The War on Drugs
BUILDING VOCABULARY
the battle against drugs
the drug problem
drug use / a drug user
drug dealing
drug overdose
a drug addict / drug addicts
drug treatment
drug addiction
drug abuse
drug related homicides
drug legalization
drug education programs
legal / illegal
legalize
legalization of drugs
legalizing drugs
to oppose
to advocate
to be in favor of
to argue for / to argue against
to restrict / restriction
to enforce the law / law enforcement
to label someone
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The War on Drugs
A. Look at the following words and expressions. What do you
think the text will be about?
In favor of \ abuse \ addiction \ treatment \ Law-enforcement
advocate \ decriminalization \ legalization \ argue \ oppose
B. The War on Drugs: Opinions: Do you agree or disagree
with the these opinions?
1. Over the past few decades the drug problem has become
considerably worse.
2. Drug use has increased among teenagers.
3. Drug abuse is the result of poverty and inequality.
4. The battle against drugs is a failure.
5. People should be able to buy drugs legally the same way
they buy cigarettes.
6. If drugs were legal, there would be fewer robberies and
murders.
7. Legalizing drugs would lead to more addiction.
8. The drug problem can be solved by drug education
programs.
9. Drug users should not be labeled criminals.
10. The government should try to protect us from harming
ourselves by making drug use illegal.
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The War on Drugs (609)
From: Academic Encounters: Life in Society
By Kristine Brown and Susan Hood, Cambridge, 2002
1. Over the last few decades, the drug problem in the United States (and in many
other industrialized countries) has become considerably worse. In 1981, there
were about 3 million drug addicts in the United States; today there are around 6
million. The number of drug overdose deaths and drug-related homicides has
also increased. This is in spite of the fact that the government has spent more
and more money in trying to solve the drug problem. The fight against drugs is
often referred to as a "war" or "battle," and most experts now believe the battle
against drugs has been a failure. They say it has failed because the government
has focused on controlling the problem through laws and punishments, rather
than through drug education and treatment.
2. The failure of the law-enforcement approach has led to calls for other approaches
to solving the problem, including the decriminalization and the legalization of
drugs. Advocates of decriminalization think that drug users should no longer be
labeled as serious criminals and that the punishments for drug use should be
significantly reduced. Advocates of legalization believe there should be no
restriction on drug use at all, and that individuals should be able to buy drugs the
same way they buy cigarettes and alcohol today.
3. Those who are in favor of legalization argue that the current drug laws do more
harm than good. They argue that the current laws waste police time because
while police officers are busy arresting people for smoking marijuana, they are
not doing the work of arresting robbers and murderers. Further, they argue that
the high cost of illegal drugs and the enormous amounts of money to be made
from drug dealing encourage more serious crimes. For example, many drug
users turn to stealing to support their habit and police can sometimes be bribed to
"look the other way." Finally, those who support legalization believe that if drugs
were legalized, the huge amounts of money currently spent on law enforcement
could be used for drug treatment and education, which would drastically reduce
drug use.
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4. Those who oppose legalization respond that, if drugs are legalized, drug use and
addiction will skyrocket. They point to the experience with alcohol, which was
prohibited in the United States in the 1920s. At the end of this period, called
Prohibition, the consumption of alcohol apparently soared by 350 percent
(Bennet 1989). Others feel that the use of drugs is a stepping stone to other
crimes – that, for example, the use of marijuana leads to the use of heroin or
cocaine, and on to more serious crime. If drug use is stopped, this trend will be
prevented.
5. Another aspect of the debate on whether or not drugs should be legalized
involves the question of individual rights. Some people call for legalization
because they feel they have the right to take drugs – that it is none of the
government's business. They think that laws governing this behavior are an
invasion of individual rights. On the other hand, others argue that the government
should try to protect us from harming ourselves.
6. Finally, there are those who believe that the problem of widespread drug abuse
and crime can only be solved when the government attacks the root causes of
the problem: poverty, racism and inequality (Currie 1993). They propose that the
government should deal with the factors that cause the problem by providing
employment for all, increasing the minimum wage, improving health care for the
poor, offering paid family leave, and providing affordable housing.
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The War on Drugs – Questions
Pre-Reading: Read the first paragraph and first sentence only of each
paragraph. Circle the best answer.
The author's purpose in this text is
a. To explain why the battle against drugs has failed.
b. To argue in favor of the legalization of drugs.
c. To discuss the problem of widespread drug abuse.
d. To present opposing approaches to the war on drugs.
Close Reading Questions:
PARAGRAPH ONE
1. Why do most experts think the battle against drugs has failed?
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
PARAGRAPH 2
2. What do advocates of decriminalization want to change?
a.______________________________________________________
b. _____________________________________________________
3. What do advocates of legalization want to change?
a. ___________________________________________________
b. ___________________________________________________
PARAGRAPH 3
4. Why do advocates of legalization think the current laws waste police time?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
5..What is a possible result of the high cost of illegal drugs?)
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
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6. For what would advocates of legalization prefer to spend money?
a. _________________________________________________
b. _________________________________________________
PARAGRAPH 4
7. What do opponents of legalization think will happen if drugs are legalized?
Circle the correct answer.
a. drug use will decrease greatly.
b. drug use will lead to alcohol use.
c. drug use will increase greatly
d. drug users will explode.
8. Decide if the following sentence is true or false. Circle the correct answer.
TRUE
FALSE
“At the end of the period of Prohibition, people stopped drinking alcohol.”
Justification:
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
9. What does "this trend" in the last sentence of paragraph 4 refer to?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
10. PARAGRAPH 5
a. Why are some people in favor of legalizing drugs?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
b. What do opponents of legalization think about the role of government?
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
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PARAGRAPH 6
11..What do some people think really causes drug abuse? (3 words only)
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
12. What should the government do to solve the drug problem? Give 5
suggestions.
a. _________________________________________________
b. _________________________________________________
c. _________________________________________________
d__________________________________________________
e. _________________________________________________
POST-READING:
13. According to the entire article, which approach to fighting drugs do you
think is more convincing? Circle one answer.
LEGALIZATION
LAW-ENFORCEMENT
EXPLAIN THE REASON FOR YOUR CHOICE:
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________
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The War On Drugs
Vocabulary: Match the words with their meanings
1. Over the last few decades, the
drug problem in the U.S. has
become considerably worse.
2. Over the last few decades, the
drug problem in the U.S. has
become considerably worse.
3. The failure of the lawenforcement approach has led to
calls for other approaches to
solving the problem
4. Advocates of decriminalization
think that drug users should no
longer be labeled as serious
criminals.
5. Advocates of decriminalization
think that drug users should no
longer be labeled as serious
criminals.
6. Advocates of decriminalization
think that punishments for drug
use should be significantly
reduced.
7. They think that punishments
should be significantly reduced.
8. Those who oppose
legalization point to alcohol which
was prohibited in the United
States in the 1920’s
9. Alcohol was prohibited in the
United States in the 1920’s
10. At the end of Prohibition,
consumption of alcohol soared
11. Another aspect of the debate
involves the question of
individual rights.
12. The government should try to
protect us from harming
ourselves
13. The problem of widespread
drug abuse can be solved only by
attacking the root causes
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a. occurring in many places
(adj.)
b. to be against something (v)
c. a method to solve a
problem (n)
d. ten years (n)
e. to hurt (v)
f. in a large and important way
(adverb)
g. use (n)
h. to make illegal (v)
i. people in favor of something
(n)
j. to include (v)
k. to make less (v)
l. considerably (adverb)
M using a word to describe
someone (v)