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Proposal for legalizing marijuana
Positive effects on the legalization of marijuana in america
Legalisiing marijuana
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Marijuana is the familiar name for a raw drug made from the plant cannabis sativa. One of the active chemical in marijuana is tetrahydrocannabinal (THC); a stimulant it give users the pleasure effect of relaxation, known as a “high” or hallucinating when consumed too much either through oral or smoking. It is the mainstream drug and a blistering topic to our nation in this day and age. Legalizing marijuana is an ever-growing political and social battle making its way to the top of American controversial issues list. Marijuana is one of the prime adversaries on the outlook of America’s war on drugs. Numerous people crave this drug to be permissible and readily available similar to tobacco and alcohol. While it is mind-boggling that two life-threatening substances such as tobacco and alcohol are legal, it is only fair to inquire why marijuana is illegal. While some argue that legalizing marijuana would significantly decrease the America’s prison system and save the states billions of dollars, others believe that the usage of marijuana may increase and deliberately get in to the hands of minors.
Those who are in favor for marijuana legalization consider the ‘War on Drugs’ as an expensive disappointment. Billions of needless dollars are spent to incarcerate individuals that choose to use a substance that is less harmful and addictive than alcohol or prescribed medications. In addition, pro-marijuana advocate also suggest that if marijuana were to be legalized, the government could control the substance, very much like tobacco and alcohol. A method to control the purity of distributed marijuana, tracking marijuana use in the United States, and collect tax on the revenue. Which allows the government to have ample money to ut...
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... put an end to the illegal distribution of the substance. In retrospect, disciplinary actions such as fines and imprisonment will decrease marijuana use. However, marijuana users are people that are not a menace to society and are minor criminals. As a result, imprisoning the users could be taken to mean as an excessively waste of federal funds along with over-populating the prison unnecessarily. Government is created to set good examples and educate children that drugs can corrupt anyone under the influence.
Works Cited
Armentano, Paul. “Marijuana Arrests Driving America’s So-Called ‘Drug War,’
Latest FBI Data Shows.” Web. 19 Sep. 2011
"U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration." Rev. of U.S. Drug Enforcement
Administration. Web log post. U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. Web. 28 Sept. 2011. .
charges could lead to more time in jail and more cost to the government.This makesthe prison system less efficient than it already is. There are organizations that think that the legalization of marijuana would help both the economy and th...
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 pressing 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.
Just as alcohol prohibition during the 20’s and 30’s was not successful, marijuana prohibition has not been successful either, as evidenced by its current and increasing popularity in the United States. According the deputy director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, Mr. Paul Armentano, marijuana was made illegal in the United States with the passing of the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 (2014). Later, Congress classified marijuana as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substance Act of 1970 (Armentano, 2014). Since then, hundreds of thousands of Americans have been arrested for the possession, distribution and use of marijuana. According to Professor Katherine Beckett, “there were 829,625 marijuana arrests” (Beckett, et.al., N.D.) in 2006 and that number is increasing. The debate on whether or not to legalize marijuana for recreational use has raged for decades but is beginning to see the light of day with the recent state-level victories. With Washington and Colorado guiding the way, the country as a whole is considering the issue of whether or not marijuana should be legalized. If legalized, tax revenues could potentially generate millions, if not billions, of dollars annually for state and federal coffers. Marijuana should be legalized. Legalization will not increase usage nor will the current prohibition decrease usage; however tax revenue from the distribution and sale of marijuana could benefit many state programs and even possibly eliminate governmental deficits in the future.
Ever since marijuana’s introduction to the United States of America in 1611, controversy of the use and legalization of the claimed-to-be Schedule I drug spread around the nation. While few selective states currently allow marijuana’s production and distribution, the remaining states still skepticize the harmlessness and usefulness of this particular drug; therefore, it remains illegal in the majority of the nation. The government officials and citizens of the opposing states believe the drug creates a threat to citizens due to its “overly-harmful” effects mentally and physically and offers no alternate purposes but creating troublesome addicts hazardous to society; however, they are rather misinformed about marijuana’s abilities. While marijuana has a small amount of negligible effects to its users, the herbal drug more importantly has remarkable health benefits, and legalizing one of the oldest and most commonly known drugs would redirect America’s future with the advantages outweighing the disadvantages.
Marijuana, or Cannabis, is a plant that has been in use since ancient times. Cannabis has had significant affects on history and societies throughout the years. It is a plant that can grow in any environment, with the exception of the Arctic Circle. Up until recent years the Cannabis plant has never been looked upon negatively. The debate on Cannabis has started again; with some people thinking that it should be legal and others thinking that it should stay illegal. It is time for people to see Cannabis as what it really is and not as what manipulative advertisements have shown it to be.
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.
Suppose your government made the decision that Christmas or your favorite coffee was suddenly criminalized. How would you react? America faced the prohibition of many substances throughout time, however, no law has been so controversial as the criminalization of marijuana. As a result of the criminalization of the drug, it has been illegal for citizens to use cannabis recreationally and medically, as well as for practical purposes. Marijuana has many medical uses as well as practical uses, such as using hemp instead of rope or taking advantage of marijuana as a paper resource instead of our diminishing trees.With marijuana still illegal in the United States, our country is taking a huge loss by squandering money by putting citizens in jail, wasting a valuable cash crop, as well as sponsoring violence and corruption throughout the streets.
In 2010, approximately one in ten Americans abused marijuana; conversely, our country pays in excess of seven billion each year to implement the illegalization of this environmental material. A latest survey taken in 2011 shows marijuana has gradually become the desired drug for Americans. Generally, 17.4 million of the United States residents used marijuana in 2010 according to an analysis by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (Stirring the Pot, 2013). An economics instructor, Dr. Jeffrey Miron at Harvard University, concluded a report that established the estima...
The Web. The Web. 10 Apr. 2014. The 'Standard' of the 'Standard'. http://www.drugwarfacts.org/. Miron, Jeffrey A. & Co.
...llegalized for a long time without any evidence of success. The drug has become purer, more available, and cheap in the recent past. Demand and supply for marijuana has increased despite the harsh policies and the war on drugs. Legalizing marijuana will reduce the boom in the black market and reduce crime, corruption, and violence associated with drug cartels. Millions of dollars used for incarceration will be redirected to rehabilitation, which will reduce dependence, especially among younger users. Legalization will allow users of marijuana to buy from legal and safe sources. The war on drugs has been ineffective in reducing drug use despite spending a lot of money on incarcerations. Mass incarceration in the drug war has had negative effects on the society because most imprisoned individuals are non-violent offenders who pose no legitimate threat to the community.
With America’s war on drugs being highly focused on the increased use of marijuana, there is not much time for officers to focus on crimes of greater importance. Crimes related to illegal marijuana use are becoming more problematic due to drug deals that go bad, occasionally ending with murder. It has been estimated that one marijuana-related arrest is made every 42 seconds. With marijuana being illegal, keeping crime related activities under control cost the United States approximately twenty billion dollars per year (Sledge). According to Brian Bremner and Vincent Del Giudice, “A 2010 study by the libertarian Cato Institute, forecasted that states could save $17.4 billion annually from reduced drug enforcement costs and increased tax revenue, assuming marijuana production and sales were legal nationwide” (11). Several law enforcement hours are exhausted with pursing, questioning, and arresting citizens that are in possession of or consuming marijuana. There would be a decrease in the number of misdemeanor possession cases that are pending hearing. These cases would be dismissed, decreasing costs affiliated with each case. 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