 can buy
alcohol. If we legalized drugs, then
would it be okay for any 21 years old to drugs?
Just because alcohol is legalized, doesn’t mean drugs should be
too. People under the age of 21 can
still obtain alcohol illegally. Today, it
is estimated that 5,000 minors die each year from underage drinking. Just because there is an age requirement to
consume alcohol, doesn’t mean the people who are underage are safe. I fear this would be the case with
drugs. If we set the age requirement for
using drugs at age 21 as well, minors could still get ahold of these
drugs. If anything, I think if drugs
were legalized it would make it easier for minors to get drugs. They wouldn’t have to go to a scary drug
dealer anymore. All they would have to
do is convince one of their friends who is 21 to go buy some for them.
Recently, seventeen students at Texas Christian University
(TCU) were busted for selling marijuana, cocaine, and ecstasy. Four of which were on the football team. This brought shame to the University. If drugs were available to all those who were
21, don’t you think drugs would be more abundant on campuses? Putting more students at risk of becoming
drug addicts, overdosing, or injuries resulting from drug consumption? It is estimated that 599,000 college students
are injured from alcohol consumption. If
we added drugs to that figure, the number of injuries and death would only
increase. Think of how much shame
Universities would receive then.
I just don’t believe legalizing drugs is a wise idea. I am all for people having the liberty to do
what they want, but when it comes to harming one’s self or somebody else—that
is where I draw the line.
I completely agree with your idea that drugs should not be legalized. People may argue about the positives of legalizing marijuana for things such as taxes and economic reasons, but there are just too many downfalls to legalizing drugs. There are many studies that show alcohol is worse for you than marijuana. Yes this is true to an extent. The user can control their consumption of alcohol and drink without getting drunk. When someone uses marijuana they become high. There is no casual smoking of marijuana like there is casual drinking of alcohol. The only other way marijuana would be legalized is if there was an immediate way to test for being high. There is no Breathalyzer for any other drugs besides alcohol. The Breathalyzer allows law enforcement or employers to monitor people and their consumption of alcohol. People being stoned or high at work or on the job would be an incredible problem. As many pros as there are, I never see marijuana or other drugs being legalized in the near future.
ReplyDeleteI agree with not legalizing drugs in the United States. I fear that if there was a legal age to use drugs, the drug use in the United States would sky rocket. When you set an age on something becoming legal, it seems like it makes it easier for underage people to partake such as drinking. What happens when people show up high to work or school? If it’s legal to use drugs does that mean doctors can be high when they operate? If not then how do they draw the line as what professions can and can’t use drugs and who can and can’t use drugs? There are just too many issues and I believe it would not be for the common good of the people to have legalized drugs. When younger adults and teens use marijuana, it has the potential to inflict long-lasting, negative effects on the brain. Why would you do that to yourself? Like Blake said, there are too many negatives and downfalls than positives when it comes to legalizing drugs.
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ReplyDeleteI disagree entirely. I feel that government would save so much money by ending the “war on drugs.” Plus they could make so much profit by having a very high tax on the selling of drugs. I am not saying that all drugs need to be legal. Drugs such as meth and cocaine need to remain illegal since the side affects are extremely dangerous. However, drugs such as marijuana, ecstasy, and speed. These drugs have little to no health risks. The drug marijuana actually has less health risk and will not impair your thinking or reaction skills nearly as much as alcohol does. Alcohol has killed more people and caused more damage than marijuana and ecstasy combined. In fact there is zero recorded deaths caused by marijuana. You are more likely to die from choking on a peanut then dying from ecstasy. There are 2,000 recorded deaths a year from the use of ecstasy, however, each one of those deaths are not from overdosing. Yet, are caused by the user overworking themselves. Compared to the 75,000 deaths a year due to alcohol would make one think how come alcohol is legal when it causes more damage and health problems then these drugs that are illegal.
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