Marijuana Argumentative Essay

"Marijuana is the second most popular drug after alcohol in the country today. So many people smoke marijuana that the numbers alone seem to legitimize and condone its presence in people's lives. Yet, even in moderation marijuana is not 'safe.' Somehow this information had not filtered down to people who think they are smoking a fairly innocuous drug. Our society perpetuates the myths about pot being a fun, harmless, recreational drug. These myths feed into people's denial of marijuana's problems" (Baum 6). However, the abuse of marijuana is a problem. It is not only a personal problem, but also more importantly a social problem. Throughout history marijuana has been used to serve various purposes in many

For years there have been debates on weather or not marijuana should be legalized. Now the controversial issue we face is the legalization of medical marijuana. Currently several states such as California and most recently Michigan has legalized marijuana for medicinal purposes. Many people believe that this drug should be legalized for medical use, and others disagree. Either way you look at this situation people are going to continuing smoking marijuana if it’s legal or not. Keeping marijuana illegal is expensive and should be legalized for the citizens of Ohio who require it for its medicinal use.

In the United States, we have enacted numerous bans and restrictions against certain drugs and substances with the purpose of protecting the general public from their negative effects. On this list of illegal drugs are harmful and addictive substances such as cocaine, methamphetamines, and heroin. A substance called cannabis, also known as marijuana, is also on this list. As of now, it is illegal to buy, sell, possess, or use marijuana in any shape or form in the state of Louisiana. However, due to the advancement of technology and of human perspective and innovation, it has come to light that marijuana could actually be of benefit to our society through its medicinal uses in treating a range of conditions and diseases as well as its possible social benefits in helping individuals stray from heavier drugs by acting as a substitute. Now that the wheels of time are turning and that medical marijuana is becoming a budding industry, the question remains: should marijuana be legal all across the United States of America? With the benefits it could bring with its medical, social, and economic uses, marijuana could be a profitable asset to our society if it were to be legalized, and I believe that we should strive for that outcome.

“For me, the medical marijuana was a miracle drug, a life saver. I wish I had used it from the beginning because it was so helpful, and according to our current law, I should go to jail for it”, said Jeanette Bokland a nurse, dealing with cancer. Jeannette said she tried everything, then she got ahold of medical marijuana, and ate it because, “I do not want to smoke anything”. She is so happy she got ahold of medical marijuana, it took away my nausea, restlessness, anxiety said Jeanette Bokland. Our nation estimates 2,434,192 medical marijuana smokers; (Number of Legal) like Jeanette medical marijuana does help some patients dealing with cancer. It did not get her “high” it made her feel halfway normal. Jeanette was helped tremendously by

Natural supplements are widely used throughout the world and are recommended by holistic doctors for patients who do not want chemically made medication and alternate treatments. Although natural supplements are better for the human body, cannabis is a product that is not seen as positive example of natural supplements. Cannabis is a plant that has many strains and can be used to treat different medical issues. Even though most sport organization have cannabis on a list of banned performance enhancing drugs it should not be banned; because it does not truly give a competitive advantage to an athlete, it can be used for pain medication and long term health problems that may be caused from over usage of this drug should not be the concern of sport organizations, but a personal decision made by each athlete. Unfortunately, cannabis does have negative side effects such as a change in the state of mind, killing brain cells, and societies’ negative perspective on cannabis.

In out society drugs are considered to be addictive and lethal. People tend to abuse drugs regardless of their side effects. In many cases government agencies regulate their use. Also there are drugs that are illegal to use, produce and sale. One of those illegal drugs is marijuana. For thousands of years, marijuana has been used to treat a wide variety of sickness. It became illegal in 1937 under The Marijuana Stamp Tax Act. This act prohibits the use, sale and growing of marijuana. It was made illegal because no one understood why smoking marijuana made people feel the way they did and because appropriate researches had not been conducted about it. Though marijuana remains illegal

Along with the negative effects marijuana has on the lungs, it also has many negative effects on the brain. Smoking marijuana causes negative effects on attention span, memory, and learning; which can last for days and even weeks after the acute effects of marijuana wear off.(“Marijuana Abuse”). Many people believe that attention span, memory, and learning are not import when they smoke marijuana. Attention span, memory, and learning are all very important in everyday life, school, and work. “THC (tetrahydocannabinol) produces

The medical marijuana debate is an interesting one because there’s such a wide diversity of opinions and views that oppose each other. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency classifies marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug. They consider these drugs to have no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse and to be some of the most dangerous drugs, because they’re highly addictive and may cause severe psychological or physical dependence. Other Schedule 1 drugs include heroin, LSD, ecstasy and meth. Many who are against marijuana believe the drug is dangerous, harmful and feel it should remain illegal.

