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According to LZ Granderson, “smoking pot isn’t as harmful as people thought it to be.” He states that “legalizing pot is not without risk; it has been proven to impair concentration.” “but there are far more dangerous drugs,” like alcohol, cocaine and meth to name a few. Granderson, also states that “although government has spent trillions of dollars on the war against drugs, they have been very ineffective in keeping pot off the street.” He points out that alcohol was once “vilified” and illegal but became legal. Since government are not able to remove pot from the streets and there is an increase in violence and “ganglord violence of drug cartels. “why not legalize marijuana” and government can regulate it just as they did
This supports the conservative’s claim that the war on drugs is not making any progress to stop the supply of drugs coming into America. Conservative writer for the magazine National Review, William Buckley, shows his outrage towards the Council on Crime in America for their lack of motivation to change the drug policies that are ineffective. Buckley asks, “If 1.35 million drug users were arrested in 1994, how many drug users were not arrested? The Council informs us that there are more than 4 million casual users of cocaine” (70). Buckley goes on to discuss in the article, “Misfire on Drug Policy,” how the laws set up by the Council were meant to decrease the number of drug users, not increase the number of violators.
Marijuana is a drug that is harmful to a person¡¯s health. It has been found to have adverse impacts on one¡¯s mental processes such as memory, attention, judgement, and problem- solving (Butcher, Mineka, Hooley, 2004, p.415). Also, marijuana can interfere with a person¡¯s ability to think rationally and logically. Thus, the lapse in judgement caused by the drug use can lead to risky sexual behaviours and this may result in increasing sexually transmitted disease such as AIDS. Moreover, the long-term use of marijuana may cause chronic breathing problems and cancer ...
Lately it seems that drug policy and the war on drugs has been in the headlines quite a lot. It is becoming increasingly apparent that the policies that the United States government takes against illegal drugs are coming into question. The mainstream media is catching on to the message of organizations and individuals who have long been considered liberal "Counter Culture" supporters. The marijuana question seems to be the most prevalent and pressed of the drugs and issues that are currently being addressed. The messages of these organizations and individuals include everything from legalization of marijuana for medical purposes, to full-unrestricted legalization of the drug. Of course, the status quo of vote seeking politicians and conservative policy makers has put up a strong resistance to this "new" reform lobby. The reasons for the resistance to the changes in drug policies are multiple and complex. The issues of marijuana’s possible negative effects, its use as a medical remedy, the criminality of distribution and usage, and the disparity in the enforcement of current drug laws have all been brought to a head and must be addressed in the near future. It is apparent that it would be irresponsible and wrong for the government to not evaluate it’s current general drug policies and perhaps most important, their marijuana policy. With the facts of racial disparity in punishment, detrimental effects, fiscal strain and most importantly, the history of the drug, the government most certainly must come to the conclusion that they must, at the very least, decriminalize marijuana use and quite probably fully legalize it.
America's War on Drugs: Policy and Problems. In this paper I will evaluate America's War on Drugs. More specifically, I will outline our nation's general drug history and look critically at how Congress has influenced our current ineffective drug policy. Through this analysis, I hope to show that drug prohibition policies in the United States, for the most part, have failed.
Today’s economy is struggling and it is in dire need of relief. As of 2013, the United State’s debt was $17 trillion, and if marijuana were to be legalized than it would help raise more money. It could be taxed and distributed for consumption sold like alcohol and tobacco. Taxes on cigarettes amounted to more than $43.3 Billion in 2012 (RJReynolds). The legalization of marijuana could possibly one day make that money helping to reduce this nation's debt. But, as the United States continues to prohibit the use of marijuana, it will make the taxpayers pay more money each year on the illegal usage of the drug. The marijuana prohibition costs both state and federal governments more than $20 billion a year (CATO Institute). One drug policy could change how much it wastes on the prohibition but the government has done so. A study by the CATO institute showed that...
First of all, some people feel smoking marijuana can get hyper, which providing them the emotion of happiness, and helping them to see the world from a different perspective. However, marijuana will cause a lot of healthy problems to human’s body. Marijuana has many physical effects on human such as rapid heart rate, red eyes and dry mouth. Because the chemical THC will enter into the body when people are smoking it, THC will enter through the bloodstream to the brain. The chemical affects them to feel ecstasy and unreality; therefore, THC will make them feel more confused if people smoke marijuana for a long time. According to, “ Treat marijuana abuse like a health problem” (McMillan, 2007, July 17), it shows using marijuana can cause more serious health issues on human’s body such as bronchitis, emphysema, and cancer. In addition, using marijuana has also been linked to lung damage and affects the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. For example, if marijuana ...
