Pros and Cons of Legalizing Marijuana

Carter presents a compelling and well-reasoned argument that the "war on drugs" is a failure and should be replaced with a policy which legalizes marijuana. He favors legalization of all drugs, which is beyond the scope of this study, but a number of his points focus on the social significance of legalization. He argues that one of the most destructive effects of the illegality of drugs and the war on drugs is the corruption of law enforcement officials. He compares modern corruption of police with corruption in the days of Al Capone:

Prohibition-era corruption . . . was penny ante stuff compared with what is happening in the United States today. From Brooklyn police precincts to Miami's police stations to rural Georgia courthouses, . . . sheriffs, other policemen, and now judges are being bought up by the gross (Carter 9).

Worse, drug money "is also buying up banks, legitimate businesses and, to the south of us, entire governments" (Carter 9). There is no doubt about the monumental social costs of such corruption, based on the huge amounts of money involved in the sale of marijuana and other illegal

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t policy of draining society by putting marijuana users (most of whom are otherwise law-abiding citizens) in jail and spending tremendous amounts on money on enforcing laws which have failed to deter marijuana usage. Since the courts and jails are already swamped beyond capacity by the arrests that are routinely made, and since those arrests barely skim the top of the pond, arguing that stricter enforcement is the answer begs a larger question: Who is going to pay the billions of dollars required [for such an expanded law enforcement effort? (Carter 10). This question is more important than ever in a conservative era in which every dollar of public monies is analyzed as to its effectiveness in adding to the social welfare. Another effective argument from Carter for the legalization of drugs focuses on the relative damage done to society overall by marijuana compared to the damage done by the legal drugs of alcohol and tobacco (Carter 10). Carter himself addresses the major concern of the anti-legalization forces, namely, the lingering and legitimate fear that legalization might produce a surge in use. It probably would, although not nearly as dramatic a one as opponents usually estimate (Carter 10). However, marijua
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Approximate Word count = 1283
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page)

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