According to sociologists, self-destructive conduct is a type of deviant behavior and in many countries such behaviors are banned and defined as crimes. 3.5 million people every year in America are on parole or probation for such conduct (McCaghy, 318). These behaviors are treated as consensual or 'victimless' crimes because the person who participates in such misconduct does not apparently violate somebody else's rights. However, this is not to say that there is no victim and thus there is no risk for such self-destructive conduct to become a potential danger for society. Although banning 'free' people's actions which are not physically harmful for other people is still controversial, society has a responsibility to prohibit behavior that the majority of its citizens consider immoral, even if this behavior might be categorized as 'victimless'. In other words, socially immoral activities should be prevented because such behaviors contain potentially bad consequences for society.
Crime is usually thought of as affecting a certain victim, but since for consensual crimes such as drug use there is not a specific victim, they are seen as 'free choices' by some people. However, they should not be considered as a simple choice of a free man in a free society.…
