I will say that the pro-legalization crowd makes some good arguments that are worthy of consideration.
indra said:
Drugs (yes, all of them) should be legalised. There would still be addiction problems, but you aren't going to be able to ever completely stop that -- there are people who will get addicted no matter how tough the drug laws are. What legalising drugs does do is bring them out into the open where the people with problems (and that isn't everyone who uses drugs) can get help, and it also keeps the thugs out of the supply chain. A great deal of the problems societies face from drugs is caused not by the drugs themselves, but by the illegality of the drugs.
If we are admitting that the drugs can and/or do lead to problems for some people, then who should this burden be on in the legalized drug world? Should all of society, including those who do not use the drugs nor support their use in society, bear this burden in their taxes? I think that tax money would be much better spent on paying public educators and improving the quality of education in Lowndes County, Alabama rather than subsidizing a safety net recovery program for for more people who choose to get their thrills via dangerous chemicals.
What about the additional dangers created by the behavior of additional persons who are "under the influence" of drugs/chemicals which they can readily and legally purchase in their neighborhood stores? There will undoubtedly be some people who do not do drugs while they are illegal but would choose to experiment if they were legalized. This would mean more people on the roads, in our communities, who could negatively be affected by their new hobbies and pose dangers to other members of their community.
I realize these legalized drugs would be "more controlled" in their production and distribution, but those weaker versions may not be enough for addictive users who want more, more, more.
I enjoy a Tecate with my meal at a Mexican restaurant; but a few shots of Jaegermeister would be more fun if I were up for an adventurous evening. Which is more dangerous to me and people whom I may encounter? Obviously, a few shots of Jaeger. I was at a lake party once where jetskis were present. A guy said, "We ought to get smashed and drive these things around the lake all day." He and everyone else were sober when he said that, but you do see the risk that he would have posed to people all over the lake if he were under the influence of alcohol (or any other drug for that matter) and piloting any type of watercraft.
As it is today with currently illegal drugs being illegal, even in my low-crime community we have problems with burglaries commited by meth addicts. Just two weeks ago, a string of burglaries were commited in peoples' private homes by two twenty-something women; eight of these burglaries occured in my neighborhood alone. The two women would go to the front doors of houses, knock, and if no one answered,they would break into the homes and take things that did not belong to them. What would/should have happened if they encountered a frightened resident and someone, be it the intruder or the resident, had gotten hurt? The two women were caught and are believed to be addicts. Do we really want to introduce more people to meth, opiates, cocaine, etc. so that they run the risk of posing such dangers to themselves and society, including innocent people?
Earnie Shavers said:
Regulated legalised drugs would knock these emergencies and deaths out completely. Most 'saturday night emergency room' drug issues are directly related to this problem, and nothing else.
I think you would find an increase in use, a slight increase in addiction, but a big drop in deaths/emergencies and a huge, mammoth, incredible drop in crime.
Even today, many "Saturday night emergency room" situations, as well as those occuring on Tuesday morning, Wednesday afternoon, or whenever, are brought about by alcohol, which is legal, albeit controlled. Who's to say that introducing legalized chemicals and drugs to the buying public won't increase these situations? And with many of these situations arising from the use of chemical drugs, not pot or alcohol, I would suspect that the medical risks would be further complicated as well, especially when it comes to emergency rooms that have not historically faced these issues.
I don't mean to offend any of you and I am not trying to be authoritarian by denying any of you your rights to get your kicks, but I do see the legalization of many of these drugs, particularly meth, cocaine and opiates, as bringing increased danger to broader segments of society. Meth does not bring any positive value to people or to society.
~U2Alabama