The Decriminalization Of Marijuana

The legalization of recreational marijuana has recently been a widely debated topic, especially since medical marijuana was legalized in several states. Critics say that cannabis is a Class I drug that has both negative health effects and behavior effects. However, there is minimal evidence to support these claims, and none of the benefits of marijuana are taken into consideration when the arguments are made. The possession and use of recreational marijuana should be legalized in the United States because it would provide a steady source of income for the government in the form of taxation, it would reduce the sale of more dangerous drugs since they would not be present in dispensaries.

On January 1st the states of Colorado and Washington officially began the regulation of legal marijuana sales. Thousands of people from all over the country including tourists from Wisconsin, Ohio, Chicago, and even Georgia lined up out front of dispensaries to make a purchase. Recreational marijuana is being regulated and monitored like alcohol; you must be at least 21 years old to make a purchase. The drug, which is controversial in many states’ legislations, is currently legal for medical use in 20 states, but Colorado and Washington were the first to approve of recreational use (Healy). The geographical concepts involved in the legalization of marijuana include migration, movement and flow, and private/public space.

Leblanc, D. (2016, January 12). Legalizing marijuana will come with strict controls, MP Bill Blair says. Retrieved October 21, 2016, from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/legalizing-marijuana-will-come-with-strict-controls-mp-bill-blair-says/article28137320/

Marijuana is illegal in 48 of the 50 states, but the drug will most likely be legal in the near future. The heated debate on whether the “illicit drug” should be legalized in all 50 states keeps resurfacing. The most popular recreational drug in the United States today is marijuana. The formal name for marijuana is Cannabis but it also goes by a number of other street names including bud, grass, weed, reefer, ganja, hemp, and herb. “In 2011, more than 18 million Americans aged 12 and older reported using the drug within the past month” That is a very large amount of people that have used the drug even before it was legalized in two states. The government has thrown unproven facts about the harmful effects of marijuana to the people to scare them. The United States government has stated that Cannabis does cause lung cancer and includes many carcinogens, chemicals that cause cancer. Scientists and researchers have proven the exact opposite considering the drug is now used in many cancer treatments. With this being said, marijuana is not a perfect medicine either. Some of the harmful effects include posing a major irritant to the lungs and increased chance of a heart attack. There are always alternatives to work around these harmful effects. For example, marijuana can be eaten which would cause no irritation to the lungs in any way. As far as the increase chance of heart attack goes, any exercise raises the heart rate just as marijuana does. This means that you

The legalization of medical marijuana has brought into question various components of medical care for advance practice nurses (as well as others within the larger healthcare profession). In addition to navigating the legal complexities of care associated with this particular method, advance practice nurses must understand prescriptive rights, best practices for us and how statutory language as it is currently written has been amended for medical use. This is a growing movement in the healthcare sector and one that will continue to evolve as legalization continues to be a large part of the national health care conversation. Advance practice nurses, as professionals that can and often do prescribe medication, must be knowledgeable about the parameters surrounding prescriptive rights. Moreover, they are required to know the latest information from a legalization perspective in order to ensure professional boundaries are not being crossed in the process of helping patients.

Some medical reasons that marijuana shouldn’t be decriminalized are that it has long and short terms effects. Examples of the short term outcomes include memory loss, difficulty with thinking, loss of motor skills and increased heart rate. According to the National Institutes of Health show that someone smoking about five joints per week is taking in as many cancer causing chemicals as someone smoking a pack of cigarettes every day. There is no science proof that smoked marijuana can be used for medication. Since cannabis plants are polluted with a range of fungal spores, smoking marijuana may increase the risk of infectious organisms. Taradiff, J. "Marijuana and the War on Drugs. “Marijuana. Farmington Hills, Michigan: Thomas Gale, 2008. 157. Print.

The topic I chose is the legalization of marijuana. My research was enjoyable because I love reading on a topic that I fully support and agree with. The four sources I found are very persuading and contain strong points. I used the web for research but as I found sources, I made sure they were credible sources since this is such a debatable issue.

The topic of legalizing marijuana has been a topic of controversy for quite some time now not only throughout our local streets, but throughout the local and into the state government. The legalization of marijuana is such a controversial topic because some are for it and some are against it. People are for the legalization because of the great uses it has towards medicine, the money that could come from the taxation of legalized marijuana, and the emptying of prisons because of the releases of marijuana offenses. The list could go on and on. Other people are against the legalization because it is considered a “gateway drug”, or because the legalization of marijuana would eventually

European countries have differing policies by country in regards to marijuana. European countries such as the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal and Switzerland categorize marijuana as a soft drug and its use has been decriminalized. These countries focus less on punishing users, and place the emphasis on education and prevention. In the Netherlands marijuana can be bought in neighborhood coffee shops and not sold by dealers on the streets. Because there will always be portions of any population that will eventually experiment with some form of drugs the coffee shops are regulated by authorities and provide a safer alternative to buying hard drugs being pushed by dealers on the streets. (Government of the

Marijuana use should not be legalized and must be discouraged as it is harmful and creates problems for the society

Marijuana is the most frequently used illegal drug in the United States (http://www.drug-rehabs.org).Although it is illegal. Researchers found that 42% of people surveyed in the U.S. had tried marijuana at least once (Gettman pg 4).Why should medical marijuana be legal in all fifty states? It has been proven be a reliever for many illnesses today such as HIV/AIDS, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, anorexia, seizures, migraines, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, glaucoma, depression and even autism (Wunder pg 46). According to the NORML (the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws), ten states currently legalize or decriminalize the medical use of marijuana in some manner. Since 1996 nine states have passed legislation that

People have been smoking marijuana for thousands of years while also using hemp for everything from fabric to make clothes and other items. Unfortunately, Harry J. Anslinger with a bit of power and enough determination decided pot was evil and addictive. The struggle continues to this day to overcome the lies about marijuana (“Marijuana (Weed) History and Facts”). There are many benefits to legalizing marijuana and the government should take advantage of it.

The 2016 elections and the subsequent legalization of recreational marijuana in California, Nevada, and Massachusetts show how constantly evolving attitudes regarding marijuana and regulations pertaining to marijuana practices are. Corresponding with constantly changing attitudes regarding marijuana, users are finding more novel ways to make the most of their plant products. Butane-extracts or butane hash-oil (BHO) products are potent marijuana concentrates (Bell, Slim, Flaten, Wiktor, & Monte, 2015) that require the liquid-gas butane as the catalyst in the process of extracting pure THC from marijuana plant product (Raber & Elzinga, 2015). At-home BHO labs are rising in their popularity (Rosenthal & Downs, 2014) due to the perceived ease

Cannabis, also known as marijuana, is a plant which when consumed has psychoactive effects. It is believed to have been first used in the 3rd millennium BCE in what is now modern-day Romania (Rudgley). Throughout history, it has been known to be used during rituals and ceremonies, becoming an important aspect of numerous cultures. It has become illegal to possess, sell or use marijuana in various countries beginning in the 20th century, despite that it’s used quite commonly. According to a United Nations’ report, “cannabis was the world’s most widely produced, trafficked and consumed drug in the world in 2010” (Dockterman). Meanwhile, other, more-lethal substances such as alcohol and tobacco are legal and help benefit the economy. If two substances that can easily harm or kill people can be legal, then marijuana should receive the same treatment as they do.

Unstable seed varieties – These plants can be produced quickly and do not require breeding over multiple generations. Seed banks with a good name will typically not sell these kinds of seeds.