Decriminalizing Drugs Research Paper

Whether it be for medicinal purposes or recreational use, across America in states such as Alaska, Colorado, and Oregon, the negative stigmas surrounding marijuana are beginning to become much more positive and liberal. We are entering an era where considerably more reserved states are decriminalizing the use of the once unanimously illegal cannabis drug. This new mentality however, which can be seen in many parts of the United States and Europe, is not uniform across the globe. In countries across across Latin America, the drug industry is one that is still very much a present issue to the governments and civilians of producing and distributing nations where drugs such as marijuana and cocaine sustain an industry of crime. For outsiders,
We will also look at whether the legalization of certain narcotics could result in positive affects for the countries currently plagued by ruling cartels and their methods for maintaining their objective of supply the world with drugs for recreational
While the United States is not the primary consumer of illegal drugs around the globe, it plays a significant role in supporting the industry, “the value of all illicit drugs sold annually in the United States may reach as high as $150 billion. Some $37 billion per year may be spent on cocaine alone,” an alarming monetary figure that could certainly be attributed to neighboring Mexico. This billion dollar industry in Mexico is controlled by two main cartels operating within Mexico's borders as well as with ties in states such as California and Miami, the Sinaloa cartel and the Zetas cartel. In such a lucrative industry that is demanded internationally, there is a severe amount of fighting that goes on between the Sinaloa and Zetas cartels. Despite how vast Mexico may be and how numerous countries desiring these drugs are, the cartels find themselves in a constant ballet with each other, fighting over territories to hold the role as being the top distributor. The battles between theses cartels result in a constant blood bath in the stress of regions of Mexico such as Tijuana, Michoacan, and Ciudad