As a high school student you see someone who’s been smoking marijuana nearly every day. You see your classmates and people you look up to high on a daily basis. So you ask yourself, why is it prohibited? What makes it worse than tobacco or alcohol both of which are legal? Why is the country having such a heated debate on the issue and why is marijuana legal some places and illegal in others? What sets it apart from other drugs and are there any benefits? I’ve always been really curious about marijuana and I like to hear the sides of both arguments.
I look back at to when I was younger around the age of eight or so, and only about 10 years later support for marijuana reform has grown by nearly 20%. Why has 20% of the population decided it’s time to end prohibition, what’s the difference from then to now? This topic is not only intriguing to me but to most the people in the country it’s one of the biggest topics in the nation and I want to get to the bottom of it. According to MPP.org (Marijuana Policy Project) “In 2012, on average one person was arrested every 48 seconds for marijuana possession.” That’s 749,825 people arrested in 2012 alone (nearly a million people!) Of those 749,825 people 658,231 were arrested for possession alone. Did you know it costs nearly $47,000 a year to house an inmate? So if you were to house all 749,825 of those arrested in 2012 for just a year it would cost approximately $35,241,775,000 in tax payer’s dollars. Imagine what we could do with the extra 35 billion dollars. Granted this is theoretical and not all of the 749,825 people were found guilty and incarcerated but it puts things in perspective. From 1991- 2003 not only did marijuana arrests nearly triple, but the number of teens trying marijuana...
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• 58 percent support marijuana legalization, poll says - CBS News. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57608877/
• Drug War Clock | DrugSense. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.drugsense.org/cms/wodclock
• Legal history of cannabis in the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (n.d.). Retrieved November 5, 2014, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_history_of_cannabis_in_the_United_States
• Marijuana Policy Project - Home. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://MPP.org
• Race and the Drug War | Racial Discrimination in Drug Law Enforcement | Drug Policy Alliance. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.drugpolicy.org/race-and-drug-war
• War on drugs a trillion-dollar failure - CNN.com. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/06/opinion/branson-end-war-on-drugs/
The controversy of legalizing marijuana has been raging for quite a while in America. From some people pushing it for medical purposes to potheads just wanting to get high legally. Marijuana has been used for years as a popular drug for people who want to get a high. All this time it has been illegal and now it looks as if the drug may become legal. There has been heated debate by many sides giving there opinion in the issue. These people are not only left wing liberals either. Richard Brookhiser, a National Review Senior editor is openly supportive of medical marijuana yet extremely conservative in his writing for National Review (Brookhiser 27). He is for medical marijuana since he used it in his battle with testicular cancer. He says "I turned to [marijuana] when I got cancer because marijuana gives healthy people an appetite, and prevents people who are nauseated from throwing up. "(Brookhiser 27) Cancer patients are not the only benefactors from the appetite enhancer in marijuana, but so are any other nauseous people. Arizona and California have already passed a law allowing marijuana to be used as a medicinal drug. Fifty Six percent of the California voters voted for this law. "We've sent a message to Washington," says Dennis Peron. "They've had 25 years of this drug was, and they've only made things worse." (Simmons 111) The Arizona proposition garnished an even wider margin of separation between the fore's an against in a sixty five percent support tally. Ethan Nadelmann insists that " these propositions are not about legalization or decriminalization. They're about initiating some non radical, commonsense approaches to drug policy." General Barry McCaffery disagrees saying, "I...
The legalization of marijuana is, and has been a heavily disputed issue for decades. On one hand, marijuana could lead to a medical breakthrough, or at least provide relief to cancer and AIDS patients. On the other hand, legalizing a drug could expose it to too broad an audience. As a drug, marijuana has never proven to be anywhere near as harmful as cigarettes or alcohol. Each year in the United States, 400,000 people die from tobacco, 50,000 from alcohol, and from marijuana, zero. Regardless of what side one may take to this argument, there are some causes to this marijuana debate that everyone should know. Marijuana was not always illegal, and the reasons behind the history of narcotic regulation are interesting when viewed from today's perspective. The history of marijuana prohibition is a story of racism, political repression, and poorly represents the qualities this country claims to embody.
