drug use

Go to the World Press Review online (www.worldpress.org) and pick a controversial news topic discussed by several newspapers. Identify characteristics of those newspapers (such as political leaning, region) that might explain the different points of view expressed on the topic.

– Respond to the peers separately.

Peers# 1: The topic I decided to discuss today is drug use. The first few articles I found had political viewpoints, seeming to come from a more conservative point of view. In fact, the first article I found separated drug use by political choice, with a higher percentage of drug use in Democratic states versus Republican. The war on drugs is a dire situation, and something needs to change. I did, however, find more liberal writings the deeper I went into the site. One article I found interesting was the struggle Russian immigrants have faced to assimilate in America, so they have turned to heroin to cope with the world around them. This article was written by someone in New York, where both the homeless population and the immigrant population are high. They have probably seen the struggles faced by those around them and want to make the world aware. Addiction is a huge problem in the United States, and COVID really exacerbated the problem. More people should be writing about the struggles of addiction and what it is doing to seemingly normal families around the country.

Peers # 2: A topic I found interesting was the “Marijuana Industry’s Dirty Little Secret”, written by Ian Jenkins. This article explains how the usage of marijuana is causing high levels of carbon dioxide pollution. I personally believe this article is identifying characteristics of political leaning and region since it talks heavily on how liberal voting states such as Colorado and California make high tax profit from legalizing/decriminalizing marijuana usage. It also entails a lot about Canada and how the usage of energy is also causing environmental concerns. The reason I believe this article characterizes political leaning is since it speaks only of these states but it also talks about how ever since California decriminalized marijuana that other state governors have been trying to follow along. The article also gives solutions on how these states and country can help better serve the environment. For example, lowering the watts per square foot when growing the plant.