Preview

Speech, Heroin

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
589 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Speech, Heroin
I’d assume that you’re all familiar with the government’s war on drugs. A failing operation since it began in the 1970s. In today’s society and within my own generation, illegal drug use has become even more popular among minors, among these drugs is heroin. For those of who you don’t know, heroin is an opiate drug synthesized from morphine. It is usually in the form of a brown or white powder and also as a sticky black substance known as black tar heroin.
With the way that we are currently trying to control the drug market right now, we can’t stop the growing popularity of heroin. Recently a well-known actor, Phillip Seymour Hoffman died of a suspected overdose of heroin, which brought into sharp relief once again the growing problem that heroin is becoming.
According to the substance abuse and mental health administration, the number of heroin users has nearly doubled from 370,000 to over 660,000 in 2012, and that number is still growing today. The number of deaths cause by heroin overdoses has increased by 45% from 2006 to 2010. So what is the reason behind this spike in the number of heroin users? Heroin used to be a street drug. The favored drug for gangs and mainly an urban issue, but the geography of the drug users has expanded into suburban and rural areas. The main reasons behind the spreading popularity is because of the increase in heroin imports from Latin American drug cartels, creating a greater and cheaper supply of the drug, and a larger market for opioids driven by prescription painkillers. So far the governments war on drugs has made very little progress in stopping drugs from getting into the U.S., with over 51,000,000,00 dollars being spent annually to fund the war on drugs, it’s time for us to consider a new approach.
In some areas around the world drug laws are liberal and even have been removed, or they aren’t being enforced. Once such country is Portugal. In 2001 Portugal decriminalized all drug possession and removed

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Summary Of Chasing Herion

    • 382 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Heroin is considered one of the most addictive drugs. Up to 60% of addicts relapse in the first year after treatment. In other words treatment is not a magical bullet it is a continuous process that can either help or harm a victim. Some counselors are offering incentives to those of their patients to steer them towards treatment as a Robert DuPont M.D. the National director on Drug…

    • 382 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    SOC305 Week 2 Assignment

    • 1274 Words
    • 4 Pages

    What is the problem? Besides health problems, heroin causes many problems in society; families can be broken, relationships heroin could cause domestic violence, child abuse, and risk of sexually transmitted diseases. According to studies, “show that surprisingly, poor people spend a greater percentage of money on acquiring drugs than middle-class and upper-class people.” (Rehabs, 2015)…

    • 1274 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Critical Review of How to Win a War on Drugs Drug abuse, especially in the United States, is a huge issue that affects many people and their families. In the article How to Win a War on Drugs, the author Nicholas Kristof explores the idea of how the United States should adopt the decriminalization of all drugs, like Portugal. Currently in the US having possession of, or distribution of illegal drugs is considered a crime under federal laws which can result in criminal prosecution. However, in Portugal possession of all drugs under a ten day supply is decriminalized, meaning there are no legal repercussions for possession. Kristof goes on to say Portugal “unleashed a major public health campaign to tackle addiction”.…

    • 817 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Drug specialists and scientists have developed an assortment of methodologies for fighting ever-increasing drug consumption and law enforcement have made many attempts at gaining control of the drug trade. In order to narrow down the extent of drug use and abuse, focus will be placed on one particular drug – heroin.…

    • 1632 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    What has been a significant factor is the crime rate increase in order for those addicted to stay “well.” Communities faced with how to treat the opiate addicted; beyond the obvious by placing them in jail or prison. The behavior of crime may be rehabilitated, but not the addiction itself, which for most was the only driving factor. It’s a vicious cycle, and for most the frustration is bigger than their habits. Some countries, such as the United Kingdom do have physicians who will prescribe heroin (although rare) for the addict unable to reap the benefits of methadone maintenance, or the terminally ill suffering extreme pain. Specialized “injecting centers” are available to addicts trying to dodge the street heroin complexity, in countries such as Switzerland, Germany, Holland, Australia and even Canada. There are still very strict laws enforced with the purchasing or smuggling of heroin in these countries, thus rigid program regulations must be followed. Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) remains the preferred form of treating opiate addiction, and “has demonstrated strong efficacy in the outpatient treatment of opiate dependence (Hettema et al,…

    • 1743 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    History of Heroin

    • 1306 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Heroin is named after the German word for hero, heroisch. Heroin is an illegal, highly addictive drug. It is both the most abused and the most rapidly acting of the opiates. Heroin is processed from morphine, a naturally occurring substance extracted from the seed pod of certain varieties of poppy plants. It is typically sold as a white or brownish powder or as the black sticky substance known on the streets as black tar heroin. Although purer heroin is becoming more common, most street heroin is cut with other drugs or with substances such as sugar, starch, powdered milk, or quinine. Street heroin can also be cut with strychnine or other poisons. Because heroin abusers do not know the actual strength of the drug or its true contents, they are at risk of overdose or death. Heroin also poses special problems because of the transmission of HIV and other diseases that can occur from sharing needles or other injection equipment.…

    • 1306 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Pros And Cons Of Cdsapca

