Donna Lowe
SOC 120 Introduction to Ethics &Social Responsibility
Prof. Donna Falloon
May 16, 2011
Marijuana is the third most popular recreational drug in America behind only alcohol and tobacco, and is estimated that nearly 80 million Americans use it at least one occasion. According to government surveys, some 20 million Americans have smoked marijuana in the past year, and more than 11 million do so regularly despite harsh laws against its use. Being used for medicinal purposes or simply for recreational, there are not only laws to consider when the topic of legalization comes up but also ethical concerns as well. For this paper I will outline some of the uses for this drug and some of the benefits of its use. I will apply the
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“ A particular drug—for example, marijuana (also called hashish and bhang)—may be accepted as an appropriate adjunct to sociability in one society, used as an invaluable ingredient in religious contemplation in another, and banned by law as dangerous in a third”(Sills,1968).
Since the use is illegal I bring the point of ethics to the matter. Utilitarianism is a classical theory that argues that, given a set of choices, the act we should choose is that which produces the best results for the greatest number affected by that choice. The theory also suggests that there is an obvious solution that is fair, and it may be one that appeals to common sense as well (Moser, 2010). Jeremy Bentham is considered the founder of utilitarian thought and stated that that human beings resolve their ethical questions in light of maximizing the amount of pleasure they experience while minimizing the amount of pain. He considered ethically good conduct as that which expands an individual's as well as a community's liberty by adding to the sum total of its pleasure (what later was termed maximizing the "Greatest Happiness Factor" [GHF]). Conduct is unethical, then, because it limits an individual's as well as a community's liberty and general welfare by subtracting from the GHF. So if we are to use the utilitarianism theory in regards to the legalization of marijuana, then one
There have been many arguments that have been raised against marijuana whether it has to do with recreational marijuana, medical marijuana and in any other ways. Most arguments against marijuana are centered on the use of the drug for pleasure and imagination. Is it morally permissible to use marijuana, does it cause violence, is it a gateway drug, is it addictive, should using marijuana be regulated by law and what regulations should there be, should it be fully legalized and regulated, should it be decriminalized are questions that are usually asked when it comes to recreational marijuana. Providing answers and solutions to this dilemma is not as easy as pointing the wrongness of crimes such as rape or murder. Therefore, the debate on marijuana cannot be held on similar platforms as those crimes and it needs a philosophic analysis to identity the moral rightness, wrongness or the neutrality of the use of recreational marijuana. In this paper, I will argue that there is pros and cons to recreational marijuana and why there are pros and cons to it.
Marijuana, a substance that was used frequently during the colonial times, has taken a social downfall in recent times. Although it is still illegal to possess or use for any means by federal law, states like California and Arizona have taken steps in the other direction.
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.
The controversy of legalizing marijuana has been raging for quite a while in America. From some people pushing it for medical purposes to potheads just wanting to get high legally. Marijuana has been used for years as a popular drug for people who want to get a high. All this time it has been illegal and now it looks as if the drug may become legal. There has been heated debate by many sides giving there opinion in the issue. These people are not only left wing liberals either. Richard Brookhiser, a National Review Senior editor is openly supportive of medical marijuana yet extremely conservative in his writing for National Review (Brookhiser 27). He is for medical marijuana since he used it in
Should medical marijuana be legal across the United States? Imagine a world where individuals who have chronic pain did not have to suffer anymore. Envision a cure for cancer, a disease many Americans are killed by daily. Picture people with severe, violent mood disorders being treated. Most people think the answers to these problems are simple and could be solved by over medicating patients. Today, there are twenty states in America who have legalized medical marijuana for specific health and medical related conditions (Medical Marijuana 1). The United States should legalize medical marijuana so patients who suffer from chronic pain can be treated, cancer could be cured, and mood disorders can be treated.
The process by which society detects and interprets information from the external world in a utilitarian theory claims: one should always do the greatest good for the greatest number of people. When one has the motivation to reach goals for the benefit of one’s self it is known as ethical egoism. In this paper we shall consider a brief history of cannabis, the parallels of legalizing medical marijuana and prohibition of alcohol in the 1920’s with regard to ethical egoism and utilitarian theories.
