In 2009, 29 million Americans ages 12 and over have reported to using marijuana at least once within the previous year. That number alone is an astonishing statistic on marijuana users. Although marijuana has been a drug with increasing popularity especially throughout the past couple of years due to the legalization in some states. In November of 2012 history was made when Washington and Colorado both legalized marijuana for recreational use. Although marijuana is considered to be a Schedule 1 drug, which means it has a high potential for drug abuse and addictive properties, it is still considered by many that it is not harmful and is in fact the #1 most used illegal drug in the United States. Approximately half of the American population …show more content…
By legalizing marijuana there will be an influx of jobs created due to the demand for dispensaries. Considering the 2.5 million Americans are registered users of medical marijuana, dispensaries alone can make up 2.2 million in one year excluding taxes and owner’s draw and have created thousands of job opportunities just alone in Washington and Colorado. The next pro is the idea that upon legalization there will be a reduction in crime rates. The U.S prisons house up to 6.9 million individuals, 60,000 of those prisoners are there for marijuana use. To house marijuana users it costs the taxpayers around $7-10 billion a year. Approximately 90% of those individuals are in prison for being charged with possession only. The arrests for marijuana possession exceed the arrests for violent crimes including rape and murder. Approximately over 700,000 individuals are arrested each year for marijuana charges. By legalizing marijuana the prisons would have more room for individuals who have committed a violent crime and police forces will be able to do their job and focus on those individuals. This will also give more funding to state agencies and police forces in order to reduce the number of violent crimes. Legalizing marijuana will allow access to health benefits to many individuals, create an increase in job opportunities nationwide providing an influx
Legalizing marijuana will lead to many societal benefits that will reduce illegal activity while helping the government control the use of the substance and making a profit that can be used to help taxpayers. Marijuana is not a dangerous drug and should be legalized because it does not cause harm to anyone and by legalizing marijuana the government will take control of marijuana distribution and it can benefit a lot of people in many ways. If the government controls the market for marijuana people would no longer be in danger of trying to acquire it illegally and there would be tax for selling marijuana which will benefit both the government and society. By legalizing marijuana the government can make laws about its use.
Marijuana legalization will help reduce illegal activity surrounding the plant too, again, reducing the need to pay for those people to go to jail. This includes, but is not limited to, people who, after its legalization, still want to grow and sell their own marijuana.
Legalizing marijuana does not just benefit those who need or want it, it benefits America's economy. Since it is illegal and is the most commonly used, the crime rates are high. A total of 800,000 people are arrested for the possession, selling, or manufacturing of marijuana. In The Daily Caller News Foundation it is stated that “Crime rates on the drug are way down. Possession
Marijuana is a popular and universal drug. It is easily accessible to most people and is the number one illicit drug used in North America. Although the availability and knowledge of this drug is fairly equal for all people in North America, marijuana tends to be more prevalent in teenagers and young adults. Maisto, Galizio, and Conners (2004) reported that "use of marijuana [in young people] was 8.0% among those aged 12-17; 16% among those aged 18-25," as compared to "6.8% among those aged 26-34; and 2.4% among those 35 and older." People of all ages, races, and religions use marijuana and have their own reasons to use it. Young people first try marijuana because of some common reasons. Some teenagers feel pressured by their peers to
There have been some pretty apparent pros that have come with the legalization of marijuana. The state has put a hefty tax on the sale of marijuana, which has generated a lot of income. The state has used the profits for all sorts of things that will help to improve the lives of the people living there. “The first 40 million of this tax revenue is earmarked for public schools and infrastructure, as well as for youth educational campaigns about substance use.”(Roberts, Jeff). They have used these profits to improve education, infrastructure, and the local governments. So far it has generated hundreds of millions of dollars that have gone to the groups that were listed and many more. “It’s going so well in Colorado in 2015, that pot shops sold both medical and recreational weed for about $700-million with two months of sales
Opening dispensaries to legally sell the marijuana to customers would create thousands of jobs to help with the current economic crisis. The dispensaries have to hire people to help with the growing process and to sell the marijuana in the dispensaries. Legalizing marijuana would also create jobs for the people who grow, process and sell industrial hemp. It would create jobs at farms, manufacturing plants and distribution shops. It creates a whole new industry, therefore creating jobs in every part of the industry.