People are always quick to judge the idea of marijuana legalization. Most of the reasons stem from various media sources that promote negative views of the plant. Commercials always try and show that marijuana makes people become lazy and unproductive, but these commercials are completely biased. Marijuana can play a key role in our society and it is a safe natural alternative to modern pharmaceuticals. Marijuana is also related to hemp which is a very versatile material that can be produced cheaply but is outlawed due to its relation with marijuana.
The effects of marijuana are minimal. The high has a feeling of euphoria, peacefulness and well-being. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the active chemical in marijuana. It’s estimated that a person would have to ingest a dose 20,000 to 40,000 times the average dose before death would occur. In the early 1990’s sophisticated research on marijuana began. The scientists discovered THC stimulates special receptors in the brain. Researchers have now isolated a natural substance that appears to produce the same effects as THC in the brain. Recently the medical uses of marijuana are being more and more accepted, and many marijuana smokers wonder how it can be harmful if it helps/treats patients.
Marijuana is the cause of much commotion and debate, as the question of legalization becomes more of an issue. Drugs are a major influential force in countries all over the world today. Legalization is an option that has not had a chance, but really should be given one. Although many people feel that legalizing marijuana would increase the amount of drug use, legalization would benefit for the following reasons: 1)reduction of money spent on law enforcement 2)increase in the countries revenue 3)lessen crime 4)useful in treating certain medical conditions. Many feel today we are losing the war on drugs.
The war on drugs failed. The government spent billions of dollars fighting drug use to no avail. Statistics shown in The Boston Globe state overall drug use among children ages twelve to seventeen had actually gone up from 5.7% in 1993 to 9% in 1999(Health Central). Other statistics reveal areas of decreased usage; however, the same statistics do not show the vast numbers of addicted people abusing Methamphetamines or popular club drugs like Ecstasy. Ending drug usage is likely impossible. So why are we spending billions of dollars on a lost cause? Legalization of drugs would decrease tremendous amounts of wasted money, money that could be spent on treatment for addiction. Although many people feel that legalizing drugs would increase the amount of use, marijuana should be legalized because it will reduce massive amounts of money spent on enforcement, increase our country's revenue, and provide some relief from chronic pain caused by diseases like multiple sclerosis and others.
A 2012 poll showed that 58% of Americans are in favor of decriminalization of drugs like Marijuana, as opposed to 12% back in 1969. [1] Many Americans feel that the war on drugs has failed, and that our police officers and other federal institutions could be making better use of their time, effort, and fiscal resources. The cost of this war on drugs has become so great. Not only does the war cost billions to enforce, but countless lives are lost as the cartels become more violent in their pursuit of power.
You will be in amazement at how long our government has despised such a great thing. Let’s begin with the US revenue gains that would occur from legalizing marijuana. Marijuana Offers Extreme US Revenue Boost in several Different Ways. Shouldn’t we want to collect revenue due to taxation other than criminalization? Marijuana is too expensive for our justice system and should instead be taxed to support beneficial government programs....
Recreational marijuana should not be legalized because of the many negative health effects it has on a person. Marijuana has a big effect on the lungs and when marijuana is smoked it can cause harm to the lungs. The smoke from marijuana has cancer causing substances in it. “Smoking marijuana can cause large air sacs, called bullae, to form. Bullae normally form in young marijuana smokers (less than 45 years old.)” (Drake and Slatore). Marijuana smoke has the same harmful chemicals that tobacco products contain, and marijuana smokers develop lung damage because of this. The fact that marijuana smokers hold the smoke in their lungs longer than tobacco smokers and there is no filters in bongs, bowls, blunts, or joints, there is no safe way to smoke marijuana. Blunts are the wrapping of a cigar filled with marijuana, a...
There are excessive numbers of people who remain incarcerated for nonviolent crimes related to illegal marijuana use. Legalizing marijuana would allow these people to be released, opening jail space for the true criminals. Legalizing marijuana would free up law enforcement officers from focusing on illegal marijuana use and allow focus to be put on more serious crimes.
First of all, marijuana can have many positive effects on crime. Legalizing marijuana can actually decrease crime rates in the U.S. This past year, it was counted that 6.9 million people are inside the American’s jails and prisons. 60,000 of these individuals were there for marijuana according to one study. With the legalization of marijuana, it would cut the amount of tax we pay for these jails and prisons, costing us a total of 1.2 billion. Last year a total of 7 to 10 billion dollars was used towards arresting and processing against marijuana. The big picture here is that 90% of those arrests were just for possession. It is crazy that as a country we spend most of our time trying to stop the biggest drug in America when it is just wasting our money. There are less arrests on violent crimes than marijuana charges combined. These “violent crimes” consist of assault, rape, robbery, and murder. How awful is it that we waste our time on this drug when there are so many other bigger problems we could be solving or people to be saved. Cocaine and heroin arrests have actually decreased by 1/3 from 1991 to 2000. While marijuana has more than 700,000 people are ar...