    • 1822 Words
    • 8 Pages

    This crisis needs addressing because it is creating an environment in the U.S. where many citizens are becoming more dependent on drugs. In 1971, President Nixon declared a war on drugs. This was another attempt at eliminating the number of individuals manufacturing, distributing, and using drugs illegally by enforcing harsher penalties if an individual was caught in these actions. With the Opioid usage being manufactured by pharmaceutical companies and the Opioid Crisis continuing to spread among the U.S., it can be assumed that drug dealers are no longer the only individuals responsible for there being a drug problem. It is safe to say pharmaceutical companies are now a part of the drug problem in the U.S. and is responsible for a great portion of individuals who overdose or develop addiction-like behaviors.…

    • 1822 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Heroin addiction is a very serious problem in America and it will continue to get worse until the war on drugs is won. But until then, addicts need all the help and support they can get to stop using this drug. Addicts should be encouraged to seek help, not ridiculed and cast out. Detoxification is the first step in getting off heroin, methadone will control the cravings, and the 12-step program will help ensure the addict has the support they need to stay clean and sober. If society, as a whole, works together to eradicate this affliction and support those that suffer from it, this problem can and will be ended.…

    • 253 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Many young Americans were involved in the Vietnam War, being a major conflict of their time, and was at its peak in the late to mid-sixties. With over half a million American troops in Vietnam, many ventured into drug use to cope with the stresses of war. Drug abuse was on the rise due to the major paradigm shift in social norms, on the battle field, and the home front. Heroin use among servicemen was high, using heroin as a mental and physical crutch is an effective escape from the tension and stresses of war. Many of these men used for extended periods of time, far beyond what would be considered occasional use and well within range of addiction risk. With so much heroin being used, one might assume that we would…

    • 1483 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Research Paper On Heroin

    • 519 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Drug abuse is one of the most alarming epidemics, and it needs to be addressed properly to save the lives of those who continue the abuse everyday. Although there are many prevention treatment plans out there people continue to abuse drugs, and youths are dyeing everyday. This research paper will discuss the history of the beginning and present use of Heroin, and the factors on what has influenced them to take drugs vs. treatment. The findings will provide an inclination for continued drug abuse among people in our…

    • 519 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Naloxone Addiction

    • 1020 Words
    • 5 Pages

    "Today’s Heroin Epidemic." Www.cdc.gov. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 7 July 2015. Web. 21 Mar. 2017.…

    • 1020 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Opioid are derived from opium or synthetic drugs that have similar properties. These drugs possess the ability to reduce pain. Using opioids for extended periods of time causes the body to become adapted to them. As a result, the body becomes physically dependent on the drug (Paulozzi, 287). According to the Pennsylvania Medical Society, Americans consume 80% of the world’s opioid supply (“More White, Middle-aged Women Overdose on Opioids, Study Says.”). This number is should be shocking and should signal a red flag. Having such easy access to opioids in the United States explains why drug overdoses have increased so drastically. Opioids are not the only drugs that have caused an increase in drug overdose rates. Heroin overdose rates have almost…

    • 241 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Antidote Naloxone

    • 1100 Words
    • 5 Pages

    here has been an ever present threat within the United States that continues to grow at an alarming rate by the day; that threat is substance addiction. Nearly 38,000 deaths were linked to overdoses in 2009; that exceeds the total number of traffic violations for that year (“U.S Heroin Crisis”). Citizens and politicians continue to name it the number one “growing public health crisis” (“U.S Heroin Crisis”), but how do these users get addicted and what is the U.S doing to stop this so called “growing threat”? The U.S has recently deployed the overdose antidote Naloxone into the U.S, which has been a large area of debate between users and nonusers. This drug is a good way to get addicts on the road to recovery and a great way to train the average…

    • 1100 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A recent report issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration showed the rate of heroin overdose deaths skyrocketed 286 percent between 2002 and 2013. While pharmacological treatment exists for opioid use disorders, there are numerous barriers to access treatment, including the lack of physicians licensed to prescribe, providers who do not take insurance, waiting lists, and proximity to sites offering treatment.…

    • 1612 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Prescription Opiates

    • 945 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Drug prevention messages speaking to adolescents would be an effective learning curve. With carefully crafted attack advertisements on drugs, they appear to slow down. Attack advertisements were created in 2000-2008 attacking marijuana, the Partnership Tracking Study saw the number of users decreased from 20.6% to 16.5% (Twombly 2). Parents should take initiative to become more knowledgeable when their teenager receives opiates, looking for warning signs, warning their child of the risks, and proactively taking steps to helping their adolescent heal. Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) should include prescription opiates in their drug offensive. Many states have begun to implement prescription opiates into their DARE programs to educate children on the risks involved. DARE effectively cut marijuana use among adolescents down 45% once initially implemented (Education Journal 1). Prescription opiates are rarely talked about because they are, seen as only having positive repercussions. Rarely stressed to adults and adolescents are the threats opiates impose. However, becoming better educated on opiates, ranging from prescription to heroin, will allow people to make better…

    • 945 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays