Marijuana Use Should be Legal
The issue of the legalization of Marijuana is a never-ending battle that the country will never fully win. Marijuana should be legalized because it is a large part of the drug war, which will never come to an end. Society is in the midst of a time of anguish and skepticism of what will become of the nation. With all of the problems happening around us, the government and officials should begin to realize that the time and effort spent on battling the drug, marijuana, could be better used in other areas.
One of the first issues of the legalization of marijuana is its comparison to alcohol. Since 1937, marijuana has been prohibited as a legal drug in the United States:
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This is the result of an increase in drug arrests between 1980 and 1992. The increase in violent offenders incarcerated during that time was only about 50 percent; therefore the majority of felons that are incarcerated should not be looked at as a danger to society (Schlosser, 1994, p.93). If the country wants to deal with the problem of overcrowded prisons, it should look more closely at who should and shouldn’t be incarcerated.
The economic benefits of legalizing marijuana would also be substantial. Not only would the government receive revenue from marijuana taxation, farmers would also be able to grow hemp, which was an important source of fiber for rope, cloth, and paper in the United States years ago.
Studies have also shown that Marijuana could be used for medicinal purposes as well. According to Bill Zimmerman, executive director of the AMR, “It seems the ship of state is beginning to turn on the issue of medical use of marijuana.” Recently, chemicals found in marijuana were found to be similar to naturally occurring chemicals in the body. This chemical is related to nerve sites that control pain, memory, motor functioning, nausea and internal eye pressure. These findings have provoked more exploration into medicinal and therapeutic uses of marijuana. Through other studies, marijuana has been found to be a
Former United States President Thomas Jefferson once declared, “Hemp is of first necessity to the wealth and protection of the country” (“Thomas Jefferson”). Unfortunately, many modern political leaders are not as enthusiastic as Jefferson regarding the beneficial uses of hemp and marijuana. Hemp, as well as marijuana, originates from the Cannabis plant. Surprisingly, marijuana dates all the way back to 2700 B.C.; where it is first mentioned in a Chinese herbal and is said to have many strong values. Regrettably, a majority of countries applied strict limitations on the substance by the late 1960’s. With those restrictions came harsh retributions involving sales and possession of the substance. As time passed, research of medicinal
Marijuana, a substance that was used frequently during the colonial times, has taken a social downfall in recent times. Although it is still illegal to possess or use for any means by federal law, states like California and Arizona have taken steps in the other direction.
There are many ways that marijuana would benefit the economy if legalized. An economy benefits when there is a healthy flow of monies within. This means internal spending by citizens on items of their choice. Citizen spending is what keeps the economy going. The use of citizen?s tax money would also be greatly affected. Tax money would be allocated more properly and used in more strategic ways. The taxation of items such as legalized marijuana brings a flow of money into the economy that would otherwise not be there. This increase of government funds would allocate more money to federal programs that are in financial need. Federal programs include public education, health education, treatment programs, etc. When the public?s way of
In 1545, the Spanish brought marijuana to the New World. It was introduced in Jamestown in 1611, where it became a major commercial crop grown as an innocent source of fiber (specifically, hemp). By 1927, the production and possession of marijuana had been outlawed throughout the United States, causing a prohibition that is still in effect 80 years later. Since then, the world has seen the violent rise of drug cartels and the high price of fighting illegal marijuana use (Narconon). Marijuana should be legalized because significant research shows that legalization will benefit our society socially and economically.
There are many economic benefits to the legalization of marijuana. The economic benefits that producers and consumers would receive are numerous, the tax that could be placed on a product would make the government a main benefactor as well, as well as the money saved on the enforcement of marijuana prohibition.
The legalization of marijuana is a very debatable subject, some people think it is bad and should be illegal, and some people think it is good in some ways if used properly. It should be legal because it has few negative effects, it serves other purposes than getting people stoned, and it is better than other drugs.
The use of cannabis toward medicine should not be shocking to anyone, since it has been around for centuries. As a matter of fact, it has been under medicinal aid for an estimated 5,000 years. Western medicine truly grasped marijuana’s medicinal abilities in the 1850’s. Infact, doctors documented over one hundred papers about how marijuana helped numerous disorders, such as nausea, glaucoma, movement disorders, pain relief, depression, and anxiety. It also helps cancer patients and those with HIV or Aids. Currently, many American patients have access to marijuana use so that they can have effective treatments for their illnesses. Medical marijuana use is achievable because
For most of human history, marijuana has been completely legal. It’s not a recently discovered plant, nor is it a long-standing law. Marijuana has been illegal for less than 1% of the time that it’s been in use. Its known uses go back further than 7,000 B.C. (“Hemp,
The following is a proposal for a public policy that would legalize marijuana and have the drug be treated as alcohol. This is necessary because the current policy is detrimental to society and the legalization of marijuana would be beneficial. The prohibition of the drug is unfounded because tobacco and alcohol, legalized substances, are more dangerous than marijuana. Also, the legislation regarding the drug was created on racist sentiments, reducing the law’s credibility. The current policy also creates a dangerous black market and renders our prison system ineffective. The legalization of cannabis would bring undeniable medical and economic benefits to society and the government. Varying degrees of marijuana legalization have
The legalization of marijuana has been a debated subject in America since the 1970's. The pro-marijuana society in America has made claims as to how marijuana can help cure or lessen the effect of some diseases and that by legalizing the drug; the use of pot will actually decline. The fact of the matter is that marijuana is a drug that can be placed into a similar category as cocaine or heroine. Like these other drugs, pot (marijuana) smoking carries with it serious side effects that can effect the user forever, and sometimes-even cause death. Marijuana was first cultivated in America during the colonial time period and was used as a fiber for rope and even clothing. The plant was not used for its psychoactive properties until 1910,
My best friend used to smoke marijuana on a regular basis. Over time, he developed many obvious bad habits and changed his life style tremendously. He started getting lazy with schoolwork, and did not show much interest in anything at all. His parents noticed all these side effects that had been occurring but were unaware that their son smoked marijuana. After the grades fell so much, they decided to take him to get checked out because they were afraid he had developed some sort of ADD. They come to find out that because of him smoking so much marijuana it had led to brain problems, memory problems and affected his thinking skills. He was unable to stay concentrated on something and constantly was out of breath when any physical activity
Marijuana has been proven to help in the fight and cure of neurological diseases and disorders. Toxicologist Paul Consroe believes that THC in marijuana may help tone down the spasms that people suffer with Huntington’s disease, spinal cord injuries and other disorders. His studies show that specialized proteins that serve as docks for THC, are in regions of the brain known to play a role in movement disorders. These receptors also bind to anandamide, a marijuana-like substance manufactured by the body. In a 1986 study, Consroe showed that cannabidiol, a component of marijuana, calmed the abnormal movements of five people suffering from dystonia, a condition that makes muscle spasms that contort the body(“Marijuana as Medicine“).
Drinking alcohol is also much more harmful for you than marijuana is, and it too is legal. Alcohol damages your internal organs like your liver, kidneys, and circulatory system. Alcohol also has a much higher dependency than does marijuana. Tens of thousands of people are dependent on alcohol everyday sometimes ruining one’s personal and family life. Alcohol also causes you to lose your inhibitions which could get
The use, sale and possession of marijuana is still illegal under federal law in the United States. However, it is allowed in 20 states and
less dangerous than tobacco and people smoke less of it at a time. Or you can