Reducing Drug Trafficking

ENG122: English Composition II (ABE1236F)

Instructor: Marsha Beckwith-Howard

The Never ending Battle against Drug Traffic

Meshweida Q. Carter

Ashford University

With the continuous fight to conquer drugs, the drugs are winning. The demand for drugs has surpassed what any of us wanted to believe or acknowledge. When the actual illegal drugs; opiates, methamphetamine, cocaine, marijuana, PCP, ecstasy, heroin out reach the price range of the users, they result to household cleaners. This has further pushed the effort and fight to be more horrific and seemingly useless. White-out, paint thinner, hand sanitizers, glue have become the 'back-up plan' for daily users: as the household items can be purchased at dollar stores. Parents are trying to deal with the new trends of getting high but the fight is hard. If the youth are not using drugs, they are definitely selling them. This is something everyone can say they know because these kids are free to roam, they know where authorities are, they know parents work schedules, and they know secret spots at schools, they will use other kid's houses because their parents come later and the cycle just goes on. It does not help when the parents are users as well and some will deny that their kids use drugs. They will say, "I do not know where they got it from" when majority of the time you can smell the drugs or see it in their eyes. Those are the parents that preach 'do not use drugs because you will turn out like me'. You lead by example and those are the parents that get furious when their cash is missing, items in the house are disappearing and the schools are constantly calling them because their child(ren) are not in class. How do adults expect the kids to act if they are showing them the wrong path? What did they think was going to happen if they abuse drugs or work too many hours away from home? When will the parents accept that just possibly and inadvertently aided their child (ren) erratic behaviors? Who do these adults think will be held accountable for the youth? Where will the children end up if we do not help the officials and ourselves? Why do we; parents, guardians, foster parents, grandparents think that the government is supposed to raise the kids we created?

As I was reading the book (1) Criminal Justice; A Brief Introduction; 7th Edition; 2008; Schmalleger, it stated that the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) estimates annual illicit drug sales in the United States of around $65 billion, while the United Nations says that illegal drug revenue in the United States, Canada, and Mexico totals around $142 billion yearly. These totals are astounding to me and yet, I am not entirely surprised. Drugs have taken over the world and its entirety. These individuals do not see the damage they are causing to themselves by killing brain cells and all the nutrients the body needs. From (2) a very interesting website, I found a chart that shows the growth and supply/demand of drugs and the flow of money.

The White House ONDCP (3) list that Last Fiscal Year (FY12) alone, the United States spent over $10 billion to support drug demand reduction programs as compared to $2.1 billion for international drug control programs. The U.S is the biggest spender in the drug market as all reports seem to show. This further hinders the efforts to Reduce Drug Trafficking globally.

From (4) Community Policing; A Contemporary Perspective; 5th Edition; 2009; Victor E. Kappeler & Larry K. Gaines, it states that a bar or high-class pub is just as likely to harbor prostitution and be a source of drug trafficking. The difference here is how political leaders direct police and how the police themselves direct their attention and resources. With this being written, it sounds like the politics rule how the police operate and deem certain crimes as less important than others. For me, crime is crime as they serve drinks to minors, drugs are in the bars and clubs, money laundering, crime schemes and plans are done in these places because there are lots of people; this allows them to 'blend in'. Further reading Community Policing, Chapter 8, it says drug trafficking generally occurs in parks, ball fields, street intersections or adjacent to public housing or apartment complexes. This is so true because I have seen it done from a distance and I refused to get involved due to retaliation. The parks are very public and the drug dealers know this and use it freely because they have a right to be there. The drug dealers know the law enough to cover themselves.

As I stated in the aforementioned paragraph, the book also states as I about bars and clubs. The public drug trafficking occurs where there are large numbers of people congregate and allows them to blend into the crowd and essentially hide from the police, and the large number of people allow for the acquisition of a larger customer base. All of this is true because they know they are breaking the law so they need a cover. Their regular customers as well as new can be accomplished in one shot. The drug dealers and customers always know where each