Supply reduction is one of the strategies used to control the illegal drug problem. Supply reduction relies on diplomatic, law enforcement, military, and other resources to disrupt the supply chains of illegal drugs by eliminating or reducing (Lyman). The efforts of the resources focuses on foreign countries to identify the smuggling routes outside of the country and interfere the distribution within the United States (Lyman). There are three approaches to supply reduction paradigm and it is to “eradicate or control drugs at their source, interdict or seize drugs as they enter the country, and engage in intense domestic drug enforcement efforts primarily aimed at users and drug consumers” (Lyman).
Those three components of supply reduction paradigm are ineffective because those three approaches “have made the problem of illicit drug sales and consumption much worse than a strategy of simply doing nothing” (Lyman). The supply of illegal drugs are enormous that it acts like a flood. For example, if a person put up a wall to block one side of the flood, the flood would simply flow in another direction. The supply of illegal drugs is too large to be stopped by three strategies and trying to seize the distribution is “equivalent of trying to empty the
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For instance, the interdiction campaign had claimed its minor success in reducing the supply of marijuana due to its bulky commodity making it difficult for smugglers to transport. Due to smugglers’ difficulty, they have “moved to cocaine and heroin as substitutes for marijuana” (Lyman), resulting in more different varieties of illegal drugs being supplied into the United States. Clearly, the supply reduction paradigm is not an ineffective strategy to reduce the supply chain of illegal drugs, however, it is a start. We as a society need to close the backdoors that the smugglers are
Approximately given 80 to 90 million Americans have tried an illicit drug at least which once in their lives; marijuana alone is tried for the first time by about 6,400 Americans everyday. Furthermore, illicit drugs seem to be relatively easy to attain- in for 1999, 90 percent said which this about marijuana, also 44 percent about cocaine and finally 32 percent about heroin. Yearly, for which 35 million dollars is given just to control illicit drug trafficking. Moreover, over 400,000 of drug offenders caught are in jail, of which, some 130,000 are which for possession. Not for only are these statistics a international obvious embarrassment but because for these quantities which have been growing throughout history, we can only assume that they will get worse. We can already begin to for imagine the costs of these numbers which is it not already clear that we need for to find an alternative approach to this
In Australia the Government uses three methods to tackle drugs; Demand reduction, supply reduction and harm minimization. Needle and syringe programs are under harm minimization category. Supply reduction is focused on drug dealers and drug makers and is brought about by law enforcement. In the Demand reduction method it is tried to decrease the number of people taking drugs through anti-drug advertisements and campaigns, legislation, rehabilitation centers. On the other hand harm minimization recognizes the fact that drugs can never be eradicated fro...
Operation Shoebox is an organization that sends care packages, and goods to our troops who are deployed. I chose this organization because I felt a connection with it since I have an older brother in the Coast Guard who I adore and look up to. When he was deployed in Cuba my family always sent him care packages so he could always have a little piece of home. When I heard about this organization I immediately wanted to find out how I could help.
We cannot afford to keep using the same approach in hopes of diminishing our drug problem in the United States. In a study posted on RAND.org, the author Jonathan P. Caulkins compares many methods we can use to help with drug crime. The first graph compares federal mandatory minimum sentences, conventional enforcement at all levels of government, and treatment of heavy users. Conventional enforcement prevented around thirty kilo grams of cocaine from being used, while federal mandatory minimums prevented around forty kilograms from being used. Treatment of heavy users blew both of the other methods out of the water.
Our economic statue tells us that a supply rapidly grows up to meet a demand. But if the demand is widespread then suppression is useless. It is harmful to society because since by raising the price of the drug in question, it raises the profits of middlemen, which gives them an even more powerful drug to stimulate demand further. The vast profits to be made from cocaine and heroin, which would be cheap and easily affordable, even by the poorest in affluent societies if they were legal. Besides, it is well known the illegality in itself has attraction for youth already inclined to disaffection.
Drug trafficking has been a massive concern between the borders of Mexico and the U.S. “since mid 1970s” (Wyler, 1). Drug trafficking is “knowingly being in possession, manufacturing, selling, purchasing, or delivering an illegal, controlled substance” (LaMance, 1). A dynamic relationship exists amongst Columbia, Mexico, and the U.S. the informal drug trafficking economy. This growing informal drug economy leads to many individuals creating a substantial living through this undercover market. These individual drug cartels monopolizing the trafficking market are a growing problem for the U.S economy and need to be located and controlled. If this trafficking continues, the U.S. informal economy will crush the growth of legal industries. The trafficking and abuse of drugs in the U.S. affects nearly all aspects of consumer life. Drug trafficking remains a growing issue and concern to the U.S. government. The U.S. border control must find a way to work with Mexico to overpower the individuals who contribute to the drug trafficking business. This market must be seized and these individuals must be stopped.
