In today's society one of the largest political debates going on is the world debate over which method of controlling drugs is more effective: Prohibition or legalization. There have been many experiments with both methods, with mixed results. It remains unclear how legalizing drugs would affect the American society in its final outcome; however, legalizing drugs would undoubtedly have a variety of effects and consequences.
Should substance use be regulated? This question has existed as long as the substances themselves. The earliest drug, alcohol, has been in use since early farmers discovered that when their grain stores fermented with yeast, ethanol was a product. Ethanol is the "alcohol" in drinks that come from fermented sugars and grains (Columbia). Many ancient societies have attempted to restrict alcohol, sparing their population suffering from unnecessary health problems. Hammurabi's Code, written by the Babylonians in 1700 B.C., mentions many restrictions on the trade and use of alcohol in detail (Djurdjuiov). Both these societies recognized the difficulty in controlling such a powerful and potent agent as this. Alcohol can have many negative effects, but it is the lesser evil when compared to many other drugs such as heroin, cocaine, and the devastating hallucinogen opium. In the early 1900's the British started to smuggle opium paste into China in order to balance the cost of their tea exportation, and also to fund their Indian conquests (Columbia). The amount of Opium being imported rose with the popular demand of the Chinese people. Soon many of the Chinese were addicted, the government, seeing this new health problem, banned all opium trade and use. The British responded to their ban by forcing the Chinese to sign the treaty of Nanjing, resigning the opium trade and all major ports to the British (Columbia). Heavy opium use continued until after WWII when the Maoist government came into power. The government illegalized opium and forced the addicted 10% of the population through intensive rehabilitation (Opium Wars 57).
When considering the effects legalization might have on American society, looking at our past drug history is imperative. Widespread drug use began after the Civil War where many became addicted to morphine and cocaine after having it prescribed to them as painkillers (Heroin Addiction). Morphine, Cocaine, and Heroin were all viewed as miracle drugs, and it was claimed that they cured almost all ailments. These drugs were freely distributed like candy until the Harrison Act of 1914, which prohibited the sale of these narcotics without a prescription (CypherWar). They continued to be sold without regulation until Congress passed the Dangerous Drug Act making all over-the-counter sale illegal. This left America with hundreds of thousands of addicts who now had to resort to another way of getting the substances their bodies depended on, thus the illegal trade of drugs began (Heroin Addiction). Seeing that the United States has a past record with drugs in which drug use was rampant and unchecked, we should question whether or not the legality of drugs would skyrocket use once again. The marketing and advertisement of legal drugs such as tobacco and alcohol, along with our need for danger (fast cars and entertainment) fuel the American culture itself; what's to say that a legal drug market wouldn't be dominated by pharmaceutical companies?
 |
| Oh wait... |
To hypothesize what the outcomes of a decision may be, one must look back on similar decisions and review the outcomes. Therefore, when trying to predict what would happen if drugs were legalized, we must look at situations in which they were in fact legalized, and what the outcomes were. In the Netherlands, drug use policies have been liberalized since the 1970's. While the sale and traffic of drugs is illegal, use and possession of small quantities is decriminalized and addicts are helped with rehabilitation programs rather than arrested (Downie). Perhaps the lax attitude on drug enforcements is the cause of the Netherlands new status as the drug capitol of Europe. Much of the world's ecstasy is synthetically created here, and is shipped all over the world with heroin and cocaine that passes through the country en route. The amount of drugs that pass through the Netherlands is probably one of the worst consequence of these relaxed laws against drugs. This available supply makes it easy for customers to purchase any drug they might desire, however, in the Netherlands, these illicit drugs are not the drugs of choice. Instead, alcohol and tobacco use rates soar above those of illicit drugs. The Dutch ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport comments that "the social and health damage that results from alcohol abuse... is many times greater than the damage resulting from drug use" (Downie). Since drug regulations have been liberalized, many usage rates have been decreasing, and the rates of heroin and cocaine have remained static since 1987 (Abraham 169-226). Another area subject to the effect decriminalization is the crime rate in the Netherlands. The lack of fear presiding over the climate makes for a market where violence is rarely a problem. Because the price of drugs in the Netherlands is very low, people have no need to engage in criminal activities to collect enough money to buy drugs (Cohen). One of the most important effects of the decriminalization of drugs in the Netherlands is the health care and information addicted individuals receive. HIV is one of the main health worries that IV users have. An estimated 12% percent of Amsterdam's addicted population has HIV (Cohen). One of the most successful aspects of the Dutch drug control policy is the drug treatment system. In this system hard core addicts are given daily doses in supervised facilities where they receive medical advice and help finding jobs and housing, with the goal to get off the streets and eventually, off drugs. So far this program has been a great success, stabilizing the HIV infection rates and eliminating overdoses among its participants. 16% of the addicts who have gone through this program have gone on a methadone substitute or completely off all substances ("Drugs in the Netherlands"). Liberalizing narcotics laws in the Netherlands has been a successful plan; their percentage of drug users is one of the lowest of all industrialized countries. The Dutch drug policy proves effective at reducing the harm to drug users on an individual level, and to protect society as a whole, making it a fine example of the success legalization might bring under a similar response (Downie).
By examining the effects of drug legalization in the Netherlands, we can derive consequences that might result if the U.S. ever experimented with legalization or even decriminalization. Some of the positive effects of legalization in the Netherlands are a drop in crime since drugs were decriminalized, a steady decrease in illicit drug use, and the tolerance that people demonstrate. There effects are similar to the suggested effects that supporters of legalization effects claim would take place in the U.S.. Since the 80's the Netherlands has seen a significant drop in the number of people using drugs, especially among youth (Abraham 169-226). The tolerance that people in the Netherlands display is obvious when looking at the many programs they have to help, not punish, drug users. This tolerance has positive effects as well, like the needle change program, in which addicts exchange used hypodermic needles for sterile ones. While these positive effects are important ones, considering the negative consequences is even more necessary. Because of the Netherlands' relaxed attitude towards drugs, it has become "Europe's cannabis capitol" (Downie). Another result of this relaxed attitude is the mass production of synthetic amphetamines and ecstasy that has sprung up in the country recently. Perhaps one of the most discouraging results of decriminalization is that the Netherlands has become a major transit ocuntry for drugs like cocaine and heroin, which are stored there and later shipped elsewhere (Downie). These negative effects demonstrate that even though drug use may not go up among the country's population, the drug trafficking industry will increase because of legalization.
Legalizing drugs in America could have completely different effects than the Netherlands had. Americans, as a product of our educational systems, are less educated about drugs, drug abuse, and how to combat drug abuse. This is clear in how our government acts, how our society views alcohol and tobacco, and how we have reacted in the past regarding drug problems. Another factor that would probably affect the results of legalization in America is our notorious close-mindedness to new ideas. It is unclear how these differences would change the effectiveness of legalization in America but they would cause some change in the outcome. One consequences legalization would bring is the collapse of the little order that remains in Columbian society. A U.S. led legalization effort would force the prices of drugs down and exterminate the incredibly lucrative coca leaf cultivation industry, on of the main goals of today's unsuccessful war on drugs. It seems ironic that some of the problems' we are trying to solve with our (then) 18.8 billion dollar War on Drugs solutions are within the effects and consequences of legalization.
In China, several methods of controlling substances were tried before the problem of opium was checked and under control. The ultimate solution is irrelevant to U.S. drug issues because what worked for the Chinese, or even the Dutch, has no guarantee it will work for the U.S.. The importance in how the Chinese solved their problems lies in the fact that they tried several different methods for controlling drugs; when one didn't work, they tried another one. Even though it is impossible to predict all the negative effects ending prohibition would bring, we can clearly see the negative effects prohibition has now. Abusable substances have been around since agriculture, perhaps even before, and they are not going to cease to exist simply because we want them to. Drugs are an enormous problem in our world with no visible solution, and the only way they will cease to be a problem is if we stop pumping billions of dollars into one of our many failed wars and approach the situation with reasoned, effective strategies.
Unfortunately, this is transcribed from my rough draft and I don't have my bibliography. Apologies erudite readers!
