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Essay Name       : 1122.txt 
Uploader         : Masa Oshita
Email Address    : masajp@msn.com
Language         : English
Subject          : Drugs
Title            : Drug Problems in the US and its Prevention
Grade            : B-
School System    : University
Country          : USA
Author Comments  : Criminology paper whitch include Beccaria's idea
Teacher Comments : 
Date             : 10-10-96
Site found at    : School news paper
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	Drugs have been a serious problem in the United States.  Since everybody has their own personal reasons why they do such a thing as use and abuse drugs, it makes even more difficult to prevent such a crime.  Preventing the drug use has been a major issue in the area of politics, schools, or within the families.  This paper will examine aspects that how drugs effect society and the individual while applying Beccaria痴 thoughts and beliefs to our problem.
	The term drug abuse often refers to the frequent use of a drug that cause physical or mental harm to the user.  The term drug is often associated with substance that may be purchased at the counter with prescription, such as penicillin, which is almost never abused, and Valium, which is frequently abused, or illegal substances, such as angel dust, which are taken for the purpose of getting high, but no medical use.  Other substances, such as alcohol and nicotine, may be purchased legally without prescription and are commonly abused. But in this paper, I would like to focus on psychoactive drugs.  Psychoactive drugs influence or alter the working of the mind.  They affect thinking processes, moods, and emotions.
	During the 19th century, there were no regulation on the sale, purchase, possession, or use of psychoactive drugs at all.  Dangerous drugs such as opium, morphine, and cocaine could be purchased without prescription for any reason and were basic ingredients in patient medicines.  These nostrums were used to cure any aches, depression, nervousness, alcoholism, menstrual cramps (Weil, p.83).
	As a result of  the ready availability of these addicting drugs and as a result of heavy use for medical problems, many people became addicted to these drugs.  In fact, in 1900, there were more narcotic addicts, proportionate to the population than these today, (Musto, p.112).  At that time, most of the users who became addicts were medical addicts.  Not many users took drugs for recreational use.  In 1914, in an effort to curb the indiscriminate use of narcotics, the federal government of the United States passed the Harrison Act, making it illegal to obtain a narcotic drug without a prescription.  During the 1920痴, the Supreme Court ruled that maintaining addicts on narcotic drugs, even by prescription, was in violation of the Harrison Act.  Some 30,000 physicians were arrested during this period for dispensing narcotics, and some 3,000 actually convicted and served prison terms.  Consequently, doctors all but abandoned the treatment for addicts for nearly half of a century of the United States (Musto, p.127).
	The use of narcotic drugs dropped sharply between 1920痴, when there were almost half million addicts, and 1945, when the population of addicts was around 40,000 to 50,000.  The recreational use of other drugs, such as marijuana, cocaine, stimulants, hallucinogens, and sedatives are used frequently today in the United States.  Since 1960痴, the use of most illegal drugs increased wide renege of unconventional behavior, including the movement against the war in Vietnam and popularity of rock music.  Also, enormous media publicity developed to drug subculture came into existence.  Some social groups viewed drug use in positive way, evaluated individuals on the basis of whether or not they used illegal drugs.  This subculture was a powerful force in recruiting young people into the use of illegal psychoactive drugs.
	Attention of media to drug use declined between the  1960痴 and the1970痴, actual use of drug did not decline.  The late 1070痴 and early 1980痴 represent another turning point in the recreational use of marijuana, hallucinogens, sedatives, and amphetamines.  Recent studies show a considerable drop in the use of most drug types in through the 1980痴.
	In 1970, the United States Congress passed the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act.  The Control Act distinguishes among several categories of drugs based on their potential abuse and their medical utility.  Drugs that supposedly have a high potential for abuse and no currently medical use, including heroin, LSD and the other hallucinogens, and marijuana, may be used legally only in a federal approved scientific research experiment.  These drugs are tightly controlled by federal and states laws, because of their high abuse potential.
	Despite the effort of law-enforcement, the demand for illegal drugs remains very high.  For example, between 1970 to 1977, the number of arrests on marijuana charges in the United States more than doubled from 188,000 to 457,000 (Jones,Lovinger, p.67).  During this same era, however, the percentage of the American population who had ever used marijuana also doubled for most age categories.  Arrests did not seem to deter marijuana use.  Likewise the number of arrests on the charge of narcotics possession and sale increased from 533,000 in 1980 to over 850,000 in 1988 (Arterburn, p.91).  Yet the use of heroin and other narcotics remained almost same during this era, while the use of cocaine exploded.  Nonetheless, in the face of mounting public concern, in 1986, Congress passed strong new drug laws and enforcement measures along with treatment and education programs (Arterburn, p.93).  
	According to Beccaria, "in order for punishment not to be, in every instance, an act of violence of one or of many against a private citizen, it must be essentially public, prompt, necessary, the least possible in the given circumstances, proportionate to the crimes, dictated by the laws."  Since we tend to think drug use as deviant behavior, taking drugs does cause harm not only to the users but also harmful to society itself, because it affects the functional use of individuals within the society. By considering this, I would have to say that Beccaria would feel that psychoactive drugs are immoral, therefore they should be illegal.
	It is obvious that a short prison term does not deter drug use.  There will always be someone using drugs if the only thing they got is a few months in jail.  With the idea of Beccaria that it is better to prevent crimes than to punish them, the government should stop the drug trafficking into the United States, so that there will be no drugs available to the user.
	The government should also provide well organized education to society, according to Beccaria, informing young people that drugs are painful and harmful to them.  If society was aware of the effects and how dangerous that drug do to the body, it would seem like a good idea that will scare the children so they wouldn稚 take drugs.
	The important question is that how should we punish drug users.  Since a prison term does not deter and the death penalty does not prove to be a reasonable punishment according to Beccaria, rehabilitation should get more attention to deal with this problem.
	On the other hand, Beccaria might believe that the choice to use drugs should be left to the individual, not the government.  What the individual dose in the private which does not harm general condition of public should be allowed.  If one wants to use drugs that may harm him, let him do it, but once he steps outside of his privacy of his own, then he is reliable for his behavior and should be arrested or punished.  Though this may conflict with Beccaria's idea, only way to prevent somebody from leaving his house on drugs is to not allow him or her to do drugs at first place.
	We tend to think that drug users are the victims of the drugs that they take, but it is a victimless crime, because nether the seller nor the user is likely to report the crime to the police.  Drug use is a real crime that injures both users and the society, but its punishment should not involve infamy for it is itself not infamous in public opinion.  Drug use is as offense which men believe cannot committed against them do not interest them sufficiently to excite public indignation against those who commit them.  Most men do not see the damage that can result from drug use.
	In most cases, the purpose of taking psychoactive drugs is to escape the present state of mind.  Once under the influence of a drug, one may not be held responsible for he may not know what痴 right and what痴 wrong.  If we keep this in our mind, in order to prevent any crimes related to drug use, we must prevent the use of any illegal drugs.
	Prevention must start with the government.  There should be tighter control on the drugs that enter into the nation and that are made in the country.  Drugs should only be available for medical use, not for recreational use.  Education is the key.  With proper education in the schools, children may learn the bad effects from drugs and will learn they have no real need to try any of them.
	Through the proper educational programs and laws society will eventually ridden drug use as it is already deviant.  Drug users looked down upon and are ashamed to use drugs in society, because they know it is wrong.  For a while drugs were popular among kids, but now it has become worse than ever before.  Drugs just lead to trouble in societies.  I hope someday everyone realizes what a mistake it is, and illegal drug use will disappear from our society.         
	
 
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