Illegal Drugs: Should they be? Essay -- Legalizing Drugs

There are very few people who can honestly claim that current drug policies have been a success. Aside from being ineffective the costly current drug policy of prohibition has created a set of unwanted consequences including; a high prison population of non-violent offenders, corruption, violence, and whole set of health issues. Albert Einstein is quoted as saying, â€Å"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.† and despite the failures of the current policy in deterring drug use that is just what the government is choosing to do. Perhaps it’s time to consider a different approach to the drug issue. An approach which will address drug use in an innovative way while solving the problems which prohibition has created and also bring about societal, health, and economic benefits but most importantly it will also give back the individual liberties which prohibition has managed to erode. It’s time to consider the legalization of dr ugs. Drug prohibition has proven a very costly war. And the cost has not only been monetary, drug prohibition has lead to corruption, increase violence, increase inmate population, and it has also infringed upon our civil liberties. Currently the government spends $47.8 billion a year on prohibition enforcement, according to a 2010 Department of Economics, Harvard University report by Jeffrey A. Miron. Yet despite the exorbitant amount of money being spent fighting this â€Å"war on drugs†, drugs are still prevalent on our streets. According to an article published on CBS News website in 2008 by Jennifer Warner, the US leads the world in illegal drug use with a whopping 42.4% of Americans admitting to having tried illegal drugs at least once. In 2009 a the federal Substance Abuse ... ... York Times. 24 Mar. 2009. Web. 27 Nov. 2010. . Sterling, Eric E. "Foreign Policy In Focus | Drug Policy: Failure at Home." Foreign Policy In Focus | Home. 6 Oct. 2005. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. . United States. General Accounting Office. General Government Division. LAW ENFORCEMENT Information on Drug-Related Police Corruption. May 1998. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. Warner, Jennifer. "U.S. Leads The World In Illegal Drug Use - CBS News." Breaking News Headlines: Business, Entertainment & World News - CBS News. 1 July 2008. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. . Wisotsky, Steven. "A Society of Suspects: The War on Drugs and Civil Liberties." USA Today [Farmingdale] July 1993: 17-21. SIRS Researcher. Web. 23 Nov. 2010.