What are drugs?

Drugs in general are substances, often alkaloids, which bring a mind-altering state to organisms. Some substances are coffein, nikotin, heroin, thc and so on. Alkaloids are nitrogen-rich substances found in nature which form complex ring systems.

Opium poppy which contains the alkaloid morphine

But wait a minute my father drinks coffee everyday and my mom loves Coca Cola which both contain coffein, so are they drug addicts?

Not necessarily. The question if someone is an addict is a difficult question in the psychic realm. Put simply: An addiction is a strong attraction towards a substance, object or even a person.

The question if something is seen as a drug is very relative to the demographic where you live on earth. For example in Portugal all drugs are decriminalized. This means that in portugal drug abuse isn't treated as a crime but rather as a problem of public health. In the USA (most states) however even marijuana is criminal and according to the DEA it counts to one of the most harmful substance. This has a lot to do with the politics and cultures in the country.

So why should all drugs be decriminalized?

In the early 20th century there was alcohol prohibition in the US. But this prohibition didn't stop people from drinking. What this law made was driving the markets underground. There were many home brewers which made way to strong alcohol and a lot of bootlegging. So a ban on certain things aren't good in an economic way, the government can't profit with taxes, and in a moral way that people die from dirty alcohol.

Propaganda against alcohol

This ban on alcohol can be compared to the total ban on psychedelic and some stimulative drugs in our society so let's examine the reasons why all drugs rather should be totally decriminalized.

First of all we live in a free society where everyone can do what they want as long as they do not harm other people or their property. By prohibiting drugs the government is taking away our freedom for choosing what we want to do with our lifes. As long as someone doesn't harm other people he or she should be able to do whatever they want.

Second by banning markets they get pushed underground, which drives prices up. We can conclude that the governments are helping the big drug cartels reserving their drug monopoly thus keeping free market competition away. Since it is very difficult for small persons to go into the drug business. The big cartels have the planes, submarines and overall the influence to survive in this harsh business environment and are so able to outplay the state. As we know the drug cartels are very corrupt, violent and unregulated which results in many mortalities.

Contra Side

There would be one miserable thing with the legalization of all drugs: It would probably result in more people becoming addicted. But this isn't as bad as if for example a child would get killed in gunfire due to a fight between two drug gangs. The child is in every aspect an innocent victim.

On the other hand a person getting addicted to a substances is far less innocent than a young child getting killed. So for me the answer is obvious with which person I'd have more compassion. By eliminating the chances for kids to get involved in underground drug markets we can secure a better future for kids growing up in difficult areas. This is a severe moral issue which all the governments around the world have to face. They need to understand that if they don't do anything preventive they are killing thousands of people indirectly.

The war on drugs has been a problem for so long already and it never really ended, since there is no real enemy. You can't say that the drugs are the enemy but rather the drug policies which haven't been constructed wisely. It's time that we begin to treat drug abuse as a mental health issue rather than pushing an addict into the corner calling him a criminal. We need to educate all people about the harms of drugs and have the state regulate all kinds drugs so the drugs consumed are from a trustworthy source.

Coast Guards in Miami impounded cocaine

What are your opinions? Is it ok to decriminalize all drugs? Why? I'm encouraging you to participate in the debate in the comment section. Hope you liked this article.

All Images are from wikimedia and are creative commons.

If you liked it please...

and resteem to share it with your friends!

Regards,
Caspar