Cannabis: Current Policies and Its Consequences

The perception and policy on cannabis has been clouded by ill-informed attitudes uphold by a section of society and by the legacy of the various ‘war on drugs’. A handful of countries such as SPAIAN, Netherlands, North Korea, Colombia, Portugal, and parts of United States of America, have legalised medical and recreational use of cannabis. However cannabis is currently illegal in Australia, state of Victoria soon to legalise medicinal cannabis, but the handling and benefits of the current policies are inundated by the potential social opportunity cost if legalisation was to occur. The question is, should cannabis be legalised here in Australia? The following three main pillars of arguments will illustrate why cannabis should be legalised in Australia; decriminalisation, regulation and relative ramification.

The dispute over the legalization of cannabis sativa, more commonly known as marijuana, is one of the most controversial issues ever to take place in the United States. Its use as a medicine has existed for thousands of years in many countries across the globe. Legalization should be considered despite efforts made by groups who say marijuana is a harmful drug that will increase crime rates and lead users to other more dangerous substances. The legalization of marijuana can improve our society by helping with our economy, freeing legal resources, and benefiting the overall health of the nation though medical uses.

Within this paper I will ask the reader to consider different ethical aspects of the legalization of marijuana, utilizing data provided and studies from the past, attempting to further convey my stance as being pro-legalization of marijuana.

Gwynne, Kristen. “Five Reasons Cops Want to Legalize Marijuana.” Rolling Stone. Wenner, Jane S., 27 June 2013. Web. 12 March 2014.

Many have long argued that prohibition simply does not work. ( ) Today, the strict policy on cannabis is reinforced by severe punishment. In reality, police forces have been growing more lenient to cannabis use, prioritising more pressing areas, indicating a change in law enforcement attitude to the drug. ( ) This may also suggest a change in social culture. The flaws of prohibition are present today regarding the so-called ‘War on Drugs’. People who are otherwise innocent are swept into the criminal justice system because of cannabis use. (6) Thus, they face the problem of a criminal record and may even become involved with harmful activity whilst in the criminal justice system. This situation has wrongly allowed cannabis to be a powerful

In Canada, cannabis use became illegal in 1923 after the Act to Prohibit the Improper Use of Opium and other Drugs added cannabis to the list of illicit substances. Cannabis then became an illegal substance under the same category of harder drugs such as cocaine and heroin, despite lack of scientific or criminal correlations to suggest such categorization (CAMH, 2014). An increase in illicit drug use in the 1960’s and 1970’s was met by greatly increased criminalization and the associated individual and social costs. The strain on the courts, and the rising numbers of otherwise law-abiding youth being sentenced for recreational use of cannabis created pressures for the liberalization of Canada’s drug laws. As a result, the Commission of Inquiry

There is presently much controversy regarding Cannabis-related legislations in Canada, as while there is a great deal of individuals supporting conditions in the present, there are also numerous people who are against contemporary laws. It is presently illegal to grow cannabis plants in Canada, but the authorities allow cannabis to be consumed for medical purposes. Many people in Canada believe that cannabis should be legalized in the country, with some of the most recent polls pointing toward the belief that the majority of individuals in the country consider that the substance should not be illegal. Although it would be difficult to assess the effects that legalizing cannabis would have, it is only safe to assume that the government should express more tolerance concerning the substance, considering that more than half of Canada's population has expressed its support in regard to the drug.

3.1 Information about the use of cannabis in the UK comes from a variety of sources. None are ideal but, collectively, they provide a reasonable indication of the present scale of use and of the changes that have occurred over the past 20 years. The available sources of information come from: • • • • 3.2 surveys of self-reported use; seizures (by police and customs officers); cautions and court appearances data; and National Drug Misuse databases.

Many Canadians wanted change in the government and amongst that, they have voted for the Liberal Party. It is important that the Canadian law system changes to adapt to society and fix the patches that it has. As the government tried to introduce more severe penalties and other deterrents to stop Canadian's from using or producing marijuana. But was not very successful.

