The legalization of marijuana will have a profound, positive impact on the national economy and our government could generate and save billions. Our countries present spiraling economy is attacking us like a flesh-eating virus. The time has come for us to declare war on this life threatening aliment as we would any other terminal illness.
Declaration of War:
Marijuana Pro-legislation is the declaration of war on this nation's current economic plight. This battle begins with the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes, and then moves in to full fight for legal overall use. The Pro-Movement with its mighty merciless onslaught has conquered and taken each state by storm. This war will not be won until full legalization for public use and the freedom to grow marijuana legally achieved for the entire nation. Time to reap the spoils; with this war won, we can save our nation's economy.
You may have noticed in the media that the movement to legalize marijuana is rapidly building support across the country, along with growing opposition. Several states either already have or are considering legislation to decriminalize marijuana. Medical marijuana legalized in 14 states and the District of Columbia. The state of California like our entire nation held captive by a massive budget deficit. California has helped alleviated its own economic crisis with legalized marijuana for medical purposes. California is considering legalizing marijuana for general use. Current polls show that nearly 60% of California residents favor this proposal. (Green, 2010)
(Aberration, 2010)
The Combat Zone:
Legalization to combat our current economic crisis or is it a pretext to new economic woes?
Opposition: There are many argume...
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"Cast A Pro-Vote Now!"
Works Cited
Aberration. (Photographer). (2010). Retrieved from http://www.420magazine.com/gallery/u61741-aberration.html
Kroninger, S. (Photographer). (2009). Why Legalizing marijuana makes sense. Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1889021,00.html#ixzz0sJazB8Mn
Boyd, R. (2008, January 28). Legal weed: a pot of gold? The Economics of the marijuana industry. 420 Magazine , Retrieved June 21, 2010 from http://www.420magazine.com/forums/cannabis-facts-information/72990-legal-weed-pot- gold-economics-marijuana-industry.html
Miron, J.A. (2005). The Budgetary implications of marijuana prohibition. Marijuana Policy Project, Retrieved June 30, 2010 from http://www.prohibitioncosts.org/mironreport.html
KAPLIN LIBRARY SOURCES:
Green, J (2010, July). Refer sanity. Atlantic Monthly, 306(01), p40-40.
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.
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...
Miron, Jeffrey A, “The Budgetary Implications of Marijuana Prohibition.” The Marijuana Policy Project. June 2005. PDF file.
Legalizing marijuana on a federal level can prove to be very beneficial to America in various ways, especially if it is taxed and regulated the same as alcohol or tobacco products. Of course opposes of marijuana legalization proclaim that there are no benefits and that legalization would only add to drug abuse in America especially with adolescents. However, tobacco and alcohol are used far more among teens; marijuana use among teenagers has decreased to 7.2% in 2007 as opposed to 8.2% in 2002, yet all three are illegal for teens (Johnson). Not to mention that marijuana use has proved to be less harmful than drugs that are legal such as alcohol, tobacco, prescription painkillers, and a new popular drug known as synthetic marijuana or K2. Synthetic marijuana is a non-cannabis product that contains chemicals and dried plant material and produces psychoactive effects similar to marijuana, but it is more dangerous (Wanlund, 865-88). Unlike marijuana, synthetic marijuana is cheaper and readily available; it can cause death, seizures, psychotic episodes, heart attack and strokes (865-88). In fact, within the first six months of 2015, synthetic marijuana claimed the lives of 15 people, yet it is still sold at local stores (865-88). By legalizing and regulating marijuana, the U.S can increase the safety of its citizens using the drug, restrict minors’ access to the drug and decrease its death count of citizens using similar or far worse drugs. Street dealers do not check ID’s or provide childproof packaging and carefully label products. “When we take cannabis out of the underground market and put it behind a legal, regulated counter, we create a safer more responsible system” (865-88). Furthermore, cannabis is not addictive. “A small min...
Legalizing Marijuana has been a common subject for debate in the United States. As the debate continues on in the political system, marijuana has become the most popular illegal drug in the United States. There are many arguments for and against the legalization of marijuana ranging from the effects on the mind and body to the economic possibilities after legalization. Both sides embrace strong facts and stronger support, but much of these facts consist of similar research with contradicting results. The side that tends to have the most and the strongest support in the most prominent arguments, economics, health, and criminal association, is the group for legalizing marijuana.
