Its Time to Legalize Drugs Essay -- Drug Legalization

No one can honestly claim that current American drug policies have been a success. To the contrary, the current policy of drug prohibition, aside from being ineffective and costly, has created a set of unwanted consequences including: a high prison population of non-violent offenders, corruption within law enforcement, health issues, and an erosion of civil liberties . Albert Einstein said, â€Å"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.† Yet despite the failures of the current policy in deterring drug use that is just what the government is choosing to do. It’s time to consider a different approach to the drug issue. An approach that will address drug use in an innovative way while solving the problems which drug prohibition has created while also bringing societal, health, and economic benefits but most importantly it will also give back the individual liberties. It’s time to consider the legalization of drugs. Drug prohibition has proven to be a very costly war. 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. A 2008 a report found the US leads the world in illegal drug use with a whopping 42.4% of Americans admitting to trying illegal drugs at least once. (Warner) In 2009 a the Federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration found that nearly 21.8 million Americans (equivalent to about 8.7% of the population) used illegal drugs had used drugs within the last year. (Hananel) Furthermore according to the White House Drug... ... 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.