Acosta: Legal drugs can be more dangerous than illegal drugs

Pedro Acosta, Columnist

Imagine a sober society that has just been introduced to alcohol and, as they accept this new substance into their culture, they also accept the consequences. As alcohol becomes embedded in this once clear-headed society, more and more people begin to die. Mothers shed tears for their loved ones killed in drunk-driving accidents. Teenagers let their last breath slip away in hopes of a legendary night as alcohol poisoning is discovered. Alcoholics emerge and shake the foundations of domestic tranquility. This once-peaceful place has been tainted by death and debauchery. The leaders of this world saw how this “fire-water” ruined so many people’s lives and banned it forever, justifying their previous way of life.

I believe our vision is blurred by tradition. This year, 2.5 million people will die due to alcohol-related causes, equivalent to the casualties of fighting the American Civil War four times a year. Unfortunately, alcohol isn’t the only thing that’s accepted in our society that also kills scores of people. Tobacco will kill 6 million people this year and drug overdoses will kill around 41,000 people in the United States alone, 51.8 percent of whom die from prescription drugs. It’s quite interesting how well-established these substances are in our society as seen by the mass advertisements for alcohol and doctors who prescribe Adderall like candy. I often wonder how we got to this point when we advertise death.

Once we realized tobacco definitely causes cancer, smoking became a taboo. Still, the same stigma doesn’t attach itself to the other “killers” in our society. It seems like we praise these substances with ads that promise paradise but really deliver death.

Illegal substances with potential benefits to our society’s health are constantly shunned in stubbornness. At this point, marijuana is classified as a schedule one substance, or having “no currently accepted medical use in the United States, a lack of accepted safety for use under medical supervision, and a high potential for abuse.” Contrary to this statement, marijuana is a scientifically proven treatment for leukemiaepilepsy and Crohn’s disease. Marijuana has countless other medicinal uses in terms of pain killing, yet we still are in the “Reefer Madness” mindset and refuse to see it as anything but a problem. The way we view marijuana in comparison to prescription drugs is a microcosm of our paradoxical views on drugs.

Our society is stuck in a rut, unable to understand new perspectives on drugs. Our leaders grew up in a time when scientists didn’t understand these new drugs and simply labeled them as dangerous. Drugs in America are seen as either black or white, and this is a silly way to view a complex issue. Every drug has its benefits and detriments, even heroin has medicinal use. We have to stop thinking with the minds of our fathers and be open to new scientific findings.

Pedro Acosta is a Medill freshman. He can be reached at [email protected]. If you would like to respond publicly to this column, send a Letter to the Editor to [email protected].