Argumentative Essay On Medical Marijuana

The cannabis plant (marijuana) has been used medicinally by a variety of cultures around the world. It was used as medicine in the United States until when a new tax fee led to its discontinued use. Congress has voted on several bills to legalize the medical use of marijuana; however none of those bills were passed. In June 2005 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that federal laws against marijuana, including its medical use, are valid. The government has authorized few research studies into the health effects of medical marijuana.  The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved

It has been used for medicinal purposes and used for pleasure purposes. During the 1930s, Harry Anslinger became commissioner of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics. (CNN History of Marijuana in America) He fought for the prohibition of marijuana. (CNN History of Marijuana in America) The movie “Reefer Madness” was made as a scare tactic for the youth in the 1930s. Back then marijuana was made to look like cigarettes. In 1937, Congress passed the Marijuana Tax Act, which immediately criminalized the drug and lead to decline in marijuana prescriptions. (Mark Eddy) "Marijuana was removed from the US Pharmacopeia in 1942, thus losing its remaining mantle of therapeutic legitimacy. (American Medical Association)" In 1951, the Boggs Act was passed, which stated that two-to-five years was the minimum sentence for any first offense drug crimes. (Families Against Mandatory Minimums) U.S. Customs were trying to keep foreign marijuana distributors from getting marijuana into the U.S. Marijuana was used by many people by the 1960s. The DEA came around in 1973. In 1996, California was the first to legalize medicinal marijuana and in 1998, Alaska, Oregon, Washington followed. Then other states began to legalize to medical marijuana as the years passed. On April 14, 2014 Maryland was the 21st state to legalize medical marijuana. Over the years there have been many disputes between the people and the government on marijuana

First, from 1900 to 1940, marijuana, including opium and cocaine were considered part of everyday drugs. As time went on, the U.S. cracked down on crack and opium, eventually outlawing them, but continued to be very “loose” with the use of marijuana. Hoxter a weed smuggler explains how he began in the 1960’s trying weed and years later saw himself unloading four hundred pounds of pot in Vancouver. The story of this man ends in his isolation and argument of why he couldn’t smoke weed even if he stopped selling? He asked a parole officer and she didn’t know what to respond. It is true what Hoxter states, fifty years ago alcohol was illegal and now it’s not, was it bad then? Will weed be legalized? And will the conflicts have been in vain? (Schou 8). Around the late 90’s and early 2000’s, scientific studies started to produce jaw-dropping results. Scientists started to discover that marijuana can significantly help people who have become ill. Medical Marijuana has been tested to help people with cataracts, cancer and severe depression (Zeese 1999). With this new worldwide discovery, the argument about medical marijuana ignited. States wanted to only make medical marijuana legal so it may help sick people, but the government did not want any form of marijuana legal. The law that was known throughout the United States was any form of marijuana was illegal. But now with this new discovery, doctors in states across the country want the

In the United States, we have enacted numerous bans and restrictions against certain drugs and substances with the purpose of protecting the general public from their negative effects. On this list of illegal drugs are harmful and addictive substances such as cocaine, methamphetamines, and heroin. A substance called cannabis, also known as marijuana, is also on this list. As of now, it is illegal to buy, sell, possess, or use marijuana in any shape or form in the state of Louisiana. However, due to the advancement of technology and of human perspective and innovation, it has come to light that marijuana could actually be of benefit to our society through its medicinal uses in treating a range of conditions and diseases as well as its possible social benefits in helping individuals stray from heavier drugs by acting as a substitute. Now that the wheels of time are turning and that medical marijuana is becoming a budding industry, the question remains: should marijuana be legal all across the United States of America? With the benefits it could bring with its medical, social, and economic uses, marijuana could be a profitable asset to our society if it were to be legalized, and I believe that we should strive for that outcome.

The decriminalization of marijuana is an incredibly controversial topic in the United States. Conservative views deem the drug dangerous and debilitating, while reformers suggest that legalizing the plant would have an enormous positive impact on the economy. While others, the terminally ill, wish for the plant to be legal so it can be offered as a less toxic and sometimes more effective alternative to harsh prescription drugs. an overwhelming wealth of facts that state the benefits marijuana can have medically.

The medical marijuana debate is an interesting one because there’s such a wide diversity of opinions and views that oppose each other. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency classifies marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug. They consider these drugs to have no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse and to be some of the most dangerous drugs, because they’re highly addictive and may cause severe psychological or physical dependence. Other Schedule 1 drugs include heroin, LSD, ecstasy and meth. Many who are against marijuana believe the drug is dangerous, harmful and feel it should remain illegal.

The use of marijuana for medicinal purposes is a long-standing controversy. For centuries marijuana was prescribed to alleviate symptoms associated with a variety of illnesses. Anti-medical marijuana sentiments began with the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937. In 1970, the Controlled Substances Act banned the use of marijuana completely, categorizing it as a drug with no medicinal value, high abuse rates, and detrimental health effects (http://www.farmacy.org/prop215/apha.html). Since 1996, numerous states including California, Alaska, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon and Washington have passed medical marijuana initiatives supporting the right to prescribe marijuana for seriously or terminally ill patients (http://www.marihemp.com/marimed.html). The American Public Health Association and the Institute of Medicine represent two organizations that have recently researched and endorsed advancements in the study of medical marijuana. Both groups support the use of marijuana for specific treatments, such as reducing nausea in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy, stimulating the appetites of AIDS victims, and limiting spasticity in MS patients.

