Decriminalization Of Marijuana Legalization

Legalizing Marijuana Abraham Lincoln once stated that, "Prohibition goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control a man 's appetite by legislation and makes a crime out of things that are not crimes… A prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded." In today 's society, this statement still applies in reference to the illegal use of marijuana. Marijuana prohibition causes far more harm than marijuana itself. Keeping marijuana illegal is expensive and causes crime. Out of four possible connections between drugs and crime, at least three would not exist if drug prohibition laws were repealed. First, crimes which occur billions of times a year are producing, selling, buying, and

On January 1st the states of Colorado and Washington officially began the regulation of legal marijuana sales. Thousands of people from all over the country including tourists from Wisconsin, Ohio, Chicago, and even Georgia lined up out front of dispensaries to make a purchase. Recreational marijuana is being regulated and monitored like alcohol; you must be at least 21 years old to make a purchase. The drug, which is controversial in many states’ legislations, is currently legal for medical use in 20 states, but Colorado and Washington were the first to approve of recreational use (Healy). The geographical concepts involved in the legalization of marijuana include migration, movement and flow, and private/public space.

Marijuana is the most common drug in America and all over the world. It is legalized in some countries, but most countries prohibit its use. It has proven medical abilities and was used for this purpose for a while before being federally criminalized. The United States has been debating on the legalization of marijuana with some states supporting the move and others against it. ("10 Facts About Marijuana") Despite all these debates, the legalization of marijuana is the better option of the two. Legalizing marijuana will result in medical, economic and social benefits all over America.

Another benefit accrued through legalizing marijuana would be a significant reduction in crime rates. Since Marijuana is currently illegal, it is sold on the streets country wide. Thousands purchase the drug from dealers, putting their lives and reputations at risk, simply because it is the only method to attain it. Both drug dealers and gangs fight to sell the drug in the street, causing their deaths and the deaths of innocent people. Legalizing the drug help decrease the street wars and gang violence by taking the “right” to sell out of the hands of dealers, and into the hands of the government. Since the drug will be legalized, it will be available in the same locations as cigarettes and alcohol, decreasing crime

By legalizing marijuana less harm will be caused. This creates high levels of crime; addicts are forced to commit crimes to pay for a habit that would be easily affordable if it were legal. Police sources have estimated that as much as half the property crime in some major cities is committed by drug users. More drastically, because drugs are illegal, participants in the drug trade cannot go to court to settle disputes, whether between buyer and seller or between

In “Why Congress Should Legalize Pot”’ Jeffery Miron, the senior lecturer of undergraduate studies in the economics department at Harvard University, reports that the reason marijuana should be legalized is for the same reason alcohol is legal. According to him alcohol is a similar substance that can be abused. He also explains that even though there could be risks with legalizing marijuana “economic trends with will stay the same.” This means there won’t be an increase in accidents and crime just because marijuana is legalized.

Marijuana use should be legalized throughout the United States. Marijuana legalization is becoming a highly popular argument among the country.

Legalizing recreational marijuana is partly responsible for the rise in teenage and adult use as well as accidents related to DUID. The rise in use and accidents should be considered as this reflects back on the safety of our citizens.

The Government should legalize the use of marijuana because of the economic benefits it would offer, The debate over whether the federal government should legalize marijuana has been escalating and states such as Colorado, and Oregon have legalized the use of medical and recreational use of marijuana due to the realization that marijuana could greatly benefit their economies, such as the creation of jobs, tax revenue, and young business leaders. The legalization of marijuana is highly beneficial to the United States government because it will save the government billions of dollars. According to Jeffrey Minron a Harvard economist “If marijuana were legalized, the government would save $7.7 billion dollars annually in law enforcement costs, and it could bring an additional $6.2 billion a year” (3).If the government were to legalize marijuana nationwide, there would be billions of dollars, which could be used to solve actual problems in the United States like education, poverty, Instead, the billions of dollars are being wasted to loosely enforce the ban.

European countries have differing policies by country in regards to marijuana. European countries such as the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal and Switzerland categorize marijuana as a soft drug and its use has been decriminalized. These countries focus less on punishing users, and place the emphasis on education and prevention. In the Netherlands marijuana can be bought in neighborhood coffee shops and not sold by dealers on the streets. Because there will always be portions of any population that will eventually experiment with some form of drugs the coffee shops are regulated by authorities and provide a safer alternative to buying hard drugs being pushed by dealers on the streets. (Government of the

Marijuana is the most frequently used illegal drug in the United States (http://www.drug-rehabs.org).Although it is illegal. Researchers found that 42% of people surveyed in the U.S. had tried marijuana at least once (Gettman pg 4).Why should medical marijuana be legal in all fifty states? It has been proven be a reliever for many illnesses today such as HIV/AIDS, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, anorexia, seizures, migraines, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, glaucoma, depression and even autism (Wunder pg 46). According to the NORML (the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws), ten states currently legalize or decriminalize the medical use of marijuana in some manner. Since 1996 nine states have passed legislation that

Though there are many studies to show that drug use amongst young people have become more tolerated, there is also a high number of the population that believe do not accept the deviant behaviour of regular drug use and support the prohibition on recreational drug use. This counter argument is supported by evidence from James Crouch in Opinium Surveys (2015), stating that in 2014 when 2000 UK adults were given a survey on drug legalisation, despite 33% of the population believing that recreational drugs such as cannabis should be legalised, a high percentage of the population (53%) were in support of illegal drugs used for entertainment remaining criminalised. Subsequently, this contradicts the normalisation thesis. Furthermore, Les Gofton

People have been smoking marijuana for thousands of years while also using hemp for everything from fabric to make clothes and other items. Unfortunately, Harry J. Anslinger with a bit of power and enough determination decided pot was evil and addictive. The struggle continues to this day to overcome the lies about marijuana (“Marijuana (Weed) History and Facts”). There are many benefits to legalizing marijuana and the government should take advantage of it.

In Philadelphia marijuana, also known as pot, has recently become decriminalized within the city limits. This is due to the increasing popularity of the drug and the effects it will have on the public. Pot is still illegal under federal law even though more states are starting to adapt to the medical aspect of it. The possibility of gentrification if marijuana becomes a legal and recreational drug is limitless. With the legalization of marijuana, crime rates not just in the city but all over the united states will plummet. With crime rates dropping our police forces will have time to pursue other, more criminal acts. What also to look for will be a financial boom for our government as marijuana will be as taxable as cigarettes to help cut our

Legalize, control, and discourage is a way to fix the problem. Evident by Colorado and Washington, “the legalization of marijuana can stop most of these possession arrests” (Levine). After the first opening of the first retail marijuana stores on January 1, 2014, Colorado had decreased crime rates, decreased traffic fatalities and increase in economic output (DPA). Since 2010, the marijuana possession arrest have went down 84% since its legalization. The tactic of legalizing, controlling, and discouraging has been proposed by the Economist, a weekly news magazine, in the late 80’s.