Marijuana—a prominently used, yet widely opposed substance. Marijuana usage has been and is an immensely debated subject within the states. Many liberal states favor the drug due to its economic and medicinal values. However, many conservative states abhor the narcotic due to its psychoactive effects on the brain and its minimal medicinal value. These anti-marijuana fans emphasize the drug’s relation to the usage of more potent substances such as cocaine. Overall, there is high tension between those who advocate the drug versus those who protest against it. Economically, taxation on marijuana provides a supplemental income to the state that results in a higher budget for the states’ respective governments; medicinally, the narcotic eases pain for terminally ill patients and alleviates the sense of disorientation. Furthermore, the drug has less harmful effects to the body in comparison to tobacco and alcohol; therefore, the legalization of the previous two should justify the legalization of marijuana. Marijuana’s pros exceed its cons and thus, the substance’s legalization is justifiable.
Marijuana is a drug that can be consumed by either smoking or eating; this drug is typically used for medicinal or recreational use, however, in the United States it is the most popular illegal drug used on a daily basis by many users. Under federal law marijuana is classified as a schedule one controlled substance, also in this category includes heroin, LSD, and PCP. Marijuana has many street names such as Pot, herb, weed, Mary Jane, grass, and reefer just to name a few. Marijuana is considered a gateway drug and may lead to potential use of other hardcore illicit drugs. American’s spend roughly 100 billion dollars worth of marijuana a year, which is about thirty-two million pounds of weed, annually. Regardless if marijuana is legal or illegal people are going to continue using it. Legalizing marijuana brings much controversy; there isn’t much research available on marijuana to prove whether it would be beneficial to legalize. However, the government makes it very difficult for researchers to investigate the affects marijuana would have on our society, because it is prohibited. If American’s were educated on the use of weed, they would understand it isn’t any more dangerous than consuming alcohol. Marijuana prohibition creates an illegal economy, allows easy access to youth, and is costly to tax payers.
The legalization of marijuana has been a highly debated topic for many of years. Since the first president to the most recent, our nation’s leaders have consumed the plant known as weed. With such influential figures openly using this drug why is it so frowned upon? Marijuana is considered a gateway drug, a menace to society, and mentally harmful to its consumers. For some people weed brings a sense of anxiety, dizziness, or unsettling feeling. Like alcohol, tobacco or any other drug, those chemicals may not respond well with their body. For other people marijuana brings joy, a sense of relief, and takes the edge off of every day stress. For those who are associated with cannabis, purposes usually range from a relaxant, or cash crop, to more permissible uses such as medicine, and ingredient to make so many other materials. We now need to look at what would change if marijuana were legal. Benefits to the economy and agriculture, health issues, and crime rates are three areas worth looking at. Deliberating on the pros and cons of this plant we can get a better understanding for marijuana. From there it will be easier to make a clear consensus on what is best for the nation.
Marijuana is a shredded mix of dry flowers, stems and the seeds of a plant called cannabis and people usually smoke it in the form of cigarettes for relaxation. Ever since marijuana hit mainstream America over 30 years ago, government prohibition of it has been the subject of an ongoing debate. Should marijuana be legalized? Proponents of marijuana argue that there are numerous medical benefits and that the drug is not more harmful than tobacco or alcohol. Therefore, prohibiting it intrudes on personal freedom. On the other hand, opponents argue that marijuana is too dangerous; its legalization would increase the chances of the drug falling into the hands of kids and that marijuana use often progresses to the use of more dangerous drugs like heroin and cocaine. In the past decade, a number of movements to legalize the use of marijuana has been gaining momentum. According to the 2011 Gallup survey, a record high 50% of Americans say that marijuana should be legalized and this figure marks a 4% increase compared to the previous year. Support for legalizing marijuana was 30% in 2000, 40% in 2009 before reaching 50% last year. This shows that despite government efforts to eliminate its use, marijuana is becoming more popular. More and more people realize that legalizing marijuana brings a host of benefits. It not only offers medical benefits to the terminally ill but it could also be a source of tax revenues and could save the tax payers billions of dollars that is spent on enforcement costs.
