“Every form of addiction is bad, no matter whether the narcotic be alcohol or morphine or idealism” (Jung Carl, nd). It’s hard to grasp the fact that governments in most nations have gone to great depths to prohibit the use of drugs but not actually done the same with alcohol. The fact that the alcohol industry does not have a direct bearing on any other industry, while on the other hand drugs like marijuana would adversely impact the logging and paper industries still does not justify legalizing alcohol.
At the instance when alcohol is enters the body it is primarily engrossed by the stomach and enters the bloodstream and settles itself in all the tissues. The penalties of alcohol depend on various factors, including the person’s weight, size, age and sex, also the amount of food, nutrition level and alcohol consumed. The distorting effect of alcohol is the prime reason why it is consumed at many social gatherings . effects of reasonable alcohol consumption includes vertigo and chattiness. The instant effect of considerable amount of alcohol drinking includes indistinct speech, disturbed sleep, queasiness, and vomiting.
In rare cases alcohol, even at low doses, considerably impairs the judgment and dexterity required to drive a car safely. Low doses of alcohol can increase aggressive acts, including domestic violence and child abuse. Hangovers are common and a possible effect after large amounts of alcohol consumption; a loom consists of headaches sickness, need for liquids and exhaustion. Prolonged use leads to addiction and when paired with poor nutrition can lead to permanent organ damage of liver and brain. In addition complications during pregnancy can also occur like fetal alcohol syndrome.
Children may suffer from intellectual retardation and other permanent physical anomaly. On the other end of the spectrum health problems sprouting from the use of legal and illegal drugs are numerous and vary, as well as being potentially lethal. Keeping in mind the nature of abuse, if addictive drugs or pursued for some apparent benefit. This obviously means long-term chronic exposure, therefore symptoms usually overlap. Drugs are usually instigated my smoking and therefore directly aggravate lung problems, oral and throat cancers.
Drugs that influence the central nervous system tend to germinate symptoms involving psychotic behavior; stimulants on the other hand increase the incidence towards heart attacks. Like alcoholism drug abuse also adversely affects children in cases of pregnancy, which can kill baby and mother or lead to lifetime of health difficulties. One of the most popular drugs is heroin that causes a feeling of euphoria, in which warm reddening of the skin, dry mouth and feeling of having heavy legs and arms and eventually causing drowsiness.
Mental judgment is clouded as heroin directly affects the nervous system; also an extreme effect could me respiratory failure. Chronic users of this drug will usually face infection of the heart lining and valves, liver disease, kidney disease and pulmonary complications. (NIAAA, 2008) There are various arguments to why drugs like heroin should be legalized and why they should not. Firstly taking drugs like alcohol is a persons own individual choice, without government interference. But the fact of the matter is that we can’t walk naked down the street, and many other adjoining laws that prevent us to do things of choice.
Secondly, people think legalizing drugs would mean less government intervention. The government is all over the alcohol and tobacco industry with heavy taxes and regulations. Thirdly, will legalizing drugs actually reduce crime? Studies show that the correlation between drug use and crime, horrendous crimes like assaults, homicides, assault. The reason people do commit a crime is because they are on drugs, not committing crimes to get illegal drugs. (Carolyn and Gargaro, n. d. ) The prohibition of alcohol during 1920’s, temperance movements produced numerous state prohibitions.
Many were resisted while other were ineffective, but the one that persisted was the Volstead Act which provided parameters for prohibition, the manufacturing, transporting and sale of alcohol under federal law. In the 1920s support began to erode and finally in 1933 the 21st Amendment repealed the 18th ending the prohibition. Although just because alcohol prohibition was attempted doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t happen again, nor does it mean that drugs should be legalized but its imperative to ponder over the consequences of alcohol legalization.
The most obvious effect of prohibitions is on the supply and demand of alcohol. It increases supply cost because the element of risk increase. Along with quantity and price, prohibition is directly correlated to an increase in violent and non-violent crimes. Dealers of an illegal commodity cannot use the legal and judiciary to solve disputes therefore they indulge in violent and unethical methods. Prohibitions directly provide incentives for black markets to set up.