War On Drugs Essay

The war on drugs is a government agenda to ban illicit substances used for recreation. While the current situation in the nation is the fight to legalize the use of marijuana, the contrived fight against other illegal substances is well under way. The nation has been fighting against the use of illegal substances for years. Unfortunately the fight has not seemed to have accomplished much in the way of ridding the nation of prohibited drugs. While a small number of cities have created successful techniques for reducing the amount of drugs that are on the streets, the majority of areas in the nation has straightforward methods that are not as effective drug crime reduction as the nation would like them to be. The war on drugs is a poorly effective method used by the government to purge the nation of drug abuse. The war on drugs is less of a war and more of a lecture. The internet contains many Public Service Announcement videos on the dangers of drugs, which could be effective for some people. However, not all people understand the underlying messages the videos are trying to impress upon their audience. This makes the Public Service Announcement tactic less effective than hoped for. The government has brought the war or lecture into the schools by means of the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program. The Drug Abuse Resistance Education program attempts to educate children and young adults about drug abuse and how to prevent it. However, the program generally goes into schools and explains that drug abuse is unacceptable. This form of lecturing is quite authoritarian and leads to rebellious acts against it. Rebellion instead of conformity is not the desired effect of the program, thus making it the effectiveness minimal. Unfortunately the media has a large role in creating difficulties in the fight against drugs. Television alone creates a false glamour surrounding drug abuse, making it seem like an exhilarating, enjoyable experience with low risk. There are quite a few television shows that centers around a character with drug abuse problems. These television shows depict a world where drug abuse causes little problems and …show more content…
Law enforcement places significant emphasis on catching drug dealers, but the prosecution of those who simply abuse does not help with the addiction problem. This means even though they are being punished for using drugs, they will go back to using simply because their mindset figures that the risk of punishment is worth the high. Although law enforcement punishes those who are in possession of drugs with the intent to distribute these drugs, punishing the addict does not accomplish much in the form of help. If users aren’t receiving help for their addiction problem, the drug problem will always be …show more content…
“The nation has bigger problems to face; a war on drugs should be the least of the government’s worries” (Ferrari). There are actual wars, poverty, and much more for the nation to be concerned about. While the abuse of drugs is a problem, it has been a problem for a long time and the nation has been trying to fight it. However, as of right now the fight is accomplishing incredibly little in the attempt to rid the nation of drugs. Perhaps the nation should focus more on the bigger issues and step back from the fight that has been going on for far too