The US government knows that its war on drugs has failed

The US government has put rules into place and found workable solutions to deal with the drugs and lethal substances entering the nation. The ‘Great American War on Drugs’ has been the focus of four successive administrations, including the Bush administration and since 1981, the federal funding for drug control has increased by almost five times, while the majority of drug-related offenses now carry longer prison terms, yet America faces many challenges, is the administration winning or losing this battle?

Despite impressive searches and seizures, numerous arrests, and drug charges, illicit drug traffickers still manage to get through with drugs, endangering the lives of innocent people. Urban communities are being destroyed, the appeal of illegal drugs persists, and prisons are overcrowded with inmates.

Does the US government see any progress after decades of such attempts, characterized by a rise in rigidity in all facets of problem-solving?

Unfortunately, the answer is clear cut; in my opinion, it is already evident that the American administration has failed, suffered a complete defeat, and more importantly, has brought about much more issues. How can drugs get to the jails if inmates who are doing time in prison for numerous drug offenses are still using narcotics?

The war on drugs has failed as it did under Presidents Richard Nixon, and Ronald Reagan. Shortage of resources, a lack of prison capacity, political resistance to arresting middle-class drug users, and the inherent inability to shield obedient adults from the prospect of extremely profitable interaction with
even a tiny amount of illegal narcotics are some issues it encounters.

Compared to the early 1980s, most popular drugs, such as cocaine and heroin, are considerably more freely accessible now, and many of the major US cities have drug problems. Tens of thousands of people die from drug overdoses each year, making drugs one of the major crises the US is now facing. The Centers for Disease Control estimates that 68,300 persons died from drug overdoses in the year that ended in September 2019.

It is not because of the lack of effort the war on drugs is doomed, but rather because the prohibition policy, when combined with stringent legislative restrictions, is unsuccessful. No matter how much money and effort is spent on addressing the drug problem, the measures that have been put in place to
combat it are ineffective and will remain ineffective.

As you can see, finding a solution for problems that spiral out of control is very difficult. For example, because of how out of control the gun violence scenario has become, the US government is having a tough time addressing it, I compare this issue to the war on drugs.

According to preliminary data from the National Center for Health Statistics of the Centers for Disease Control, there were 78,056 drug overdose deaths in the United States during the 12 months ending in April 2021, up 28.5% from the estimated 100,306 deaths during the same period the previous year.

According to the latest figures, there were an estimated 75,673 opioid overdose deaths in the 12 months ending in April 2021, up from 56,064 the year before.

The Americans themselves claim that drug addiction is rampant throughout their nation. You may observe the terrible effects of drug use on human lives on many American streets, including those in Philadelphia. This provides a contrasting tale about how the US government wants the rest of the world to think that they have answers to all of the world's problems.

The government has its weaknesses as well; in my opinion, they both failed in the war on drugs and in the effort to reduce gun violence in the nation.