Should Marijuana Be Legalized?

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

There is a lot of misconception about drug legalization. Uncertainty towards this concept is usually because of stigma surrounding drug use or confusing legalization with decriminalization. Decriminalising an illegal drug means taking away penalties for possessing that drug but leaving its distribution in the hands of criminals who can continue to contaminate the drug any way they see fit. Legalization by contrast brings narcotics entirely under government control. That means that when a drug is legalized, the government is the one in charge of regulating the sales, content, and distribution of the drug.

All the drug related charges are forcing the prison population into overwhelming numbers. Were drug usage decriminalized this could relieve some of the stress on the penal system. Baird states in her piece that the prison population would diminish greatly with legalization and all the money saved can then be used for many more beneficial things “…like treatment for addiction, health, and prevention.” Walter, standing on the

According to the webpage DrugPolicy.org, under the section titled “Approaches to decriminalize drug use” it states that the best solution to reduce the number of people being swept into jail or prison is to enact various forms of decriminalizing drug use and possession. “Decriminalizing is the removal of criminal penalties for drug

We should decriminalize drugs in the U.S. instead of legalizing them. Decriminalization refers to the lessening of criminal penalties of certain acts. According to De Marneffe, “… the legalization of drugs … [is] the removal of criminal penalties for the manufacture, sale, and possession of large quantities of recretational drugs, such as marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine” (346).

"I think what everybody believes and agrees with, and to be frank myself, is that the current approach [to the drug trade] is not working, but it is not clear what we should do." This quote by Canadian Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, calls for action against the drug trade in Canada as well as America. The War on Drugs has been an everlasting battle that the United States has lost time and time again. A conclusion can be surmised that all drugs should be legal with some form of regulation to resolve the drug epidemic; however, others believe that the legalization of all drugs would not work. These aforementioned people against the legalization of drugs argue that because drugs are harmful, the legalization of all forms of drugs would lead to an increase in problems pertaining to the drug issue in America. Those who advocate for strict drug legislations are correct that drugs are harmful; nevertheless, there are several benefits that would arise from the legalization and decriminalization of drugs. In 2001 Portugal decriminalized drugs and has experienced a vast array of positive effects since then. The issue of prisons becoming overcrowded is becoming an apparent concern within the United States. The United States Government, on both a state and national level, expends an immense amount of money on its arduous drug control policies. Gangs and drug cartels would lose their primary revenue source as large businesses would control the decriminalized drug market. In

By decriminalizing all drugs, governments can minimize overdose rates. Deaths due to drug use have decreased significantly, from approximately 80 in 2001, to 16 in 2012 (The Portugal Experiment …). In 2011 Portugal decided to decriminalize the use of all drugs. This included drugs such as heroin and cocaine, and unleashed a major public health campaign to tackle addiction. As a result, Portugal’s drug addiction has been treated more as a medical challenge rather than as a criminal justice issue. Due to the decriminalization of drugs in Portugal, more people with drug problems have come forward and asked for help. With that, it has lowered the over dose rate

In order to understand why drugs should be decriminalized in this country, it is important to know

Drug legalization is an enduring question that presently faces our scholars. This issue embraces two positions: drugs should not be legalized and drugs should be legalized. These two positions contain an array of angles that supports each issue. This brief of the issues enables one to consider the strengths and weakness of each argument, become aware of the grounds of disagreement and agreement and ultimately form an opinion based upon the positions stated within the articles. In the article “Against the Legalization of Drugs”, by James Q. Wilson, the current status of drugs is supported. Wilson believes if a drug such as heroin were legalized there would be no financial or medical reason to avoid heroin usage;

Many feel today we are loosing the war on drugs. People consider legalization unnecessary. They feel that it will increase the amount of drug use throughout the world. They state that

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.

Cannabis, formally known as marijuana is a drug obtained from the tops, stems and leaves of the hemp plant cannabis. The drug is one of the most commonly used drugs in the world. Only substances like caffeine, nicotine and alcohol are used more (“Marijuana” 1). In the U. S. where some use it to feel “high” or get an escape from reality. The drug is referred to in many ways; weed, grass, pot, and or reefer are some common names used to describe the drug (“Marijuana” 1). Like most drugs, marijuana has a very long history. People have been using the plant around the world for thousands of years. The oldest record of the marijuana plant dates back to 2727 B. C. in China where the plant was used as a medical herb for treating conditions like rheumatism, gout, malaria and even absent-mindedness (“Cannabis, Coca, & Poopy: Nature’s Addictive Plants” 1). Slowly, the plant started spreading around the world. By 1545, cannabis was starting to appear throughout the western worlds. Being introduced to South America by the Spanish to be used as fiber. The crop also had many other common uses around the world. In North America, cannabis was often used to make paper, ropes, clothing and other materials (“The Origins of Cannabis” 1).

The war on drugs has been a failure. The war on drugs has failed because the government spends millions of dollars on trying to stop people from using drugs but the government has not stopped them from using them. The government has spent 1 trillion since Nixon declared war on drugs and 51 billion dollars each year from incarcerating people. A total of 2.3 million people are in prison for drug related crimes. This is more than anywhere else in the planet. Drug use and overdoses are still the same. Many people say that if drugs were to be legalized, drug use would increase dramatically. This was not the case in Portugal. Portugal decided to decriminalize all drugs in 2001. Many people feared that this would collapse the country, but in fact the opposite happened. Prisons were not overrun anymore. It is safer for the government to decriminalize all drugs because this way all the drugs are not in the hands of the drug dealers, they are in the hands of the government. This is safer and better because now the government knows who is buying the drugs and how much that individual is using. The consumer also knows what he or she is consuming. This is not the case with the drug dealers where an individual does not know what he or she is getting. Many people say it is not fair for people to go to jail for nonviolent crimes such as

Proponents on the legalization of drugs believe if drugs were to become legal; the black market worth billions of dollars would become extinct, drug gangsters would disappear, addicts would stop committing crimes to support their habit and the prison system would not be overwhelmed with a problem they cannot defeat. The decriminalization of drugs will only make illegal drugs cheaper, easier to get and more acceptable to use. “The U.S. has 20 million alcoholics and alcohol misusers, but only around 6 million illegal drug addicts. If illegal drugs were easier to obtain, this figure would rise”(Should Drugs be decriminalized? No.November 09, 2007 Califano Joseph A, Jr).”

Countries all over the world are dealing with a rise of drug use and drug-related public health concerns. Many nations adopt vaguely similar methods of battling the “War on Drugs”, from strict border control to harsh criminal punishments for drug-related offenders, violent or not. Even with these efforts put in place, many places are not seeing the desired results. Drug use is mainly treated like a crime, and that may be the problem. Countries that have concerns with rising drug use among their citizens should follow Portugal in decriminalizing the possession and use of small quantities of all illicit drugs.