ely addicted, is the insidious damage drugs have wreaked on untold numbers of "seemingly" healthy lives. The broken families, the unrealized potential, and the general misery inflicted on people who think that they can "handle" drugs is not even quantifiable.
For years, the United States government has sought ways to reduce the overwhelming human, social, and financial impacts of drug use. Obviously, there are many arguments against the present drug laws. For example, some say that the laws have created evils worse than the drugs themselves (i.e., corruption, violence, street crime, and disrespect for the law). Others point to the fact that legislation passed to control drugs has failed to reduce demand. Finally, some argue thatat least in a democracybehaviors engaged in by a large segment of the population should not be made unlawful. Despite these contentions, however, legalizing drugs for recreational purposes would not solve society's ills.
Considerable evidence seems to suggest that such a policy would instead create behavioral and public health problems that far outweigh the current consequences of drug prohibition. There are good reasons why marijuana, for instance, is currently controlled. Although these reasons may not always seem unambiguous, that is because misinformation regarding the drug abounds.
During the social revolution of the 1960s and early 1970s, marijuana was treated as a harmless herb. Additionally, more recently, the drug's popularity has been rising. As Richard Bonner, head of the Drug Enforcement Administration has said, "Perhaps because of the change in administrations, the marijuana lobby is out in full force." Thus, marijuana, it seems, has suddenly become fashionable. After vanishing from pop iconography for a good decade, the marijuana leaf can suddenly be found adorning hats and shirts. In fact, only just last year, singer Sinead O'Connor and rappers House of Pain declared...