Cannabis, weed and marijuana, this herb is known by many names, the main chemical sought out by recreational users that enables them to achieve the psychoactive “high” feeling is known as delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol also known as THC. THC allows the release of dopamine into your brain which is the chemical that results in happiness. Another major chemical found in marijuana is Cannabidiol (CBD) that aides many medical uses. Marijuana is made from the dried shredded leaves of the cannabis sativa and comes in a variety of different forms such as being pressed down into oil and vaporized, cooked into food as edibles, or just in the ground in its herbal form and smoked. Marijuana has been shown to have physical, mental and in some cases spiritual
This even caused the herb known as marijuana to rise to a schedule 1 (the most restricted category) drug. Many of these policies put in place unfairly directed people of colored skin considering the incarceration rate for are higher even though the rate of selling and using are comparable across racial lines. A member of Nixon’s counsel involving domestic affairs even stated “The Nixon campaign in 1968, and the Nixon White House after that, had two enemies: the antiwar left and black people. You understand what I’m saying? We knew we couldn’t make it illegal to be either against the war or black, but by getting the public to associate the hippies with marijuana and blacks with heroin, and then criminalizing both heavily, we could disrupt those communities. We could arrest their leaders, raid their homes, break up their meetings, and vilify them night after night on the evening news. Did we know we were lying about the drugs? Of course we did.”( ) The war on drugs continued on as a way for the government to oppress the public rather than protect it. The remnants of the war on drugs can still be seen now in recent years numbers as well. Blacks are more likely be arrested than whites by 3.71 times. The total number of arrest due to drug violations was 1,488,707 in 2015 and more than 51 billion dollars is used to annually achieve this result. To this end 40 percent and 3 billion dollars worth of these drug offense are marijuana related charges. Majority, almost 90% of these charges are simple possession charges that can result in jail time getting you over 10 years. It takes about 30 thousand a year to keep an inmate locked up. These rates can be significantly cut if recreational use of marijuana is
The War on Drugs is believed to help with many problems in today’s society such as realizing the rise of crime rates and the uprooting of violent offenders and drug kingpin. Michelle Alexander explains that the War on Drugs is a new way to control society much like how Jim Crow did after the Civil War. There are many misconceptions about the War on Drugs; commonly people believe that it’s helping society with getting rid of those who are dangerous to the general public. The War on Drugs is similar to Jim Crow by hiding the real intention behind Mass Incarceration of people of color. The War on Drugs is used to take away rights of those who get incarcerated. When they plead guilty, they will lose their right to vote and have to check application
The article provides statistics regarding the amount of people in prison to the demographics of these prisons. Today, “nearly half of all prisoners in state prisons are locked up for nonviolent offenses” (Sledge). This article also provides a video and image with the demographic statistical information. The video is mainly about the amount of people who are supporting the legalization of marijuana and the amount of people incarcerated in the United States of America. In addition, this article explains that the total cost of the drug war including law enforcement, interdiction, international efforts, state level prisons and jails, federal level prisons, and any drug related arrests estimate to approximately $50 billion annually (Sledge). The image provides a visual to the statistics provided and was created by the American Civil Liberties Union based on statistics of the United States of America prison population and its growth. The general argument in the source is that there is too much money being spent on this war and “the punishment falls disportionately on people of color” (Sledge). The source is accurate because of the statistics provided by American prisoners and was created in order to inform people who may have misconceptions about the drug war. In the video, he explained how felons are not in prison for smoking joints of marijuana but rather drug trafficking and distribution. This source can have a major impact if Americans knew how much money went into the war on drugs. In conclusion, the article “The Drug War and Mass Incarceration” by Matt Sledge focused on why the drug war led to mass incarceration in the United States of America and who the drug war affected. The source provided statistics in order to back up the information stated, however this information could have been
However, legalization will be profitable to global economies in two ways. It will allow for money spent on drug law enforcement to be spent more wisely and will increase revenue. There have been escalating costs spent on the war against drugs and countless dollars spent on rehabilitation. Every year in the United States, ten billion dollars are spent on enforcing drug laws alone. Drug violators accounted for about forty percent of all criminals in federal prisons (Rosenthal 1996). In 1989, a Republican county executive of Mercer County, N.J., estimated that it would cost approximately one
People should stop arguing about the use of marijuana and how marijuana is bad, because people only like to research the cons instead of including the pros. Despite the fact that people believe everything they hear, they should look up more and try to see how good marijuana can be for them. Marijuana is good for their health, and it has helped to cure people who are very ill. Marijuana is less harmful than tobacco or alcohol, there has been studies proven that people have died over drinking other than by smoking marijuana. Marijuana will be able to have less people prosecuted for the possession of carrying it around, which will help people not get arrested for a small amount of marijuana.
