What’s the worst combination you can think of? How about drugs and crime? Between state and federal prisoners, 35 percent of them are in jail for a drug related crime. Drugs have been in America for years slowly increasing in number and continuing to cause problems in the U.S. Drug dealers have always found a way to smuggle in drugs, have them distributed and have the money that is spent on the drug returned to them. Also, poor people have found ways to use junk to make powerful drugs like meth or just use over the counter medicine for a quick high. I think that in America that most crimes can be linked to drugs, because people will do anything for the money that you can make off the drug , for the drug itself and also whatever off the wall thing a drug could influence you to do. There’s no telling how long drugs have actually been in America but we do know it’s been a long time. Marijuana was one of the first major drug problems to surface in the U.S. Its’ legal use is used for medical and recreational purposes. Regulation began as early as 1619. By the 1930’s cannabis was regulated by every in every state, even the states that adopted the Uniform State Narcotic Drug Act. However, in the 1970’s many places in the United States started to abolish state laws and other local regulations that banned possession or sale of marijuana. The drug being regulated is also in conflict with federal laws stating; marijuana is a schedule one drug according to the Controlled Substance Act of 1970, which classified marijuana as a high risk for abuse, no medical use, and not safe to use without medical supervision. The United States Supreme Court has ruled in United States v. Oakland Cannabis Buyer’s Cooperative and Gonzales v. Raich that the federal government has a right to regulate and criminalize cannabis, even for medical purpose. Now you can even use a welfare credit card to purchase marijuana in states that regulate the drug.
Unfortunately, marijuana is not the only drug problem in the U.S. America is the world’s largest consumer of cocaine and other illegal drugs. For a while Columbia was the largest producer of cocaine in the world. This drug is extracted from the leave of the coca plant. It’s a very addictive stimulate that in high doses is very dangerous, more dangerous than most stimulates and the entire amphetamine drug class. The use of cocaine has caused up to 4,300 deaths in 2013. Cocaine actually has a small number of applications. It was useful as an anesthetic in eye and nasal surgery. But, because it’s a schedule 1 drug the vast majority of cocaine use is illegal.
Although, drugs like marijuana and cocaine are so wide spread. Some people in certain areas do not have the access or enough money for the drug. So, this is where drugs like meth come in. Meth is very powerful, very addictive and cheap. Mini meth labs can actually be found in common household garages. It’s not uncommon to find particles of the drugs on kids and their belongings because parents don’t really care about the harm it does. They only care about the result of the drug. Meth can mess up your body pretty bad. Mainly because the main ingredients are highly toxic and highly flammable. One of the problems that meth causes is something called meth mouth. Lack of saliva, decreased blood flow, tooth grinding, horrible hygiene, and poor diet are some symptoms. Another serious down fall to meth is meth induced psychotic behavior. It causes a severe mental disorder in which people lose contact with reality and experience strong delusions, extreme paranoia, hallucinations, and obsessive/compulsive behavior. Approximately 1.3 million people reported using meth between the years of 2004-2005.
Yes, it’s true America is the largest consumer of illegal drugs but, the problem is not completely domestic. The many different drug cartels are the main reasons for drugs flooding into the U.S. Drug cartels are any criminal