The World Of Drugs Essay, Research Paper
DRUGS, SHOULD THEY STAY OR SHOULD THEY GO?
Drugs have been around for hundreds of years, but never has there been as large an outbreak as there is in the year 2001. The high increase in the world of drugs is based on three key elements, Production, Trafficking and users. It is these three key factors that have caused a rise in the amount of drugs produced. The countries of the world must take a look at the current drug situation and decide on a solution, to either eliminate drugs or make them legal.
The drug producing industry is like any other industry in today’s world, it is governed by the law of supply and demand. If there is a shortage of raw material such as coca leaf or opium, the price goes up, and if there is too much, the price goes down. The producers, whether they are peasant farmers in the Andes or synthetic drugs manufacturers in Europe, they aim to minimize their expenses, while trying to maximize profit.
The illegal trade of drugs around the world is worth billions of dollars a year. The large amounts of money involved is what makes the trading of drugs one of the most lucrative and dangerous of criminal business. This business, is what is invading most cities at a rapid rate, and if it is not stopped, the results could be catastrophic.
There are fewer people who take illicit drugs than smoke tobacco or drink alcohol, but the numbers are growing and the figure is currently estimated between three and four percent of the worlds population and growing. The most widely used drug, is cannabis, but synthetic stimulants are booming in popularity, especially among urban youth however, heroin is making gaining popularity among the fashionable and the wealthy.
Figure 1, The map of major drug producing countries around the world
The country of Columbia, is now the worlds largest producer of cocaine, and is the also the leading supplier of heroine to the United States. Most of the countries production takes place in the Southern parts of the country, where the crops are protected by guerilla armies.
The golden crescent is made up of three countries, Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan. Within the golden crescent, Afghanistan is the largest drug producing country, as the leader of the world’s opium supply. The problem within these countries is that although authorities have banned the drug trade, the authorities turn a blind eye because they are receiving favors from the drug producers.
The production of drugs around the world is on the rise, due to the lack of knowledge about the effects of drugs. The production problem involved with drugs has also seen a large bump in the road, since many authorities have accepted bribes, instead of doing their jobs.
Many people against and for the use of drugs would agree that more people might use drugs if they become legalized, and this may very well be true, if drugs get the same coverage and publicity as cigarettes.
Today, the world has enough problems, and legalizing drugs would only cause people to want to be under the influence of drugs at the work place, this is true, but it could be stopped if the same policies for alcohol applied for drugs on driving, operating machinery and working. These problems could all be avoided if the drugs are never to be legalized.
The legalization of drugs seems far from becoming a reality, because leaders around the world say it’s a bad thing to have around, or to promote to the youth. The fact of the matter is, that drugs will eventually be introduced into society like alcohol was after the days of prohibition. During the prohibition on alcohol, everyone who mad their own alcohol could sell it to anyone that they wished, although the act of making the liqueur was illegal. This is almost exactly what is happening to drugs, but it is not quite there yet.
The benefits of legalizing drugs are seldomly looked at, but in the grand scheme of things, the legalization could bring lots of benefits to the government, and to businesses. Today, the sale and distribution of drugs is a somewhat major crime, but if drugs were legalized, it would virtually eliminate drug dealing, trafficking on the streets. If dealing and trafficking are done through stores or shops, and then the government could put a high sales tax on drugs, and make a very large and steady profit, while at the same time, saving money spent on inmates convicted of drug related crimes. The legalization would even clean up our streets, because people will no longer want to deal drugs, due to the fact that people would not want to buy drugs that could possibly be fake or laced with something. The last benefit of legalizing drugs, is that it could be used for medical purposes, not only to relieve people who feel that they need something to relax themselves, but for the researchers who one day may find some astonishing use for drugs that are illegal right now.
In today’s society, there are so many things leading people towards using drugs, whether it is in the form of music or on television or in any other form of media. No matter how much money is spent on education about drugs or on enforcement about drugs, there will always be a demand for them. Rather than spending money on prevention programs, the government could make money off the tax revenues from the legalization of drugs. No matter what the choice is, the outcome will have its benefits and disadvantages.