Ever since the federal criminalization of marijuana in the United States in 1937, there has been a large underground drug market (Paul). Much like how the prohibition of alcohol simply forced imbibers underground, those who chose to partake in marijuana are forced to stay away from the prying eye of the law because of present marijuana laws. This means the drug world is concealed from the average citizen, hiding the dangers of drug deals gone wrong, police shootings, and other dangerous occurrences. In a way this allows the government to mask the fact that their well-funded ‘War on Drugs’ is ineffective, a ‘War’ with a budget of roughly twenty billion dollars; which is not profoundly effective in the curbing the use of drugs (Jillette). If the average citizen does not know what is happening, in the eyes of the American zeitgeist, it is not happening. Criminalizing a harmless drug to cut down on its use simply turns its users into criminals, making the crime rate go up and clogging prisons with non-violent criminals. Marijuana is less harmful than alcohol and tobacco and the laws pertaining to it should reflect that.
So we all know marijuana is illegal in most states but honestly it’s like the prohibition of alcohol; it didn’t work. For most this is true “If your parents tell you not to your going to”. So if the government tells people not to do something, they will do it anyway. So prohibition doesn’t help anything because all it does is make people more sneaky also, as we know moonshiners became basically one of the biggest drug traffickers back then and today the US drug market is one of the world’s most commercially viable and attracts drug traffickers from every dark corner on the globe, its bringing the worst people here we need to stop it, according to my research anyway. So that’s another reason the federal Gov. should legalize marijuana.
California was the first state to pass a marijuana law in 1913 followed by the rest of the states in the nation until the year of 1937, when marijuana became completely illegal at the federal level. (Guither) Before then, marijuana and specifically hemp had many uses for colonists and farmers and was such a critical crop for a number of purposes, that the government even encouraged its growth. It was not until Henry J. Anslinger saw the Bureau of Narcotics as a fascinating career opportunity that he latched on trying to make marijuana illegal so he could make a name for himself. It stayed outlawed until November 6, 2012, when Colorado and Washington became the first states to legalize the sale and possession of cannabis for recreational use since 1937.
The legalization of marijuana is a very prominent and controversial topic in today’s society. Many people will argue against the legalization because of the lies and stereotypes that have been posed against the typical “pot smoker.” The skewed perception of lazy and unmotivated Americans spread over the last century have distorted the truth about cannabis. There are many different reasons for legalizing marijuana including an easy tax to profit from, medical reasons, and also many drugs and substances that are already legal are much more dangerous.
The legalization of marijuana is a smoldering topic that sparks a debate anytime someone brings up the controversial subject. It is listed on the top of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) drug schedule listing as a controlled Schedule I substance. According to the DEA, “Schedule I drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. Schedule I drugs are the most dangerous drugs of all the drug schedules with potentially severe psychological or physical dependence.” Yet, the United States has allowed 20 states to legalize it for medicinal purposes; and, two of those states are legally allowed to use it recreationally. That makes 40% of the country obtain a prescription, while the other 4% are stoners. Why such a discrepancy? Because someone always has to make the rules, while others are just trying to break them.
"If the words ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness’ don't include the right to experiment with your own consciousness, then the Declaration of Independence isn't worth the hemp it was written on."
