Should Marijuana be Legalized? Essay

The dispute over the legalization of cannabis sativa, more commonly known as marijuana, is one of the most controversial issues ever to take place in the United States. Its use as a medicine has existed for thousands of years in many countries across the globe. Legalization should be considered despite efforts made by groups who say marijuana is a harmful drug that will increase crime rates and lead users to other more dangerous substances. The legalization of marijuana can improve our society by helping with our economy, freeing legal resources, and benefiting the overall health of the nation though medical uses.

The legalization of marijuana is one of the most debatable topics in our society today. What is marijuana? According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, Marijuana refers to the dried leaves, flowers, stems, and seeds from the Cannabis sativa or Cannabis Indica plant. Marijuana is also known as weed, herb, pot, cannabis, maryjane, and a sort of other nicknames. Most people believe that marijuana should be legalized for the numerous medical health benefits, and that marijuana is found to be less harmful than consuming other drugs and alcohol. However, the people who oppose legalizing marijuana believe that it is too dangerous for a person’s well-being; it can also inspire people to try other drugs like cocaine or alcohol. In the article, “Marijuana should stay illegal,” Carly Zive asserts that smoking cannabis is bad and it should remain illegal, yet, in “This is Why Marijuana Should Be Legal Everywhere,” Renee Jacques depicts marijuana as a substance that perceives health benefits for people.

Anyone who smokes marijuana is known to be stoners, hippies, or delinquents. With all the stereotypes, it is becoming harder to accept the facts about the substance. Legalizing weed would change our society in positive ways. Marijuana should be legalized in all states because of its medical, economical, and law enforcement benefits.

The truths about marijuana are slowly starting to resurface, the government keeps ignoring that cannabis could one day be as powerful for the U.S. Unfortunately, these truths about marijuana are under a lot of criticism because of the stereotype of what people see as a "marijuana or cannabis smoker." There is a great difficulty in this law because marijuana is still recognized as a harmful and dangerous substance in some states. This can cause problems because each state has their different views and opinions on the matter, and have their own rules and how the rules apply towards it. The twenty-six states and the District of Columbia currently have laws legalizing marijuana in some form, but California, Massachusetts, and Nevada just passed the law for recreational use. The states that have medical marijuana and recreational legalization are Washington, Oregon, California, Colorado, Nevada, and Alaska. The states that only have medical marijuana legal are Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, Florida, Louisiana, Arkansas, New Mexico, Arizona, Hawaii (Ingraham). However, legalizing marijuana could have some benefits instead of being a drug with some bad reputations. Marijuana should be legalized because of medical reasons, safety reasons, and have some benefits to society.

How many times have you heard or read about legalizing marijuana in the last year? I have heard about it numerous times whether on TV, on the radio, on the Internet, or when reading a newspaper. Many people wants marijuana to be legalized and each has his or her own reason. Some of them want marijuana legalized to reduce drug related violence in southern states that border Mexico and in big cities such as Chicago. Others want marijuana legalized to offset the impact of the current rescission by generating additional revenues to states from collecting taxes on marijuana. Many people believe that marijuana is not a drug and that it’s simply a plant therefore it should be legal just like tobacco. Finally, there are people who

To start off, many people think weed should not be legal. One reason some may say it is not safe to legalize weed is public safety. “Marijuana use, like the use of alcohol, can cause impairment in the user. This means if a person is driving whilst under the influence, they may be more prone to having a collision and potentially harming a pedestrian or fellow road user.” (10 Reasons Marijuana Should Remain Illegal). Also, some think the use or marijuana will lower the quality of life. “

Marijuana is not a recent discovery, but the mysteries surrounding the controversial topic in question remains to be disputed since its prohibition. Classified as an illegal substance, cannabis has been restricted in Canada and around the world. Marijuana is a complex drug and its contradictory claims of medical purposes, and harmful destruction, fuel the debate on whether or not the legal constraints of consuming marijuana should be reconsidered. In consideration of academic journals and news article, citizen welfare, economy benefit, social progression and legal system implications, will be focused on. Despite opposing beliefs, prohibiting the recreational usage of marijuana does not counteract the dangers of the practise thus legalizing marijuana in Canada will allow greater benefit than harm.