Criminalization of cannabis causes a weakened economy due to taxpayers paying to financially support America’s inmates and all of the tax money available if marijuana was regularly taxed. Also, with lawful cannabis not available, crime rate and violence within city our streets continues to be an issue. Prohibition of cannabis in the United States sponsors extreme violence and corruption and fails to curb the availability to children ("Marijuana Legalization and Regulation”). With cannabis being criminalized, the United States is also losing the largest potential cash crop because of marijuana’s many uses and benefits.
In the last fiscal year alone, marijuana brought 70 million dollars in tax revenue in the state of Colorado. Colorado was the first state to legalize marijuana recreationally in the fall of 2012, and since then three other states and the District of Columbia have legalized the plant. Based off of sales in states that have legalized marijuana recreationally, if all fifty states legalized marijuana, they would bring in a combined 3 billion dollars in tax revenue yearly. That much money from sales of the plant alone could help to stabilize the suffering economy. Moreover, the American Government would be able to control the plant and distribute it how ever they see fit. The economic growth marijuana legalization could bring to the United States outweighs any argument against
The legalization of marijuana has the potential to bring our economy back to life if it were to be legalized. There are a number of ways in which legalization could improve the economy. We could use the revenue from taxes on marijuana to provide for a better quality of life for Americans in need. Legalizing marijuana would also save us money by cutting the cost of putting someone in jail for harmless marijuana related charges that waste tax money. Also it would put more money into circulation by keeping the profits off the black market and into the legal and taxed market. With an estimated twenty-five million active marijuana smokers in America that consume nearly thirty-one million pounds of marijuana each year, we are missing out on extreme revenue that this country cannot afford to go without for much longer (Krulick).
For thousands of years human beings have attempted to find ways to get passed the struggles of their lives. With the pain of the world stopping people from enjoying simple pleasures, sometimes there is a need for help. Marijuana brings millions of people relief from the pain they feel on a day-to-day basis. This completely natural plant which helped so many people has puzzled the leaders of our nation for a long time. The THC in marijuana causes its users to experience a mild-huluciginic or high. The effect that marijuana has on a person has prevented the product from being legalized. Many other details about the plant, like the speculation of it being a gateway drug, have put another blockage on its legalization. Even though there are speculations about the plant, the benefit that it brings to the table most definitely out way its disadvantages. Marijuana can also alleviate several symptoms associated with cancer and Aids treatments and disorders. While Marijuana is effective as a medicine, it is also extremely lucrative. The economic benefits that Marijuana brings to the table are endless. Upon marijuana’s legalization, the economy would experience an immediate influx. Legalization of Marijuana would also drastically reduce crime in our cities and form a more productive society through its positive uses. The benefits that marijuana brings medically and economically are considerable enough to legalize its use medically or recreational.
Marijuana is the third most common leisure drug in the United States after alcohol and tobacco. Millions of Americans smoke marijuana despite the strict laws against its use. Marijuana is less dangerous compared to tobacco or alcohol. Smoking marijuana can cause breathing problems and coughing just like cigarettes and some people get addicted after using for a while. Regulating and legalizing marijuana will bring Americas greatest cash crop under law, create economic opportunities and jobs in the formal economy as opposed to the underground market. Adopting a legally controlled market for marijuana will ensure that consumers buy the products from a safe and legal source. Marijuana has been approved in some states for medical uses to ease the effects of different health challenges. Colorado and Washington legalized m...
After so many years, America still finds itself fighting a well-known and highly demonized "enemy". The enemy is not terrorism. It's an "enemy" that many Americans have dealt with face to face. This enemy is illegal drugs, marijuana in particular. Marijuana is the most widely used and criminalized drug in the United States. This highly sought after resource yields a black market price tag that creates a street economy all its' own. This is Marijuana by itself, it and all the other illegal drugs together combine to form the third largest economy in the world. This is because the demand for illegal drugs is so high. There can be benefits to a legalized drug trade that is certain. The following paper will defend that some uses of marijuana will benefit the economy if legalized. This is based on the premises that all illegal drugs can benefit the economy if legalized and that some illegal drugs include uses of marijuana.