Cannabis policy will be a getting a lot of discussion in the state of New Mexico during the current legislative session. Now with seven different bills filed in the state’s House of Representatives and six additional bills in the Senate Chamber; that could affect cannabis policy for the medical cannabis program, legalization for social use, and hemp policy. New Mexico has taken the first steps needed towards legalizing, taxing and regulating cannabis and hemp. Please check back as this post will be updated throughout the week as the legislature releases Floor and Committee schedules.

This is a clear indication of the lack of current government policy successes as the figure remained constant from previous years, however a range of other crucial factors such as ease of access, lack of realism and legality play a significant role in the increased use of ‘legal highs’, the most significant factor being social pressures which cannot be overlooked. Although educating the youth on the dangers of using ‘legal highs’ as well as introducing certain policies has increased awareness of the dangers that these substances possess, one can argue that the existence of the term ‘legal high’ in itself is evidence of the little influence that government policies have on the decision of an individual to misuse substances and had previous government crackdowns significantly reduced its use then such a term would cease to exist. Inevitably this leads us to ask the question, why then is the message not getting

Marijuana legalized for recreational use has been a matter of strong public policy debate for years. Society must understand that their mistakes is in the path of legalization and decriminalization. Through our research we prove that marijuana is not nearly as harmful as other substances which are legal such as alcohol and tobacco. Canada must also realize that marijuana will benefit Canada in all other legal, economic, and environmental aspects. In legalizing cannabis, Canada will be able to keep the product out of the black markets and create revenues from taxation, also creating more jobs for Canadians. It is also beneficial for the environment due to the use of little pesticides, and therefore less machinery and less pollution. Hence the

The legalisation is still a heavily debated topic, and the subsequent actions for or against the legalisation of cannabis will greatly affect Australia’s society and its opinions of cannabis. Australia’s drug laws have been heavily influenced by America for almost a century. Cannabis was readily available and often sold in a cigarette form until its prohibition in 1938, but cannabis was still used in medicine until the 1960s. In 1968 Americas ‘War on Drugs’, led by Richard Nixon, impacted how Australians perceived the drug and allowed the Australian government to increase the penalties for drug offences. The stigma surrounding cannabis influenced the public opinion for many years, in recent years marijuana legislation has been a heavily debated

Marijuana has been one of the hot topics in America and is yet to still be looked down upon by the media and government. One example of this is a poster for a 1942 movie called “Devil’s Harvest”. It’s a tale that has been highly fictionalized and exaggerated on the use of marijuana and justice taken to stop the spread of marijuana around the nation. In other words, an investigator goes on a hunt to take down marijuana dealers. Though marijuana is looked down upon and is also illegal in many states, it is in some ways still a beneficial medicinal substance in ways such as reducing nausea during chemotherapy. But the nation or, more specifically, the government, does notice a lot of recreational use by mostly teens and higher ages who get arrested on average of 800,000 people every year. This poster not only advertises to the audience about the movie but also gives the evil eye on marijuana in society. It could be portrayed as a warning to marijuana users and to others to keep an eye out for the “devil’s harvest.”

Currently drug abuse is the issue that has plagued almost all the societies in the world. This problem poses serious threat to the life of people both in developed and underdeveloped countries. There are different kinds of drugs such as heroin, cocaine, cannabis, hallucinogens, ecstasy, and methamphetamine and so on (McGeorge & Aitken, 1997). Young and age-old people largely use many of these drugs. People usually consider these drugs as a relief from their worries, but these drugs lead them towards addition and psychotic disorders that eventually destroy their health. Legislative authorities in almost every part of the world have been trying to save their generations from the abuse, but the use of these drugs never ended. However, these legislations help to minimize the numbers of drug users where their implementation is done properly (Hall et al., 2004). The aim of this research paper is to provide knowledge about the Cannabis Legalization in Australia and the people’s approach who favor or oppose this legalization. Cannabis drug use, impacts, cannabis legalization in Australia and its advantages and disadvantages will also