The Debate Over the Legalization of Marijuana

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Puff, Puff, Pass the Legalization of Marijuana
Many people crave the moment where they can just sit down, relax, and enjoy some free time. They could perhaps take a nice walk in a park, or possibly sit down and enjoy a movie on T.V. However, a large sum of people nationwide chooses to participate in a certain recreational activity to find their relaxation: smoking Marijuana. In fact, “Washington and Colorado are the first to allow adults to use the drug for recreational purposes” (Legalizing Marijuana, par 1). Unfortunately for half of our nation’s population, the use of the plant, Cannabis, was deemed illegal. “Before 1937, marijuana was freely bought, sold, grown, and smoked in the United States. Since that time, all of these activities have been illegal, but many groups and individuals have fought to decriminalize marijuana” (Rich, par 1). I find this preposterous! I believe that the federal government should look at what the people want, and pass the law making Marijuana legal, but of course having regulations to go along with it. Not only shall it please the people of the United States, but our economy could greatly benefit from legalizing Cannabis and it is an aid towards medical treatment. It would be to our nation’s best interest to have legislation legalize marijuana at not only the state level, but as a national level as well.
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...

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Loch, Kathy. "Medical Marijuana." CQ Researcher. CQ Press, 20 Aug. 1999. Web. 11 Dec. 2013.
Marshall, Patrick. "Marijuana Laws." CQ Researcher. CQ Press, 11 Feb. 2005. Web. 11 Dec. 2013.
"Oprah Winfrey." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 12 Oct. 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2013.
Rich, Alex. "Legalization Of Marijuana: An Overview." Points Of View: Legalization Of Marijuana (2013): 1. Points of View Reference Center. Web. 11 Dec. 2013.
Sledge, Matt. "Marijuana Prohibition Now Costs The Government $20 Billion A Year: Economist." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 20 Apr. 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2013.
"What Is the Lethal Dose of Marijuana?" DrugLibrary.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2013.

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