Marijuana is a controversial drug that has been up for debate for its legalization ever since it was considered contraband in the 1920's. (Citation needed) It grows from the Cannabis plant and contains a chemical called delta-9-tetrahydrocannibol, or otherwise commonly known as "THC". This chemical has been clinically proven to show that it alters the consciousness of a person when introduced orally via digestion, or through absorbed through respiration. (Citation needed) Some would say that it is the "gateway drug", in that it leads to the usage of other, more dangerous drugs, and that it should not be made legal. While other groups argue that the use of substances is irrelevant, since it is based on the will of the user, and again others may argue that marijuana use can potentially be beneficial in medical contexts; not only that, but financially viable too. One must then determine whether it is ethical for the US Government to control and regulate Marijuana—as it does already, by federally banning it?—or if not, does legalization necessitate the resolution of this ethical dilemma? In order to understand whether Government regulation is ethical, one must understand why the drug itself is considered illegal and thus unethical as well.
Cannabis has been known to man since as early as 7000 B.C. (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). In 1619, the colony of Jamestown in Virginia passed the first cannabis-related law, stating that it is required for all farmers to grow cannabis sativa or hemp plant because of its strong fiber that they used to make rope, sails and clothing (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). During the 1800s, cannabis extract medicines were produced by American pharmaceutical companies such as Eli Lilly, Parke-Davis and Squibb (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). In 1910, in the Southwestern United States, Mexican immigrants introduced recreational use of cannabis, in which the immigrants referred to as “marihuana” (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). In 1915, Utah was the first state to pass an anti-marijuana law, then twenty-nine other states followed (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). In 1922, the Narcotic Drug Import and Export Act was enforced to control any cannabis going in or out of the U.S. (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). In 1930, the Federal Bureau of Narcotics was created (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). In the 1960s, “hippies” smoke marijuana, which symbolized rebellion (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). In 1968, the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and the Bureau of Dangerous Drugs merged into the Bureau...
The world is changing. The push for marijuana legalization is in full effect in the United States. With the legalization of medicinal marijuana in California on November 5, 1996, the United States has progressed in its movements for full legalization (mbc.ca.gov). Now with 21 states, plus Washington D.C, having state level medicinal marijuana legalization laws in full effect, along with both Colorado and Washington having recreational use of marijuana legalized, the United States is on a path for full legalization (whitehouse.gov). The legalization of cannabis in the United Sates will provide the state and federal governments with increased tax revenue, save money and resources from the war against marijuana, and most importantly, benefit the people in numerous ways.
People ask, “What good does legalizing Marijuana do? It is a drug for a reason.” Well, I, along with numerous others question, “What are those reasons? What good does keeping it illegal do?” One reason to legalize the “drug” is that it can save/earn the United States of America a great deal of money. “Nationwide, law enforcement officials made 1.5 million drug arrests in 2011, more than 40 perce...
The article I chose to do my summary on is an online newspaper article for the East Valley Tribune. The article itself was on the new bill that will be voted on later in the week that has been passed in four other states that gives patients who have been diagnosed with illnesses that are not curable access to new medications that have not been fully approved by the FDA. My reason for writing this is because I find new drug developments interesting and this bill was also first passed in my home state.
Another controversy plays a role in marijuana use. Marijuana usage has been linked to mental health illness. Some studies have reported that marijuana use is associated with the increased risk of onset of depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, substance use disorders and psychosis (Blanco, 2016). The main question that remains is whether marijuana use causes these conditions or its people who use marijuana to relieve their distress. Marijuana usage is more common in the adolescent’s population. This paper is about Bill A1557 which is now active and plays a big role in today's society. This bill was introduced on January 9, 2018 by assemblyman Michael Patrick Carroll in the state of New Jersey. The bill’s focus "legalizes marijuana and provides
Marijuana continues to be one of the most used illegal drugs in the United States. Marijuana has been used for many years and at one time was legal to consume. Throughout the years, marijuana has been used for treatment of different medical conditions and has been used recreationally by people of all ages. While the use of medicinal marijuana has proven to be effective in treating medically ill patients, society continues to question its recreational use and the long term effects it will have on its users. Some feel that legalizing marijuana will only open up avenues for the use of more potent drugs, causing an increase in criminal activity. However, a number of people question why it is considered illegal being it is a naturally growing