By Brandon Abbs

Drugs are a heavy issue to tackle. They’ve played a major role in recent history.  Now many people are lobbying for legalizing drugs like marijuana. Consumers would find the drugs on the racks at a local drugstore, appealing to  adults  and young children with spare change in their pockets. The topic  is more relevant than ever. Marijuana has already been legalized in Colorado and Washington, and more states, including Illinois, are considering legalizing it. Benefactors of the legalization of marijuana argue that legitimately selling drugs will support the economy and drastically reduce crime rates as it does in other countries with legal recreational drugs. They make a strong argument, but I am of the opinion that dangerous mind-altering chemicals like that should be kept illegal.

“[Drugs are] in every community. I believe that drug use is a serious crime that does affect the community. I have found that drug use leads to thefts, property crime and even some violent crime,” said Police Liaison Officer Matt White.

Think: if marijuana were legalized, many more people would get fixed on it, it would begin to tear through their bodies and minds, and they would have the urge to seek stronger and more dangerous fixes of marijuana and worse drugs. That’s why I’ll never take the opportunity to take drugs (and opportunities abound, I’m sure), and I discourage anyone else from taking them. However, this editorial isn’t about me, so I decided to explore the hallowed halls of Batavia High.

Many upperclassmen at BHS seem to think quite highly of illegal drugs. I was inspired to write this particular column by a conversation I had with a friend who was a staunch supporter of currently illegal drugs being legalized, and of drug use in general (he did mention he’d never actually taken drugs). Seniors walk around shouting, “4-20, 4-20,” (which is actually the police code for juvenile offences; but they wouldn’t know that, would they?). I once heard some older guys in the men’s restroom talking jovially of how one of them got off with carrying “a small amount of weed.” How small was this amount in actuality? Who knows. This is all not to say that most students take drugs. Stats taken show that the majority of BHS students do not; though anything higher than 0 to 1-percent is still an issue in such a heavily populated school.

“I’ve had all negative experiences with students and drug use,” said Mr. Dietz, the Assistant Principal for Student Life. “I’ve seen a lot of students that fall into the traps of drugs. It ruins their life, they lose their family, they lose their friendships… not to mention the physical effects of drugs.”

I asked my friend Jack Tryzna what he thought about drugs, as he happened to be loitering around my locker, and he responded:

“I don’t really like the idea of drugs, especially in school… it’s similar to why people drink beer, they think it’s cool, but it’s not, it’s just bad for themselves.” He then resumed playing his biker game.

“…People are going to make their own choices, but when you educate them about it, they are less likely to fall into the trap,” Mr. Dietz said when I visited his office. “[I’ve seen] how much [drugs] deteriorated [students’] bodies, their life…you lose your ambition to do anything productive.¨

As for me, I prefer to keep my recreation drug-free and my happiness natural.