Documentaries

Reid Tulley

Media Lit. 3:15

3/16/2009

Legalize Drugs?

I recently viewed two documentaries which were located at onlinedocumentaries4u.com.  These two documentaries concerned the use and effects of narcotics such as marijuana, heroin, and pharmicudical drugs as well as discuss the possible outcomes of legalizing such drugs.  The two documentaries have conflicting veiws about the subject as well as show the evolution and transformation of the general beliefs society holds to be true over the past forty or fifty years. 

The first documentary titled “Narcotics-Pit of Despair” offers a perspective of how society viewed and responded to drug use during the 1960’s.  The film was released during 1967 and follows the downward spiraling life of a respectable and “normal” high school boy as he becomes increasingly involved with the wrong crowd of drug users where he eventually becomes a heroin addict.  This film’s intention is to scare or intimidate the audience about the evil world of drug use.  They complete this task by labeling a young man a drug dealer whose only objective is transform unknowing and innocent youngsters into drug addicts.  The film ends with the young man being released from rehab and returning back to his life of drug addiction with an ominous ending title stating that “there is no ending” to the story of an addict’s life of drug abuse. 

The second documentary concerns the strengths and weakness’s in legalizing most drugs, excluding heroin and cocaine, for legal recreational use if acquired from a licensed distributor.  This film follows the life and trials of an undercover police officer who becomes addicted to illegal drugs but vows to destroy private dealers who produce dangerous and illegal drugs after he cleans up from his own addiction.  During the events of the story the positive and negative effects of the legalization of drugs are discussed by a panel of analysts who have opposing views and beliefs concerning the subject.  This gives the viewer an unbiassed interpretation of the subject by providing them with a variety of opinions from a number of people.  The most interesting thing about these two documentaries is the transformation of the publics beliefs and acceptance concerning drug use.  The first film, “Narcotics- Pit of Despair”, exemplifies the general publics perception of drug consumption during the 1960’s which is a uneducated, stern, and stubborn belief that drugs are pure evil and lead to nothing but trouble.  This film was produced to intimidate and scare young adults of the dangers of drug use.  While the second film, “If Drugs Were Legalized”, offers a variety of very knowledgeable and credible opinions which either support or oppose the legalization of narcotics and offer possible outcomes of the situation.  The actual plot of the film concerns the negative as well as the positive outcomes of the legalization of certain narcotics.  In this documentary pharmicudical drugs produced for recreational purposes are intended to deplete illegal drug trade and provide a safer more controlled way for people to engage in drug use.  The drugs are sold by a licensed distributor and the substances are produced, tested, and invented by a “respectable” medical research company.  Eventually revenue becomes the main focus of pharmicudical companies, due to the consumeristic society we now live in, instead of the desire to help people who are sick.  

After viewing these films and observing the negative and positive effects of legalizing narcotics i have reached the personal conclusion that the legalization of drugs would ultimately have a negative effect on society.  While legalizing drugs would almost destroy the illegal trade, production, and consumption of most drugs it will never eliminate the illegal actions of drug addicts nor will it eliminate the negative effects of the drugs.  Such an act of legalization would cause drugs to be more accessible and detrimental to the general public.  This would create more drug users while increasing the amount of injuries people obtain from drug use.