     Marijuana does have some negative effects, but compared to other drugs marijuana is harmless. Other drugs are highly addictive were marijuana is not. Alcohol is one of the most leading causes of car crashes. Marijuana is nowhere near being a leading cause of death. Other drugs can lead to cancer where marijuana is used to cure it, and other drugs can lead to deaths. Other drugs impair you vision, but marijuana does not. All the other drugs except alcohol are gateway drugs, and the only way to purchase them is by smuggling them across the border. Many advocates say “we should begin to reflect that reality in our state and federal legislation, and stop acting as if otherwise law-abiding marijuana smokers are part of the crime problem. They are not, and it is absurd to continue using law enforcement resources arresting them.” (Gary) Many advocates also say, “Far more harm is caused by marijuana prohibition than by marijuana itself.”(Gary)

The legalization of marijuana has been in dispute since the idea has come into conception. Exists a myriad of stances: legalization strictly for medicinal purposes, decriminalization of possession(treatment instead of incarceration), a complete prohibition, and finally a stance of the legalization of marijuana strictly for the sake of industrial use.

In 2000, the citizens of Colorado voted in an amendment to the Colorado constitution allowing for the legalization of medical marijuana. However, the amount of licensed medical marijuana card holders was small until 2009, when the U.S Attorney General gave the prosecution and legalization of marijuana over to the states. After this, the number of medical marijuana licenses increased greatly in Colorado. Then, in 2012, the sale of recreational marijuana was legalized in Colorado, to all those over the age of 21, and retail stores began selling marijuana in 2014 (Monte). Public opinion on Marijuana is generally divided fifty-fifty across the United States. Some are strictly against its legalization, even for medical use, and want to see it harshly punished, while others would like to see it as readily available to the public as alcohol and cigarettes. However, in Colorado, one is able to see how the public opinion changes after marijuana’s legalization, as well as the changes in public health and usage of marijuana. Due to intergovernmental relations between the state and federal governments, governmental competition, and the cannabis laws passed by Colorado, the actions of the government have a great impact on the public’s approval of marijuana use, and the amount the public uses it.

The debate over whether marijuana should be legalized nation-wide has been an ongoing one for years now. Marijuana should’ve been legalized years ago and continues to create more controversial problems within our nation. Before diving into the debate and choosing sides, one needs to understand what marijuana is and the effects that it has first, especially with it being so popular in the United States. Marijuana is a psychoactive drug created from the plant called cannabis (Happy Place). Drugs are primarily classified on whether they are stimulants or if they are depressants. Depressants are a type of drug that hinders ones psychological vitals, the major drug being alcohol. A stimulant is a substance that for a certain amount of time

In recent studies, studies have lead to the discovery that marijuana cures pain better than prescription and other over the counter pills, and it is cheaper than a multitude of the prescription pill counterparts, but marijuana is prescribed less than painkillers and is still illegal in numerous states. Although a numerous amount of marijuana researchers claim that marijuana could end the need for various prescription drugs because marijuana can help with such a diverse amount of illnesses and diseases, marijuana is still considered to be a Schedule 1 narcotic, with no medicinal properties. Considering that oxycontin and Zoloft are schedule 2 narcotics, which means they have medicinal benefits, although they put thousands of people in the hospital yearly unlike marijuana. Although medical marijuana is a safer, more affordable, and has been researched less than a multitude of the FDA-approved drugs on the market, marijuana is still only legal in 25 states and D.C. but needs to be legalized nationwide.

My personal opinion in the argument of legalizing marijuana is that I really cannot see the harm in it. This of course is a bold and naive statement. There is a lot of contributing factors into my bold and naive statement that if understood will explain my callow view.

There are many things that have been debated on for years and the people still haven’t come close to a decision. Among these topics is the legalization of marijuana. Marijuana also referred to as cannabis has become this big controversy topic dividing the nation into two. One side is all for the legalization of marijuana, others are very against it. I for one am all for the legalization of marijuana because it can be used to better one’s medical and mental state.

Marijuana is a drug that has sparked much controversy over the past decade as to whether or not it should be legalized. People once thought of marijuana as a bad, mind-altering drug which changes a person’s personality which can lead to crime and violence through selling and buying it. In the past, the majority of citizens believed that marijuana is a harmful drug that should be kept off the market and out of the hands of the public. However, a recent study conducted by Pew Research Center has concluded people’s view may be changing. For the first time since 1969, the public’s opinion has undergone a dramatic long-term shift. According to Pew’s 2015 survey, 53% of the people polled favor the legal use of marijuana, while 44% are opposed. However, in 2006, just 32% supported marijuana legalization, while nearly twice as many 60% were opposed. The group that was responsible for this change was the 18-34 year olds with 68% of them in favor of its legalization. However, across all generations, with the exception of the age group of 70-87 year-olds, support for this drug’s legalization has risen over the past decade (Pew Research Center, 2015). People believe that the legalization of marijuana will lead to a decrease in recreational use, drug addictions, and crime.