Legalization of Alcohol in United States Essay Example
Legalization of Alcohol in United States Essay Example

Legalization of Alcohol in United States Essay Example

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  • Pages: 5 (1292 words)
  • Published: December 21, 2021
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Use of alcohol by persons has been in existence for so many years since man was created. Forms of alcohol vary from wines, beer, whiskeys and more other forms. However the consumption of alcohol related substances has been a rational choice by individuals over time. Though the use of alcohol has been legalized in several nations, there are laws that govern its consumption (Stall, 1589-1601). Production of alcohol is basically on commercial purposes as governments generate a lot of revenues from its taxation. Theories of consumption according to economics have added advantage in generating revenue from the consumption of alcohol. This is because its consumption is habitual and people are likely to buy the products even at very high costs. This paper reviews the ideas people hold in the U S concerning use of alcohol and

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whether it should be banned or let to continue. This is based on the advantages in comparison to the harmful effects it poses.

The fact that alcohol has been consumed for centuries makes it very hard to ban its consumption. Too, consumption of alcohol is not an action against the law. This means that this is one of the citizens’ freedoms that governments have given its people. However, many nations have regulated the consumption of alcohol for setting an age limit to those allowed to take alcohol (Slutske, 123). If an individual has attained the legal age where the government allows them to take alcohol then they can consume the product, then they make informed decisions on whether or not to consume the substance.

Many people have argued that alcohol should indeed be banned. Many of this people have lost thei

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dear ones. Consuming alcohol changes a person’s self and makes them something that is quite different from the personality they have (Gil, et.al 321). Consumption of alcohol has resulted into many deaths in the world. Those who have lost, friends’ family members and spouses can live to tell a story. Acts that follow drunken behavior has resulted to a number of deaths across the world. On a scientific point of view, alcohol mutes mental process. This is what leads to many accidents happening on the roads as a result of drunk driving.

Alcohol should not be banned by the fact of mistakes that come with its consumption. This is because, though some people commit mistakes after consuming alcohol then it is not the alcohol that commits the mistake. This can be supported by the fact that some people take the substance responsibly. They do not violate any norms or break the law whatsoever after consuming alcohol. There are a group of people who take alcohol responsibly whereas others simply abuse it as a drug. Abusing the substance leads them to committing mistakes and even crimes (Petry et.al 67). Based on this idea, it would mean banning the substance was punishing those who take the substance responsibly for something they have not done.

The fact that alcohol impairs judgments is a strong evidence on why consumption of alcohol should be banned. This readily moves people to commit or undertake actions that do not follow the right procedure or have informed decisions. From different religious teaching, consumption of such substances as alcohol is linked to the satanic connections. Religious beliefs condemn this acts as been temptations from the evil

(Whitlock, 146). For this reason, alcoholic substances should be banned. Many people in the U S agree to this statements and are for the idea that alcohol and its related substances should be banned and condemned.

Other people in the United States have argued that indeed there is no reason for ban of alcoholic products. The act of taking alcohol by itself was fun. Provided that a person proved to be responsible then there was no harm of taking the substance. Too, if the substance is taken occasionally and not continuous involvement of a person in the habit then it meant no harm. People with this idea argue that every other person has limits they can keep but while consuming the substance. What can be attributed to be wrong conduct is the act on living on the drug and let’s say becoming a slave of the same. There is no harm taking alcohol provided people keep their limits and hence no reason to ban the substance in U S.

On a different point of view, drunk behavior does not simply mean harming the person who makes a decision to use it. Rather, alcohol effects harm even those around us. For this reason alcohol should be banned completely. The harm it poses to other people who have not made a decision to involve themselves in the act is quite unjust. Taking an example with drunk driving, not only the drunk driver has a risk of losing their life but as well they end up taking other innocent lives. Such incidences have been on the increase in U S where drunken drivers take lives of innocent people. For this

reason, alcohol consumption should be condemned and consumption of its related substances banned completely from the states.

Analysis of alcoholic substances varies and their uses also vary with individual. In the United States for example, there are thousands of people who use alcohol for cooking purposes on daily basis and even for religious reasons (Slutske, 88). Doing away with alcohol and its related components has well is being unjust to those who use it responsibly or for the rightful purposes. It is important that the U S embarked on programs to educate people about the risks of consuming alcohol based substances than imposing a ban act on them. Ban of alcohol related activity is prone to result in organized crime.

On a scientific view, alcohol brings harm to the brain cells of an individual. It can also lead to other health effects. Some health problems associated with alcohol taking are liver diseases and deterioration of brain cells (Whitlock et.al 557-568). Indeed consumption of alcohol, its production and its business should be banned completely. Many deaths too arise as a cause of alcohol consumption. There is a likelihood that when people became drunk they turned out violent. From the violent behavior, deaths arise and a lot of property is destroyed. No one is likely to behave themselves under the effect of drugs and this means that especially with alcohol people would tent to behave foolishly.

Weighing out both sides of the argument, there are more risks associated to alcohol use. This risks are mostly focused on the lives of persons both those who make decisions to use the substance and even to others. There is also great risk to

property following alcohol taking. When looking at the benefit side, it does not prove as important as to why alcohol use should be authorized but rather it should be banned if not properly controlled.

Work cited

  • Gil, Andres G., Eric F. Wagner, and William A. Vega. "Acculturation, familism, and alcohol use among Latino adolescent males: Longitudinal relations." Journal of Community Psychology 28.4 (2000): 443-458.
  • Petry, Nancy M., Frederick S. Stinson, and Bridget F. Grant. "Comorbidity of DSM-IV Pathological Gambling and Other Psychiatric Disorders: Results From the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions.CME." The Journal of clinical psychiatry 66.5 (2005): 1-478.
  • Slutske, Wendy S. "Alcohol use disorders among US college students and their non–college- attending peers." Archives of general psychiatry 62.3 (2005): 321-327.
  • Stall, Ron, et al. "Alcohol use, drug use and alcohol?related problems among men who have sex with men: The Urban Men's Health Study." Addiction 96.11 (2001): 1589-1601.
  • Whitlock, Evelyn P., et al. "Behavioral counseling interventions in primary care to reduce risky/harmful alcohol use by adults: a summary of the evidence for the US Preventive Services Task Force." Annals of internal medicine 140.7 (2004): 557-568.
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