First, one of the biggest reasons for many to legalize marijuana is the boost in revenue it can cause. Legalization will allow the government to form new taxes and apply them to the sale and distribution of marijuana. For example, in Colorado, analysts say that taxing could lead to raising millions of dollars each year. States who have legalized marijuana show higher numbers of usage than states who have not. That is why there is a higher demand for weed creating better economic opportunities for these communities in the future. Secondly, legalization could lead to improvements in the criminal justice system and law enforcement. If marijuana was made legal law enforcement agencies could spend less time going after weed related crimes and focus on more serious and violent criminals. This is a better for the criminal justice system because when it comes to decriminalization there will still be discretion on how each officer deals with possession. Therefore, legalization will
Today, marijuana is the third most popular recreational drug of choice in the United States. Approximately 70 million Americans having smoked marijuana
About 30 million Americans use marijuana every year. Marijuana is one of the most commonly used drugs in the United States, and in California. The legalization of recreational marijuana has affected many as that they’ve sought out to decriminalize its use. In Jesse Wegman’s article, “The Injustice of Marijuana Arrests," he indicates that the criminalization of marijuana has been one of the major causes to why there are so many people in prisons or with a criminal record. He states that, “More than 8.2 million people have been arrested for marijuana.” He argues that so many resources and time are spent on charging people with marijuana offenses. In Alex Padilla’s voter guide, “Official Voter Information
One thing that we can do if we legalize marijuana is that we could tax marijuana per the gram. It has been estimated that we could make billions more dollars if we legalize marijuana and tax it. With taxing marijuana we could pay off the massive debt that our country has accumulated over the years (Miron). This would create very little jobs, so in addition to that it would reduce the criminal justice budget because they are the people that enforce laws on drugs. Creating more jobs is something that the United States has been wanting to do for a long time, but this wouldn't be a idea because you would lose more jobs legalizing marijuana than keeping it illegal. Other jobs you would lose is prosecutors,prison guards, and police officers because of the budget
Teenage marijuana use is at an all time high, it has been found that today’s teen marijuana smokers are doing so at extreme amounts, some even do so daily. What are the factors that cause them to start experimenting and smoking marijuana? The amounts of marijuana being smoked by today’s teenagers must have an effect on the developing teens. The minds and bodies of the teens who smoke must be facing some sort of developing issues. Marijuana is a mild drug compared to harsher drugs like cocaine, heroin, meth, etc. the users of marijuana will eventually look for a stronger and long lasting high so they will turn to these harsher and more addicting substances. The decisions that today’s teens are making to smoke marijuana might have a
As shops for recreational and medical Marijuana open, more purchases of the product will be made which impacts the tax revenue. An example would be Colorado (a state that legalizes Marijuana) where “In 2015, Colorado collected more than $135 million in taxes and fee on medical and recreational marijuana” (Krishna, 2017). Arcview Market Research also predicts that “Sales in North America grew 30%, to $6.7 billion, in 2016, and is projected to increase to $20.1 billion by 2021”. The legalization of Marijuana will also provide many job opportunities since a variety of different jobs will be needed that relate to Marijuana. Investopedia.Com states “A RCG Economics and Marijuana Policy Group study on Nevada says that legalizing recreational marijuana in the state could support over 41,000 jobs till 2024 and generate over $1.7 billion in labor income. The ICF study estimates at least 81,000 additional direct, indirect, and induced jobs in California as a result of legalized marijuana sales. It also projects an increase in total labor income by at least $3.5 billion”. Another way legalizing Marijuana would impact the economy positively is that the government can save money spent on enforcing the law of Marijuana being illegal. Huffington post states “Inmates incarcerated on marijuana-related charges cost U.S. prisons $1 billion annually, according to a 2007 study, AlterNet reports.” and “The government would save an estimated $13.7 billion on prohibition enforcement costs and tax revenue by legalizing marijuana”.This low risk substance saves the economy a lot of money and support it
Some U.S. states approve the use of medical marijuana. Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug in the U.S., with an astonishing 22.2 million people in America actively using the drug. In July, 2016 alone, legalization of marijuana for medical use or adult recreational use in a growing number of states may affect these views. Marijuana is commonly used for medicinal purposes.(New
The first benefit to the legalization of marijuana would be the decreased spending on law enforcement. Many of America’s jails are filled to the brim with people who got long and unfair sentences for possession of the drug. Part of the
Research has found that Marijuana was the most frequently used d rug within the United States, meaning that within 7% of users, 19% are between 18-25 years of age (Phillips et al., 2015). In Colorado specifically, one third of all college students use the recreational drug regularly (Phillips et al., 2015). Many studies have