Joycelyn Elders, former Surgeon General, once spoke about the legalization of marijuana for medical use in a press conference. "It's criminal to keep this medicine from patients," she said (Silverman, 1995, pg. 2). She received criticism not only from many citizens of the United States, but also strong criticism from the President who appointed her. The legalization of marijuana for medical use has always been a sharply debated subject, and many of the debaters are uneducated about the effects of using this illegal drug for therapeutic use. Many studies have been done and the results are clear. As a medical drug, marijuana should be available to patients who do not adequately respond to currently available

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

No matter what it’s called: reefer, hemp, cannabis, or weed, the medicinal properties of the leafy green herb have been recognized for centuries and the medicament was readily available in pharmacies as early as 1840 and continued to be for nearly another one hundred more. Then came “Reefer Madness”, a propaganda movie critical of the effects of marijuana and the plant, despite its known benefits, became prohibited. Fast forward to 1996 and the Compassionate Care Act of California gave the first hope to patients in need of new treatment alternatives. Though some states have legalized the use of marijuana for both medicinal and recreational use, it remains illegal federally. Legalization of medical marijuana will offer a safer, more cost-effective approach to disease management for people suffering from debilitating conditions, as well as generate state and federal

Medical use of Marijuana is probably the most discussed topic of the legalizing campaign over the recent years. Some opponents of Marijuana say that it does not have any medical uses at all, and argue that Marijuana is only harmful and should remain illegal. Others for legalization have an opposite view that is starting to gain more recognition as time goes on. Around the late 1990’s, some members of the nation’s medical establishment began to acknowledge marijuana’s potential health benefits. One respected health organization, the Institute of Medicine, released a report in 1999 which stated that “nausea, appetite loss, pain and anxiety can all be mitigated by marijuana (Medical). In an article Drug Legalization, Advocates of medical marijuana say that in many cases it is the only treatment that has been shown to work. “It is a very effective medication for people who have failed to get good results from standard medications,” says Ethan Russo, a neurologist who has studied medical marijuana, “and that is why so many people are devoted to risking their lives and career to get this drug”(Drug). There are many reports that Marijuana can help with conditions traditional medicines do not seem to help with. Marijuana has also been a huge help to patients with Cancer, HIV/AIDS, Glaucoma, and Insomnia. With a lot of prescription medicines being expensive, Marijuana would be a cheaper alternative to buy if people chose to do so.

This book explains real the medicinal value of marijuana. why is it illegal? David Ford explains how the federal government created a systematic campaign of deception that began in the 1930's. From fifty years of research and interviews with hundreds of marijuana users, the author offers many arguments why marijuana should never have been illegal. The government is aware that marijuana never resulted in even one documented death. In 1966, the voters of California and Arizona approved marijuana for medical purposes. This has sparked up a controversy. Should it be legalized or not? I want to write about this because, this is one of the most talked about and most argued about subjects in America today. It is definitely a subject that should be examined and researched a little more. I will use David’s book to illustrate whether or not marijuana should be legalized or not. In honesty I am not a fan for marijuana, I think the world functions just fine as it

In 1974, High Times magazine was founded (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). In the 1980s, first lady Nancy Reagan started the “Just Say No” campaign to influence children to resist peer pressure to use illegal drugs (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). In 1980, arrests were predominantly for marijuana (seventy percent); marijuana possession offenses alone accounted for fifty-eight percent of the total drug possession arrests (MacCoun 24-25). The price of marijuana has increased quite a bit since 1980 (MacCoun 31). For twenty years, seventy to eighty percent opposed marijuana legalization (MacCoun 48-49). In 1996, California became the first state to legalize the medical use of marijuana after marijuana became a controlled substance in the U.S. Marijuana has been shown to be therapeutic in treating patients with glaucoma, AIDS, and cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy (At Issue). In 1999, the Institute of Medicine conducted a review of the potential health benefits and risks (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). The report concluded that cannabis is useful for pain relief, control of nausea and vomiting, and appetite stimulation (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). Despite this observation, marijuana is still stated to be harmful to the lungs (Marijuana Legalization Timeline). On March 19, 2009, Attorney General Eric Holder announced the Justice Department will not prosecute pot dispensaries that are operating

This organization was the first in the country to be granted non-profit status. By 1937, marijuana had been classified as a narcotic by all states. It wasn?t until 1972 that there was a call for the decriminalization of marijuana by the government. The American Medical Association and the National Council of Churches endorsed the decriminalization of marijuana. One must believe that support from an organization with such influence in the medical field that marijuana must have some medicinal purpose. In 1996, California passed Proposition 215, which legalized possession of marijuana for patients with a doctor?s recommendation who are suffering from AIDS, cancer, Glaucoma, and other illnesses. In September of 2000, federal Judge William Alsup of the Ninth Circuit Court in San Francisco ruled that the government could not punish doctors who recommend the benefits of marijuana to their patients. This verdict gave ill people a sign of hope that they will be able to take whatever medication necessary, even marijuana, to treat their sicknesses.

Medical marijuana is very a big and controversial issue in today's society, currently the community is divided on the issue. Questions are always being thrown around such as "how does marijuana affect the body?" and "what good does’ marijuana do for a person?" Researchers have tried to answer these questions with multiple studies and they have shown some of the positives of medical marijuana. If something is able to help someone who is in dire need why not use it on those people to find a better solution for them. I myself am on the supportive side of the issue of medical marijuana. I don't think it should be legal to just anyone though I believe there should be a legal age law, a driving while under the influence, and a public intoxication law in effect for medical marijuana to be legal.