Assess Functionalist Approaches to the Study of Crime and Deviance Functionalists such as Emile Durkheim, Robert Merton and Albert Cohen all attempt to explain the nature and extent of crime in today’s society. In essence, Functionalists argue that society is based on value consensus and social solidarity which is sustained via socialisation and social control mechanisms within society. Emile Durkheim states that whilst crime is obviously a social negative with the ultimate power to destabilise society, he stands by the claim that crime is inevitable, universal, and integral to a healthy society and even having positive benefits. He claims that crime occurs in society due to two fundamental reasons; firstly, not everyone is effectively socialised to the same norms and values which leads to people being prone to deviation and secondly, due to the diverse lifestyle and subcultures in contemporary society, subcultures act out different norms and values and what members of that subculture regard as normal, mainstream culture may deem it as deviancy. The Functionalist approach to the study of crime states that crime has two positive functions for society.
As well as this, an end to prohibition would eliminate the costs required to enforce it – an extra expenditure the government could not afford at this time. Economically, an end to prohibition would help strengthen the unstable situation in America: ending unproductive government spending as well as bringing new money into the system. Repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment would also meet social demands brought about by the crisis. Those facing hard times wanted to drink, and wanted an end to the law to allow them to do so more easily; thus the Great Depression added to the support for social groups already campaigning for its repeal. Both the economic and social effects of the Depression make it an important reason for the repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment, a concept supported by historian Joseph Gusfeld.
Causal analysis and the detail it provides produce strong historical relationship between dislocation and addiction, especially in England in the 1500s. The authors emphasize drug addiction as the dependent variable, arising from the dislocation in the society itself. People tend to establish substitute lifestyles, often referring to drug use to compensate for their inability to participate in the community. Alexander and Shaler pinpoint the beginning of dislocation in England and Canada, when those who rebelled against the law would be “confine[d] in ‘houses of correction'" (230) and would face punishment; natives were not addicts until “assimilation subjected them to extreme dislocation” (231). Alexander and Shaler conclude addiction is a “political and spiritual problem” (231) that needs to be fixed with integration.
The money that our government is spending on this fight against marijuana could be saved and instead of losing money the government could make money by taxing legal marijuana. A quote by an important president in our history, Abraham Lincoln, reflects my view on the prohibition of marijuana: “A prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded… Prohibition goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control a man’s appetite by legislation, and makes a crime out of things that are not crimes.” Both recreational and medical marijuana should be legalized.
A dealer or street worker who knows where the drugs are coming from can really help crack down on illegal drug flow and help reduce the trafficking of drugs in America. Reducing the supply of drugs should be the main focus in order to reducing the trafficking. If a person can’t supply drugs, how can they transport drugs into America where they are been sold, used, stepped on, and grown even
In the 1970’s, cannabis was discovered to relieve the side effects of cancer treatments. The side effects of chemotherapy caused an array of notable side effects such as nausea, vomiting, insomnia, and chronic pain. Marijuana, when used for medicinal purposes is can offer relief from these debilitating side effects of cancer treatment. Legalizing Marijuana in America is something that has been on the table for many years. By legalizing Marijuana, we can reduce the cost of pharmaceutical development for medicines used to reduce the side effects of cancer treatments.
A critical review of the Breaking the Cycle: Abstract: In 2010 the green paper; Breaking the cycle: Effective Punishment, Rehabilitation and Sentencing of Offenders was issued, with the government response being released in 2011. This review looks to show how neo-liberalism and changes in penal power and states has had a hand in influencing the policies suggested and how it subsequently led to it not going through. This review also looks to explore how public opinions have changed to iconize the victims of crime and the role of crime in the media has also helped to shape the policies suggested and later refused, such as the heavily mentioned ideas of restorative justice as opposed to harsher punishments. Key words; neo-liberalism, punishment, rehabilitation, offenders, punitiveness, government policy, restorative justice Introduction: The themes of criminal and social justice have long since been linked with government policy and due to this policies are constantly being changed. Between the mid 1950s and the 1970s the number of prisoner in England and Wales had doubled, then between the 1970s and the 1990s the number had increased by an additional 20000.
These factors include campaigning groups such as the Anti-Saloon league and the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, post-war tension, industries and religious groups. When the First World War broke out in 18914, 19 states had already passed prohibition legislation. The government during this period had passed into a stage of “progressivism”, they now believed that it was their responsibility to resolve social problems. This progressive feeling led them to control morality in the cities and to improve society. In their eyes introducing prohibition could decrease the levels of prostitution, gambling and crime in the cities .The war provided prohibitionists with more ammunition to support their cause.
Outline Subject: Marijuana Topic: Reforming marijuana laws. Purpose: To convince the reader that marijuana laws need to be reformed. Thesis: I believe that current marijuana policy is way to extreme for such a harmless drug. I. Jail/prison time is too severe. II.
The many policies that have been put to use by the United States government seem to be having a positive effect in the decline of illegal drug use throughout the nation. These positive results in the decline of illegal drug use have been potentially threatened by the “Harm Reduction Movement.” Those involved