Imagine being in an excruciating amount of pain, and doctors have tried everything they could. The doctor recommends marijuana because he knows it will ease the pain. Should that person take the advice and be prescribed marijuana? In a case in Colorado, a girl the age of five became one of the youngest medical marijuana patients. The young girl Charlotte was having seizures throughout her life. She became a guinea pig in a scary experiment involving marijuana. She was given an administrated amount of marijuana to see if it would stop the seizures. When the results came in, they were surprisingly shocking. Paige, Charlotte’s mother, recalls, "When she didn 't have those three, four seizures that first hour, that was
Medical Marijuana: Why or Why not? Marijuana was first introduced by the Chinese back in the B.C (before Christ) time period where it existed as a substance that carried the ability to achieve euphoria or a “high” as we refer to it today. In the early 4200s B.C. Marijuana was better known for its medicinal value where it was being used to treat rheumatism, gout and malaria (Narcocon International). Of course, society at the time was aware of the other effects marijuana had, however at the time, they primarily focused on the medication capacity marijuana contained. Fast forward to 2015, where the medical use of marijuana is the biggest controversial topic, where society views marijuana more of a harmful substance than a solution to nearly all of the medical conditions people encounter.
When many people think of using marijuana, the image of Woodstock, “Cheech and Chong” or Willy Nelson immediately pops into their heads, but marijuana isn’t just used to have a good time. Marijuana has generally been used recreationally. In recent years, however, research has found new ways to implement its effects. Marijuana has the ability to help bring comfort to patiens who have nausea and appetite loss, chronic pain, and mental disorders. I believe that marijuana should be legalized, not for recreation, but for the betterment of the lives of people suffering from illnesses throughout the United States.
Marijuana can help people. It can help cure illness, and at the very least can be vital in alleviating suffering, as it has for those like young Charlotte Figi, whose constant, life threatening seizures were
Medical marijuana is an extremely effective medication. Medical cannabis is used to treat patients with a medical problem. Marijuana legalization can help save lives, create jobs, and better our society. In order to purchase medical cannabis, one must have a medical card. In order to get a medical card, one must show valid proof that they have a medical condition. Cannabis shops generally ask for a doctor’s note. The medical shops make people show a valid proof of medical condition because if not anybody would get and abuse marijuana. According to CMCR, medical shops want the money and will approve any patient for a medical card when they don’t even have an illness. There are many medical cannabis dispensaries typically in every location. There is so many competitive cannabis clubs, but they are not located in proper places such as next to a school or close to a church.
There are many beneficial health aspects regarding marijuana. Therefor there are many that seek the drug as an alternative to medication, as results are shown faster and there is a positive influence on several diseases. There are many doctors in the country who recommend that patients try marijuana , although having full knowledge that they are encouraging the patient to go against the law. According to Kevin Zeese and William Ruzzamenti , “That 's because there 's very strong evidence that marijuana works as a medicine. It 's effective in controlling muscle spasms for people with neurological problems, in controlling nausea and increasing appetite for cancer and AIDS patients, and in controlling the eye pressure that causes damage in
Medical Marijuana Marijuana is a very hot topic and also brings a lot of controversy among the topics in the U.S today. Many believe it has medicinal benefits and should be made legal when necessary. Many believe it has a really high risk of abuse. Amongst those arguments, some of the ingredients in medical marijuana have presented a greater argument for possible legalization through their use of research and evidence of beneficial use. Those against medical marijuana have given many reasons for why it should not be legalized.
The decriminalization of marijuana has been an intense debate since the end of the prohibition era. Although congress has their reasons for not legalizing marijuana, they are most likely clinging to their personal beliefs and failing to face the facts when it comes to this hot issue. Marijuana should be legalized because the cost of keeping marijuana illegal is expensive, prohibiting the use of it does not help the problem of over usage, and people deserve the freedom to use marijuana.
Opponents argue that Medical Marijuana is addictive and dangerous and it is not approved by FDA. They said that medical marijuana is an excuse for drug legalization and recreational use. Some claim that Marijuana is not a medicine and have the same side of effect as smoking tobacco, chronic cough and wheezing. Studies have been done on adolescents that long term memory impairment increases over time, prolonged psychomotor performance impairment, 600% increases in the incidence of schizophrenia. It can also cause mental and physical ill issues. Not to mention we already spend billions of dollars on Medicare treating tobacco smokers from lung sicknesses and the mental ill. These studies are worth acknowledging but are there more benefits to Medical
There is a lot of controversy today over the legalization of Marijuana. Although there are some states in the United States that have legalized the recreational or medical use of it, there are some that are debating whether it is a good idea. The use of marijuana dates back to ancient times, and although some states seem to be benefiting from the legalization of it, others are hesitant.
Is marijuana really as terrible as most people say? The marijuana industry is worth 141.80 billion dollars, and there are about 180.6 marijuana smokers in this world as of 2013 (24 Mind-Blowing Facts About Marijuana Production in America). Marijuana, more formally known as cannabis, is a very important crop in this world, and it should be legalized. Marijuana should be legalized because it is not dangerous, especially compared to the other legalized drugs out there today, such as alcohol and tobacco, it is beneficial, prohibition of marijuana is a useless waste of time and money, and because marijuana prohibition is unconstitutional.