Are+drugs+not+a+crime?

Queensland University of Technology Alexander Garside n8594619
 * The drugs don’t work, they just make it worse... **
 * Cultural ****Artifact**



The advertisement published by the Montana Meth Project displays the extreme alteration of reality and perception whilst under the influence of drugs; in particular Methamphetamines. The advertisement captures the severity of Methamphetamines and better educates the public of the danger of illicit drugs. Through raising awareness and developing effective outreach and prevention methods, the Montana Meth Project hopes to make great strides in the war on drugs prevent drug related crime (MethProject, 2013). Substance abuse in Australia is an epidemic. In Australia alone there are almost 80,000 drug related crimes reported each year (Figure 2) and over two thirds of all prison entrants report positive to using drugs in the previous 12 months leading up to their incarceration (Australian Institute of Criminology, 2011). As such there is a strong need for immediate response to combat illicit drugs and addictive behaviours. The implementation of robust legislation regarding the incarceration and fining of drug related crimes, demonstrates the seriousness to which the government addresses the war on drugs. Whilst incarceration is necessary to the upholding of the law, there is also a need to address the underlying issues if the government seeks to reduce the number of drug related crimes (Spohn & Holleran, 2002). 
 * Public Health Issue **

Figure 2: Annual Drug Offences 1996-2007 (Australian Institute of Criminology, 2011) According to the Australian Drug Foundation (2011), approximately 43.2% of the population have engaged in substance abuse at some point in their lifetime. Further, 17% of Men and 12.3% of Women have used illicit drugs or medication for non-medicinal purposes in the 12 months prior to 2011. Of these users, 2.1% used amphetamines, 7.7% used cannabis, 2.1% used cocaine, and 3% used ecstasy (Australian Drug Foundation, 2011). It is not uncommon for people to poly drug-use, mixing the drugs with highly caffeinated drinks such as energy drinks, or with alcohol or cannabis, which may lead to a variety of dangerous and unpredictable side effects (Australian Drug Strategy, 2011). As such, it is important to educate the public of the dangers of substance abuse and further, supply multiple venues to help aid in the proper practice and harm minimization of drug use. It is evident that there is an urgent need for intervention to break down the cycles of addiction and reduce substance abuse in Australia, with 8.4% of male and 4.8% of female deaths in Australia in 2009 being drug related (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2012). As such, the Australian Government has implemented the National Drug Strategy 2010-2015 (2011); identifying demand, supply and harm reduction as the three key areas to be addressed to best fight the war on drugs. Seeing great strides in the past on the war on drugs, illicit drug consumption in Australia has fallen from 22% to 13.4% and cannabis consumption has fallen from 17.9% - 9.1% from 1998-2007 it is the government’s intention to continuously evaluate and develop better strategies to best aid addicted users. It is important for us as a nation, when addressing the nature of addiction, to recognize that each case is unique. This may be the type of drug causing the dependency, the socio-economic status or even their psychosexual development of the individual. However, there a multiple therapies that have been identified as effective and can be implemented upon discerning the most effective treatment for each case as implemented by the Australian National Drug Strategy (2011). These therapies include CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy), which has been found to be most effective with Marijuana users (Magill, 2009), Pharmacological therapies with drug substitute to help people with cocaine, heroin and opioid addictions (van den Brink & van Ree, 2003) and Methadone detoxification for drug dependences such as opioids (O’Connor, 2005). Australia is serious about drug related laws and the consequences for breaching such legislation, the government does care about their people and works hard to provide a safe and anonymous environment to best protect and rehabilitate addicts. One of the National Drug Strategy’s (2011) plans, is to equip communities and families with the education they need to help deal with loved ones affected by the addiction or the addict themselves. This is through media such as the internet, community and school-based education and awareness and online advertising and resources. The Australian government, in collaboration with the community, provides many free online and over the phone hotlines to help people with anonymous counselling and resources. Further, the government supplies free sharp disposal and syringes to help reduce the harm inflicted by such practices and reduce the transmission of HIV and Hepatitis C (Queensland Health, 2011). It has been recognized in the National Drug Strategy (2011) that a large contributing factor to the use of illicit drugs is socio-economic status; such as homelessness, family breakdown and/or unemployment. For example, 23.3% of the unemployed and 36% of the homeless population have been found to use illicit drugs on a regular basis compared to the statistical average of 13.4% (National Drug Strategy, 2011). This suggests that whilst the original choice to use drugs is left to an individual’s discretion, the exposure, education and social pressures involved suggest that social structures play an equivalent role. As such, the best solution to the issue of drug related crimes, is to address the contextual factors in their drug use whilst simultaneously addressing the addiction itself. For example, developing work rehabilitation centres, equipping economically struggling individuals with the skills and knowledge they need to begin providing for themselves whilst helping deal with roots of the problem; similar to that of missions such as JC Epidemic aiding young women in the sex trafficking trade in Cambodia. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">The current penalty for possession of drugs is dependent upon the classification of the drug, however it is normally around $5000 and/or 2 years in jail, and the penalty for giving out drugs is $250,000 and/or 10 years in jail (Australian Federal Police, 2013). Evidence suggests that incarceration and probation have little effect on the recidivism of drug offenders (Green & Winik, 2010), drug abuse is criminal and thus imprisonment is the administration of justice for violation of the law. However, considering the positive punishment’s inability to effectively condition the drug offenders to behave otherwise, it is perhaps best if the imprisonment were coupled with the drug therapies to help best deal with the root of the issue whilst remaining true to the law. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Evidence suggests that social structure can be a strong contributing factor towards an individual’s chance of exposure to drug use.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Literature Review **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Cultural and Social Analysis **


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Refecltions **

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**<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">References ** <span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Magill, M (2009). "Cognitive-behavioral treatment with adult alcohol and illicit drug users: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials". <span class="citationsource" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">//Journal of studies on alcohol and drugs// <span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">, 70 (4), p. 516. <span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Australian Drug Foundation, 2011. Drug Info, Quick Statistics. Retrieved from <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">[|http://www.druginfo.adf.org.au/topics/quick-statistics#cannabis] <span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2012. Drug induced deaths. Retrieved from <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">[] <span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Australian Federal Police Department, 2013. Drugs and the Law. Retrieved from <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">[] <span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">National Drug Strategy, 2011. Retrieved from <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">[] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">O’Connor, P. G. (2005). Methods of detoxification and their role in treating patients with opioid dependence. //JAMA, 294//(8), 961-963. doi: 10.1001/jama.294.8.961 <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Spohn, C., & Holleran, D. (2002). THE EFFECT OF IMPRISONMENT ON RECIDIVISM RATES OF FELONY OFFENDERS: A FOCUS ON DRUG OFFENDERS*. //Criminology, 40//(2), 329-358. doi: 10.1111/j.1745-9125.2002.tb00959.x <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">van den Brink, W., & van Ree, J. M. (2003). Pharmacological treatments for heroin and cocaine addiction. //European Neuropsychopharmacology, 13//(6), 476-487. doi: [] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Green, D. P., & Winik, D. (2010). USING RANDOM JUDGE ASSIGNMENTS TO ESTIMATE THE EFFECTS OF INCARCERATION AND PROBATION ON RECIDIVISM AMONG DRUG OFFENDERS*. //Criminology, 48//(2), 357-387. doi: 10.1111/j.1745-9125.2010.00189.x <span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Australian Institute of Criminology, 2011. Drug offences. Retrieved from <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">[]

<span style="color: windowtext; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Montana Meth Project <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">, 2013. Retrieved from []