DRUG LEGALIZATION DEBATE HEATS UP

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many medicines contained
current illicit drugs such as heroine, cannabis and cocaine.

The history of drugs was really just trying to combat one addiction
after another.

People first saw the effects of opiates which come from opium in
poppy plants," said Steve Lux, health educator for health enhancement
services. "They would make a black gummy substance called resin and smoke it."

Lux said a new drug was then created to combat opium addiction.

Then before you knew it, they were addicted, so then they tried to
find a cure for the addiction, and then they discovered morphine,"
Lux said. "Morphine cured the opium addiction but then people became
addicted to that, so then heroin was discovered to combat the
morphine addiction. Then people became addicted to heroin so
methadone, which is like a synthetic heroin, was created to treat
heroin addiction. They basically were just switching one addiction
for another."

What was it then that changed people's opinions on drugs?

What was happening was the people who were getting into trouble were
on the drugs so the law enforcement and health people got together
and at first attempted to scare people to get them to stop using," Lux said.

With debates about legalizing medicinal marijuana, the debates about
why certain drugs such as Vicodin, hydrocodone and OxyContin are
legal are being brought into question.

These are more immediately addicting drugs," said Sharon Sytsma,
associate professor of philosophy. "Heroin isn't used for pain, it is
a mind-altering drug, whereas with hydrocodone and Vicodin, those are
used for pain. Everyone thinks that relieving pain is morally permissible."

Some countries have illicit drugs legalized for medicinal purposes.

In England they have heroin to give addicts to ween them off of their
addiction with it," Lux said. "The benefit to this is that the heroin
is quality-controlled, and the heroin will not contain impurities, as
well the addicts will not be sharing needles so there will be no
transmission of HIV."

With our country delving into trillions of dollars in debt, some say
legalizing cannabis would help save the states a lot of money,
because a lot of people are being incarcerated due to possession of
the substance. In rebuttal, others claim if no one were to do it in
the first place, we would not have this problem.

Our first message has always been about don't use drugs, but you have
to have a message for those who don't listen to your first message,"
Lux said. "Every person deserves a health message whether it is a
person or an addict. We need to also focus on reducing harm and less
on about how we can punish people."

In the midst of all this controversy, people will still be getting
prescribed Vicodin and hydrocodone, which are dangerous and addicting also.

I have such a negative view toward heroin and all that," said
freshman English major Alana Stickels. "Yet I also don't think they
should give out Vicodin, hydrocodone and OxyContin so frequently."

Stickels said she thinks these drugs are too strong and doctors
shouldn't be so liberal with their prescriptions.

That strength of drugs I don't think is necessary," Stickels said.
"To prescribe such a strong drug for something as little as wisdom
teeth to me is ridiculous. We need to put higher restrictions on
these medicines if things like heroin and cocaine are going to be illegal."