Here are the two article summaries written by Mclain Hall:
In Mike Royko's article "Drug War is Lost; Here's What to do Now," five reasons are
given as specifics to why American society has lost the war to drugs. Royko also
presents his solution to the problem.
His first stated reason is popular demand. People in all levels of
the socio-economic ladder demand drugs whether it be crack, coke, or pot.
Royko continues by stating the "staggering" profits to be made as his second
reason. It's not just the suppliers who imass fortunes but also the street
corner dealer. Because of the big money that circulates through the industry,
the corruption of police officers and judges becomes and everyday event.
Reason three is the lack of law enforcement personnel to deal with the growing
problem. Royko uses the city of Chicago as his example. He states that for
every 22,222 citizens there is only one full time narcotics officer.
The fourth reason relates to number three in that if there were the personnel
to fight the dealers, where would we put them. The overcrowding of jails makes
incarceration almost impossible. Plus Royko states that building more jail
facilities does appeal to most of the country's taxpayers.
The final reason America has lost the war to drugs is that the supply cannot
be stopped at the border. There are literally thousands of ways and means to
bring illegal narcotics into the country.
Royko's solution to these problems is to legalize all drugs. He believes in
licensing the distributors, establishing an age limit, and taxing it like
alcohol. He claims that by legalizing drugs it would free up millions in
drug enforcement tax dollars and rid the streets of the frequent gun battles
that result from territorial disputes. His final comment on legalization is
that if an individual wants to fry his brain, so be it.
In Walter Wink's article "Biting the Bullet," he makes a case for the
legalization of drugs. Wink states that America has lost the drug war.
He makes reference to Prohibition and how by trying to eliminate alcohol
it made the selling of this "evil" more profitable. Wink criticizes Bush's
anti-drug plan and draws specifics as to why it would be unsuccessful.
The first part of Bush's plan attempts to cut off drugs at the source in Columbia,
Peru, and Bolivia. Wink cites that only 700 square miles are used to cultivate
cocaine. There is a possible 2.5 million square miles suitable for its growth;
an area too large for the U.S to police.
Bush's plan also calls for stiffer border patrol. Wink states that the
U.S Air Force spent 3.3 million on patrol over a 15 month period and
successfully seized only 8 drug shipments. Drugs are too easy to smuggle.
The last portion of the Bush plan calls for more arrests of drug dealers
and users. Wink argues that the prison population is too great. Plus the
cost to the taxpayers in order to imprison the estimated 35-40 million drug
users would run into the trillions.
Wink's solution to America's drug problem is legalization. By legalizing
drugs the market price would plummet causing a substantial loss of revenue
to the drug community. Legalization would be similar to that of alcohol.
Selling to minors and driving while under the influence would be illegal.
Plus the government could collect revenue from taxes on drugs.
By legalizing drugs America would save an estimated 10 billion in enforcement
expenditures. Law personnel would be freed up to deal with other crimes in
society.
The negatives to legalization are the low prices would allow children to easily
afford drugs. Plus there would most likely be an increase in overall drug
use.
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