Drug legalization is a question that is faced by many societies, the question is complicated because there are arguments for and against and each side has facts to support their arguments. This topic continues to elicit reactions across the world. This issue opens moral, personal and religious beliefs. The drugs menace has affected a lot of household in our society, this can be by either a family member or an economic burden to the society e.g. through the health care.
Those in support of legalization claim that drug abuse leads to crime in the society because the drugs are expensive because they are illicit hence cost more because of the risk involved. Thus legalizing illicit drugs will make them cheaper and people can easily afford them. Also it has proved it is very difficult to stop drug use in the society. Drugs are everywhere in the society and consumed, Therefore to combat this problem the only ways are to either legalize the drugs or the status quo prevails. Legalizing will help in increasing revenue collected by the government, reduce the number of those in the prisons, help reduce crime levels and also reduce the number of drug users.
Those in opposition to legalization of drugs argue that drugs cause physical and emotional problems to the users. Drugs cause addiction and has effects on the body and mind, drugs will impair concentration, reduced attention and loss of memory. This means one will be in the state of lack of attention, loss of memory and no concentration for the rest of their lives due to the addiction and it is very hard to quit drug use, thus they will stupid forever. Drug like marijuana if consumed for a long time and cause reduced testosterone. Drugs like cocaine can cause increase in AIDS due to sharing of needles. Drugs also cause increase in crime as drug users cannot be productive thus to be able to afford these drugs individuals forced to engage themselves in crime.
The drug debate cannot be wished away and there should be continued debate on this topic. Social problems such as; poverty, child abuse and disease, often than not have the same common element with is drug abuse.