Did you know that almost half of the population in the United States belongs in jail, according to the law on marijuana? It’s true. In 2008 Time Magazine reported that researchers had found more than 42% of people surveyed in the United States had tried marijuana at least once (Lynch, 2008). So if marijuana use is so common in the United States, why should it not be legalized? In this paper I will discuss both the supporting and opposing positions on the legalization of marijuana. I will also explore the moral and ethical views for legalizing marijuana.
Over the past few years legalizing medical and recreational marijuana has been a hot political topic. Medical marijuana is legal in twenty states, and use of recreational marijuana is legal in four states: Washington, Colorado, Oregon, and Alaska. It is also legal to carry small amount of marijuana in Washington D.C. In this paper I will discuss the history of marijuana in the United States of America and the ethical pros and cons that are related to use of this plant for medical and recreational purposes.
Marijuana prohibition seems to be mirror the repeal that took place under the prohibition of alcohol.
Today’s society is unique to any times in history. From the legalization of gay marriage, to our increased national security of USA PATRIOT act, we see a high contrast on personal rights as a citizen of the united states. Recently, an increasingly debated topic on marijuana legalization is widely argued. Whether it’s for medical or recreational usages, this topic is reaching boiling point. The complicity on the legalities of marijuana has reached a point in society where legal usage has been popping up across the country. In the medical sector, studies have shown benefits, and harmful effects in patients. Some physicians support, however some physicians do see health concerns that influence their stance on whether medical marijuana laws are to be altered from a prior state. Addiction rate, health impact, reason to prescribe, and economic benefits are all factors needed to take into reason whether medical marijuana usage should be prescribed or not. Medically prescribed marijuana can treat symptoms of certain conditions and diseases, however can impact the mental health and be addictive to heavy users. In this explorative essay, topics on both sides of the argument will be expressed, background information will be added to provide context, and will be unbiased to shed light on the depth of the topic. The legalization of medical marijuana is a heavy topic, and legal aspects are central to its debate. Despite the potential health benefits of medical marijuana, new
Should we put warning labels on roller skates? For a drug to be classified as addictive, it must be proven that numerous individuals have trouble discontinuing its use or that it interferes with other life activities. National epidemiological surveys show that one third of Americans over the age of twelve have used marijuana. Of those same people, only nine percent have used marijuana in the past year and only 2.8 percent have used it in the past week.
Marijuana is one of the most discussed and controversial topic in the United States today. Many believe that Marijuana has medical benefits and should be legal, while others say it has a high risk of being abused and should remain illegal. The current drug laws are doing more harm than good. Legalizing Marijuana would benefit the country in many ways. Marijuana should be legalized for its medical benefits, additional revenue to our economy, and it is less harmful than legal substances and most medications.
Pot, weed, 420, dope, cannabis, Mary Jane, blaze, and broccoli are only a few street names that marijuana goes by. Popularized by pop culture and its “cool factor”, support for the legalization of recreational marijuana is spreading at a quick-fire pace. Election day in 2016 marked four more states voting in favor of legalization of marijuana use, sale, and consumption. California, Maine, Nevada, and Massachusetts have now joined Colorado, Alaska, Oregon, and Washington as states that allow the recreational use of marijuana. Many liberal politicians, including Obama, support the decriminalization of marijuana, which is absolutely different from the legalization of recreational use of marijuana. Decriminalization simply calls for reducing or eliminating punishment for small first time charges while legalization calls for the complete acceptance of buying,
There are various arguments poised in the paper on the reasons why marijuana should be legalized and for having extensive government policies that would ensure the medical use of marijuana is highly regulated and medically beneficial to the people who need it to alleviate the suffering and pain. Here marijuana has been looked at in a positive light rather than in a negative aspect.
The legalization of marijuana has been a large debate for many years now. Medical marijuana should be legalized in the united states. It’s proven to be less harmful than cigarettes and alcohol, two legal drugs that cause more deaths a year than marijuana. The legalization of marijuana would also help the government by a way to earn money through taxes.