Utilitarianism and Drugs

A key issue that is seen in media today is the legalization of certain drugs. There is a way to approach the issue, from a moral standpoint, on the use of drugs and whether or not it should be legalized. To solve this moral dilemma, a person can simply use and apply the concepts of utilitarianism. When deciding on whether or not something is considered to be a moral problem, it’s extremely important to differentiate the assumptions that people have made to support their claims. The situation that is being examined is utilitarianism and how it would view the problem of drugs. First when looking at this issue, a person must use what utilitarianism’s use to identify the problems with drug use, and then there must be a solution to resolve the moral issue. The approach to solving this moral issue from a basis of utilitarianism is very simple. The good is that which maximizes utility for the most amount of people on average; this concept is the average utility. The opposite would be that which hinders or leads to what is known as the less average utility and then it is seen as being morally bad; even if it is unintentionally viewed in that light. With all of this being said, a person must then define the word utility to better understand these concepts. The use of the simpler form of the definition of the word utility is most appropriate for this case. According to Jeremy Bentham, it can simply be defined as, “happiness as a necessary component for well being, and it follows that the rules dictating those behaviors or policies that increase the maximum utility will be on par with the increase of happiness as it relates to well-being on a morally relevant basis.” Since defining what utility truly is, it is necessary to look further into the problem at hand, which is the moral issue of drug use. Going further it is very important to distinguish and clarify utility from hedonism. Hedonists would say overall that the pleasure a person obtains from taking something