Since being officially outlawed in the 70s with Controlled Substances Act marijuana has been a completely illegal substance for anyone to have or consume(Burnett). However, that has not stopped anyone from using the plant. Growing up in a small conservative town it was pretty surprising how many people actually admitted to using the drug. The drug has been demonized for years by parents that believe that it will turn their kids into burnouts. However, that has not necessarily been the case. Like other substances any form of abuse can ruin a person’s life. Let’s take for instance a legal substance that suffered the same fate as marijuana at one point in time. Alcohol has long been the

There are many long-term effects effects of the use of marijuana-like substances. Some cases of memory loss have been related to marijuana, especially in kids. Some people may suffer bronchitis because of smoking marijuana.

The debate for years \that has divided the question is weather not any good. Many states have legalized medicinal marijuana. The states that have legalized has it helped or has come from its use. What is the purpose? What should the guidelines be? The Medical board and the Government have hopes that in legalizing it, medical marijuana will help those with diseases to be able to cope much easier. However, the determination of which ones that should be allowed to have the okay to be able to use it. Even though some people may argue against medicinal marijuana use and legalization, there are too many reasons why it should be.

First, the federal government believes that if legislation is passed in legalizing marijuana, illicit drug abuse will increase among the general public (Clark, Medical marijuana: Medical necessity versus political agenda). Secondly, the DEA fears that marijuana serves as a “gateway” drug for harder drugs such as cocaine, heroin, etc. Finally, the federal government contends that legalizing marijuana for medical purposes would contradict the nation’s zero tolerance policy on the use of illicit drugs. Therefore, this legalization could result in corrupting adolescents into believing that illicit drug use is tolerable and even helpful to some degree (Clark, Medical marijuana: Medical necessity versus political agenda). It is the fear of law-makers that similar to alcohol and tobacco marketing techniques, marijuana distributors will advertise to adolescents that substance abuse is socially acceptable (Joffe). While the government focuses its attention on the potential social harms that may or may not arise, thousands of patients suffer from not being given this access to

In a contemporary study that was published by the American Civil Liberties Union, there had been 49,904 arrests within the state of Illinois for the possession of cannabis in the year 2010 . This made Cook County (Chicago) the county with the most cannabis possession arrests, ahead of New York City, New York (59,451 for all 5 counties) and Los Angeles County, California (15,600). Within the same year, but strictly within the city of Chicago by itself, there is an average of 91 cannabis possession charge arrests on a daily basis. Within the time span of 1975 and 2009, there has been 1,023,434 arrests executed for cannabis-related infractions against the law . As stated in the Cannabis Control Act passed by the Illinois State Legislature in 1978, the first offense could prove to be detrimental to the individual’s future, as the penalty for conviction of possessing 30 grams of cannabis (just over an ounce) has a penalty of up to 264 days in jail

Medical marijuana is very a big and controversial issue in today's society, currently the community is divided on the issue. Questions are always being thrown around such as "how does marijuana affect the body?" and "what good does’ marijuana do for a person?" Researchers have tried to answer these questions with multiple studies and they have shown some of the positives of medical marijuana. If something is able to help someone who is in dire need why not use it on those people to find a better solution for them. I myself am on the supportive side of the issue of medical marijuana. I don't think it should be legal to just anyone though I believe there should be a legal age law, a driving while under the influence, and a public intoxication law in effect for medical marijuana to be legal.

The use of marijuana by Americans has been no secret; over the past century whether it has been legalized or not. It has only recently become a huge controversial issue in America in the past several decades. Marijuana was not outlawed in the United States until the 1930’s. By 1931, 29 US states had outlawed marijuana, but it wasn't until 1937, when congress passed the Marijuana Tax Act, that the drug effectively became criminalized. In the early 1900’s marijuana was seen as an evil drug associated with Mexican immigrants; terrible crimes were attributed to marijuana and the Mexicans that used it. It wasn't until the 1960’s that attitudes towards marijuana became more relaxed. The drug started to be used for recreational fun in the white upper middle class. In the 70’s the drug took flight across the nation. With music festivals such as Woodstock and peace movements during the Vietnam War the drug became very popular. In 1996 California became the first state to legalize the medical use of marijuana with the passing of Proposition 215. Within the following years several states began to decriminalize marijuana, and legalize marijuana for medical use, but it wasn't until last year that the states of Colorado and Washington legalized marijuana for recreational use. With many states changing the laws on the use of marijuana it beings a problem for the federal government being that federally marijuana is still illegal. The use of marijuana for medical and recreational purposes