Concerned authorities have focused essentially on criminalization and punishment, to find remedies to the ever-increasing prevalent drug problem. In the name of drug reducing policies, authorities endorse more corrective and expensive drug control methods and officials approve stricter new drug war policies, violating numerous human rights. Regardless of or perhaps because of these efforts, UN agencies estimate the annual revenue generated by the illegal drug industry at $US400 billion, or the equivalent of roughly eight per cent of total international trade (Riley 1998). This trade has increased organized/unorganized crime, corrupted authorities and police officials, raised violence, disrupted economic markets, increased risk of diseases an...
A “drug-free society” has never existed, and probably will never exist, regardless of the many drug laws in place. Over the past 100 years, the government has made numerous efforts to control access to certain drugs that are too dangerous or too likely to produce dependence. Many refer to the development of drug laws as a “war on drugs,” because of the vast growth of expenditures and wide range of drugs now controlled. The concept of a “war on drugs” reflects the perspective that some drugs are evil and war must be conducted against the substances
Over the last decade, Southwest border violence has elevated into a national security concern. Much of the violence appears to stem from the competing growth and distribution networks that many powerful Mexican drug cartels exercise today. The unfortunate byproduct of this criminality reaches many citizens of the Mexican border communities in the form of indiscriminate street gang shootings, stabbings, and hangings which equated to approximately 6,500 deaths in 2009 alone (AllGov, 2012). That same danger which now extends across the border regions of New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, and California has the potential for alarming escalation. Yet, despite the violence, evermore-brazen behavior continues to grow, as does America’s appetite for drugs. Even though drug-related violence mandates that law enforcement agencies focus on supply reduction, the Office of National Drug Control Policy should shift its present policy formulation efforts to only drug demand reduction because treatment and prevention efforts are inadequate and strategy has evolved little over the last three decades.
This supports the conservative’s claim that the war on drugs is not making any progress to stop the supply of drugs coming into America. Conservative writer for the magazine National Review, William Buckley, shows his outrage towards the Council on Crime in America for their lack of motivation to change the drug policies that are ineffective. Buckley asks, “If 1.35 million drug users were arrested in 1994, how many drug users were not arrested? The Council informs us that there are more than 4 million casual users of cocaine” (70). Buckley goes on to discuss in the article, “Misfire on Drug Policy,” how the laws set up by the Council were meant to decrease the number of drug users, not increase the number of violators.
Drug trafficking is a prohibited, global trade that involves the production, the distribution, and the sales of drugs. It is a topic that has become a very large issue all over the world. It also has had a very big effect on many different countries because they often depend on the business that the drug trafficking creates. Since it has become such a problem, there have been many different efforts to put a stop to drug trafficking by different enforcement agencies. A website about drug statistics, drugabuse.net, indicated that the Drug Enforcement Agency or DEA, as it is well known as, makes over thirty thousand arrests each year dealing with the illegal sales or distribution of drugs. It is also believed that Mexico’s economy would shrink by over sixty-three percent if they lost their drug trafficking industry. There are many different tribulations like this that drug trafficking has created. Many people see it as such a vital asset to some countries, so it has emerged as an extremely big business that brings in a boatload of money. Just like any other immense problem, drug trafficking has its causes and effects
As the common person may know, drugs are very expensive. Prescription drugs, although still expensive, are one of the cheaper routes to go. However it can also be dangerous, because it’s easier for doctors to notice the abuse. It is said that Americans pay more for prescription drugs than any other country in the world (Brym and Lie). Other routes a drug addicted person can go is through the illegal drug trade, otherwise known as the black market. For example, cocaine can go for around $1500 per kilo in Colombia, which is around two pounds. Often times the price of cocaine in America can go for a retail price of around $66,000. These prices even for just cocaine are what keep the drug cartel’s ...
This failure is due in large part, Benson and Rasmussen explain, to drug entrepreneurs’ adoption of new production techniques, new products, and new marketing strategies in response to greater law enforcement. Their “innovations” include lengthening the drug distribution chain and using younger drug pushers and runners (to reduce the risk of arrest and punishment), increasing domestic drug production (to avoid the risk of seizure at the border), smuggling into the country less marijuana and more cocaine (which is harder to detect), development of “crack” cocaine (a low-cost substitute for higher priced powdered cocaine and for marijuana, which the drug war made harder to obtain), and development of drugs with greater potency (because they are less bulky and because punishment is based on a drug’s weight, not its potency).
Drugs are illegal in most countries and the extermination of drugs has always been one of our most important worldwide issues. Ending the existence of drugs is one of the toughest and most complicated goal we face. With all the effort we put into the issue, why is there little success? Lack of effort is not a major reason the attempts are failing. It is the lack of understanding that leads to the misdirection and failure of the attempts. As long as a strong desire to use drugs exists, drugs won?ft exterminate.
“Does the United States government play a role in drug distribution?” “Certainly! I may have purchased drugs from government officials, you never know who your actually dealing with, but I know of dealers who purchase their drugs from the Feds.” “Who do you consider the major drug dealers to be?” “The U.S. government, and the C.I.A.” We discussed briefly the recent discovery of the C.I.A. dealing drug in South Central L.A., and then using the money to fund the CONTRA war.