Laws regulating drug use vary widely from country to country. In Malaysia, for example, substance abuse is a violation of religious law and drug trafficking is automatically punished by death. In Nepal, by contrast, the government not only tolerates the use of psychoactive substances but collects taxes on the drug trade. Policies concerning drug abuse in the United States lie somewhere between these two extremes and are constantly changing as evidence concerning the dangers and consequences of drug use accumulates. Legalization: A Debate follows a format of a trial in its examination of the advantages and disadvantages of various drug laws. Beginning with an "opening statement," a factual presentation of the history, consequences, and medical use of drugs, the volume concludes with cases presenting arguments both for and against legalization. The jury in the case is the reader, who must weigh the evidence on both sides in deciding whether certain drugs that are currently illicit should in fact be legal.