2007: Update on The War on Drugs

The coming election has Americans asking questions about everything. Hot button issues like the environment and illegal immigration have people all curious and hopping mad, however, it seems that there is one issue, the legalization of marijuana, that is having a much larger effect on American society in the sense that currently over 650,000 Americans are currently incarcerated for the possession of marijuana.

Back in 1937, when marijuana was initially outlawed, it seems that the issue was racially motivated. It has been suggested that early lawmakers saw marijuana use as a problem brought to the US by migrant Mexican workers. For whatever reason, it was in fact outlawed, and thus the birth of the Drug War in America.

It is estimated that each year over $15 billion in federal funds and $33 billion in state and local funds are spent under the title of anti-drug programs. Granted, many of these monies are granted to law enforcement agencies who are legitimately raiding methamphetamine manufacturers and other types of *labs* which make hard drugs. Also, this funding includes most of the activities of the Drug Enforcement Agency, which is responsible for the location and detainment of individuals attempting to cross US borders with drugs.

Most of America would probably agree that manufacturers and traffickers of hard drugs should be sought after and incarcerated. By nature, *drug dealers* are considered to be shady, and in many cases violent. Obviously, a high percentage violent crimes are statistically linked to the production and distribution of illegal drugs. Also, violent crimes can be linked to hard drug abuse, specifically from users of cocaine and methamphetamines. A new player in the illegal drug trade is anabolic steroids. These types of drugs, which can potentially *enhance* severe mood swings and erratic behavior, are generally thought of as substances that *cause* violent behavior.