Why are drugs illegal?
94772
Drugs are illegal because of the amount of money the government earns and loses because of them. If we legalized drugs, the government would have great difficulty taxing them. Most drugs are imported illegally from forign countries. Right now, america gets a bunch of money from its war on drugs including busts and payoffs. As a giant corporation, it would be stupid to allow people to purchase outside of your domain. I would never say that america does not allow it because they are bad for you- so are cigarettes, alchohol, most legal diet pills, caffine. Did you know that caffine causes weight gain, the shakes and you can actually overdose and die from it. (granted, that is an extreme and rare case) so, they do allow things that are bad for us as long as it is taxable.
141763
lol...what kind of a question is this...i'm sure everyone knows someone who abuses illegal drugs, it's just that some of the people that abuse illegal drugs don't go around telling everyone. Contrary to what the media portrays, there are many illegal drugs that don't make you act like a total idiot and only other people who have done the drug or people who have been around others doing the drug a lot would even know they were on it.
769865
Absolutly.  Making it illegal wastes tax dollars and ruins people's lives who have not engaged in any sort of violent crime.  Instead, they have done something very similar to drinking or smoking cigarettes, and because they have, they now face jail time, huge fines and criminal records.  It should, at the very least, be decriminalized, as the punishment would be rehab or something.  But absolutly, legalization will put drug dealers out of business (similar to the way the end of prohibition ended the mobster culture).  It would bring in more revenue, it could be regulated (and kid can tell you its easier to get pot than beer, as they don't have to show their ID to dealers), and it would free up our police to search out and get violent criminals more effectivly.
20882
Yes, all drugs should be legal.\n\nMaking drugs legal would mean that they could be better controlled, or maybe even taxed.  The tax could be used to help people get off hard drugs.\n\nIn my opinion, governments should not have control over something an individual does to themselves.
314571
pot was made illegal when lsd and all the hard druggs of the 60's were i think. instead of actually knowing what pot was or how it was different then acid and x and cocaine, and the other hard drugs, it was illegialized right along with it. so really for no good reason is it illegal.. yes it should be legalized.. we wouldnt spend so much money on the fight against drugs, and would be able to focus on the important things like coke, and crack, and heron, exc... the things that actually kill ppl
49636
Why is it so important for so many people to intrude into the lives of others?  A better question to ask other than "Why should it be leagalized?" is "Why is it illegal?"  Why has the government decided that some drugs (alchohol, nicotiene, caffiene) should be legal for unregulated consumption, and a basically harmless soft drug like marijuana with debatable medicinal benifits is demonized and thrown into the same catagory as herion and cocaine which like alchohol have ruined millions of lives and killed millions of people?\n\nWhy are you so concerned with what people do with their personal time?
852294
It is illegal because there is no way for the U.S. to regulate and tax it. People would just grow it in their backyards. This is the REAL reason, not because it is a "gateway" drug. (If people want to do drugs, it is because they choose too, not because they got high and the joint said "Hey, you like this? Try Heroin!!" I've smoked marijuana many times before, but it has never made me want to try anything else.)
483459
I think all natural drugs are better than manmade - shrooms are natural too. But, everything in moderation! The reason why it's illegal is because the drug companies and the government can't harness it and make money off of it.
1048035
For the same reason we have every other law in this country.  It's basic civics.  There are certain things we know we shouldn't do, like kill people, but some person might anyways, and there has to be legislature for the person to be punished, setting an example that we shouldn't do these things. \n\nThe drug part is different.  If you came up with an entirely new drug right now, there would be no criminal law against using it, because there is no legal reference for it.  Here's an example:  Back in the 80's Ecstasy used to be legal.  You could buy it with your credit card in a bar, just like alcohol.  Then a shipment of a dangerous drug came over called, China Whites, that caused fatalities.  Congress freaked, declared Ecstasy a dangerous drug and declared it illegal.  The same thing for pot and mushrooms.  Somewhere along the line congress thought it was dangerous or being abused and had to declare it illegal.
818273
Society defines what is acceptable drug use and what is abuse. It does not have to make sense because its all wrapped up in the politics of drugs. \n\nMixing drugs isn't really abuse its just stupid, which has no cure other than when the stupid manage to kill themselves. Using a minor drug like marijuana to control pain may be illegal but it is not abuse. Using marijuana to get high is drug abuse, so is using alcohol to get drunk.
653841
Because the biggest rule of the judicial system... Money talks. Look at O.J., and Micheal Jackson.. Should Rush be so different?\n\nHey and Merlin whether a drug is legal or not the means that Rush was using them was illegal He was obtaining prescription drugs illegally. The truth is legal pain killers are one of the number drugs abused in the USA and is one of fastest growing addictions in America.
512143
Because they cannot arrest everyone.  And the only reason marijuana is illegal anyway is to keep kids from smoking it.  It's really better for you than alcohol.  Most people I know smoke it, and those who don't are cool with it.  I know a bunch of cops that smoke too.
710230
anyone who thinks drugs should be illegal purely for health reasons must certainly agree that all fat people should be put in jail for hurting themselves.....\n\nthe only thing that should be illegal involving drugs is the use of drugs to harm another person... and since harming another person is already a crime... then by default if you take a drug and you do something stupid... you're already in trouble by the law... taking the drug itself shouldn't be a crime\n\nwho really cares if a person harms themselves using a drug... cigarettes, alcohol and fatty foods do the same thing... breathing in fumes from household cleaners is bound to kill cells too... but hey it's not illegal to smoke, drink, eat mcdonalds, and clean your toilet... taking a drug should be a choice... citizens should have the freedom to take them if they want... advocation against drugs should be aimed at influencing people to not take them and try alternative activities.. and NOT to place bans and restrictions on them\n\nbesides in the long run... if someone dies from an OD... then 1. it's their fault... and 2. less "stupid" people in our overpopulated world\n\nbut yes that really didn't answer your question... it was more of an opinion...
103258
First time offenders are still offenders. Illegal substances, are still illegal substances. Just because a few in the minority feel it is "ok" with them, is not a reason to grant easy sentences for the illegal activity.\n\nFace it... Pot is still illegal and until it is legalized, prison time for offenders of the written law is deserved.\n\nPrisons are over-crowded, but this is not an excuse to let people off. The prisons are over-crowded because too many in today's society think that their opinion is greater than the masses or greater than the law. Those who break the law best be prepared to pay the piper.
878196
Government hates to loose money like that. OH, NO\nThey will never make it illegal. They want our tax money to support their lifestyles.\nRemember when alcohol was illegal in the old days?
798840
Although I don't support it, the war on drugs is not over, it continues to this day.\nI do think they need to change the definition of illegal substances. Pot is not any more harmful than beer. throwing people in jail for having a small quantity of pot is ludicris. It overcrowds the jails and bogs down the system, it also destroys lives. A person caught with a few grams of pot is considered a criminal like a person caught with a pound of heroin. It's a joke (the war on drugs).
493070
Because this is America and you can do whatever you want until you get cuaght. Perhaps the police are taking the same stand on drug laws as immigration laws The problem is just too big so o well lets just let them do what ever they want.