Historical Conversation Project Analysis

In the society we live in, everybody wants to be right. People will have their own unique stance on any controversial subject, and marijuana is no different. Marijuana is a very important topic of discussion especially in the current election season. The drug is discussed on television, social media, and virtually everywhere on the internet. In the article “This Is Why Marijuana Should Be Legal Everywhere” associate viral content editor for The Huffington Post, Renee Jacques, challenges traditional notions of the prohibition of marijuana by brilliantly using rhetorical appeals to persuade you to join the majority. Contrary to Jacques, John Hawkins, writer for www.townhall.com, takes a different stance in his article “5 Reasons Marijuana Should Remain Illegal” holding tight to the traditional, negative view of the drug by using a mixture of logos and pathos to make you question why any human with a brain would smoke cannabis. Although both writers use rhetorical strategies to persuade you to their respective side of the argument, the differing degrees the authors use those strategies renders Jacques’ article much more persuasive to a general audience.

Marijuana or Cannabis is a hallucinogenic drug that contains a very high amount of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). It can be used for both medical and recreational reasons, but it is currently illegal in most states in this country. This drug has been illegal for the majority of this country's history, and just recently several states like Washington, California, and New York have passed laws so that people with medical issues are able to consume this drug for their own medical needs

Thesis: There is a significant amount of attention in today’s world on weather or not to legalize marijuana. The prohibition of marijuana is holding up the improvement of social and economic developments.

The social problem of legalizing marijuana has been an issue for many years. I argue that marijuana should be legalized in all the United States. Through research it has been proven that marijuana can bring benefits to society if it were to be legalized. Benefits include, assistance to those who have health issues, reducing crimes related to drugs, as well as uplifting the economy. Marijuana has caused various issues within the minority communities, those who live within a minority community are more likely to receive jail time if caught with the drug, if Marijuana were to be legalized this would prevent minorities from becoming incarcerated. This leads to the conflict theory. The conflict theory states, that “society is in a state of perpetual conflict due to competition for limited resources. It holds that social order is maintained by domination and power, rather than consensus and conformity.” This is a social conflict because through the resource marijuana those outside of the government are making a profit, but also risking their lives because of not conforming to society. In order for this social problem to be fixed, as a citizens we need to educate those who are unaware of the benefits verses the dangers of marijuana.

For the last century there has been an abundance of false information being spread about the drug marijuana. Even in commercials on television, misleading facts about the drug have been presented to the audience. Some misconceptions about the drug include its potential to cause addiction, the damaging of brain cells, genetic damage, violent behavior, and damage to the immune system. These misconceptions, which have plagued a large percentage of the population into thinking that marijuana is a bad drug, have caused many set backs in the process of gradual legalization. (http://legalizationofmarijuana.com/ )

The topic that I will be investigating is the legalization of Marijuana by California Proposition 19. Proposition 19 was on the 2010 ballot in November. It would have legalized for any individual over the age of 21 to possess up to an ounce of marijuana, just like alcohol. Marijuana has been viewed as bad since the 1920’s, even planting,

In addition to increase public health problems, legalizing marijuana will lead to increase use of the drug among youngsters. Despite the regulatory approaches, legalizing marijuana has the inevitable effect of increasing the availability and consumption of the drug. Under the current prohibitions, the rate of consumption of marijuana among teenagers is already high; however, the rate of use would greatly increase if the drug was legitimately available to the population. For instance, despite the prohibitions against distribution of alcohol to teenagers, many youngsters who are under the legal age drink alcohol today. Similarly, high percentages of the young population are currently smokers even though the law prohibit them from buying cigarettes. Therefore, it is expected that the usage of marijuana among teenagers would increase if marijuana was legalized. Notably, the marijuana use will impair the development process of teenagers, which will negatively affect their health in later life. Thus, the increased use of marijuana among teenagers is a great concern. It will contribute to great dangers on the health of the youths.

though it is illegal. This essay will describe and analyze what marijuana is, how it affects the

-origins of marijuana (what it’s derived from, how and where it was discovered, how they first started to use it, etc...)

Your thesis statement is very concise, and the reasons you chose to support your thesis statement are interesting and informative. Although you did not say much about why you chose to write about legalizing marijuana, you make your stance on the subject very clear. The quote you chose makes your argument even more compelling by mentioning specific ailments that marijuana can help treat. You also bring up recreational marijuana and the tax dollars that it would bring about; I agree that a recreational limit would be financially beneficial for this country. Due to the country's current money situation, you are able to further interest and convince the audience. By using a specific example from your own state, you give yourself more credibility

The world has been involved in a long debate over the legalization of marijuana. Although this would be a great choice, I have found that there is one more option that makes the most plausible and logical pathway in the future. After you hear the compelling arguments for the decriminalization of marijuana, you will agree that this will work for the public good. This essay will utilize information from scholarly journals, statistical data, and newspaper articles to prove decriminalization is the best choice for our nation.

Marijuana was treated as drug and was forbade to use in the past. However, people’s mind has changed. They believe that legalization of marijuana can bring many benefits. Therefore, recreational marijuana was legalized in four states including Washington, Colorado, Oregon and Alaska in the US. In fact, legalization of marijuana will brings many problems. In my essay, firstly I will talk about the health, usage, suicide problems brought by the legalization, secondly I will mention the counter-arguments of economic interest and black market. My thesis is that marijuana should not be legalized in the US.

Because of the widespread use and acceptance of marijuana as well as the passage of several state medical marijuana laws several research studies were conducted. These studies were analyzing whether new medical marijuana laws were causing an increase in teen use. The data from the research showed there was an increase in teen use over the last four years. One such study even revealed that it had increased in the youngest age group studied, eighth grade students (Anonymous). This increase in teen use is further supported by an article from Target News Reports that states “one in every fifteen high school seniors today is smoking pot on a daily basis” (Marijuana). These studies show a growing trend in teenage use of marijuana and popularity of marijuana which would seem to support the fact that legalizing marijuana even for medicinal purposes has led to increased teen use.

Everyone is raised with the constant reminder of how bad illegal substances are and are told this time and time again. People and powerful political figures give a false idea on one specific “drug” present in the world today, without the facts and statistics to prove their theories. People in today’s world, specifically those in the United States, do not quite understand how useful and profitable this naturally grown herb really is. This “drug” is known as marijuana, and has many surprising beneficial factors for both medical and recreational purposes. Marijuana is referred to in today’s media as a brain damaging and dangerous drug, showing stereotype after stereotype of people who have abused this substance. Citizens of our country, especially children and young adults, are shown these

Many policies have come to the governments attention within the past decade concerning drug use and prison reform. One policy that correlates to crime and drug use that has brought attention across the nation is the legalization of marijuana. Marijuana has been consumed in the United States for numerous years and has grown in popularity culminating in multiple states legalizing the drug. There is large debate concerning whether nationwide legalization is worth the cost. Of course, with any controversial decision, there are always going to be pros and cons. Those who oppose legalization make claims that marijuana is a gateway drug, impairs judgment, and is addictive. Although those points are true to an extent there are also many benefits. Of the many benefits, the most noteworthy ones are that marijuana can bring a lot of money to the government and economy, it helps treat sickness and diseases, and it can be a safer alternative than opioid-based medications. The legalization of marijuana would also highly impact the criminal justice system by making law enforcement more accessible to other areas where they are needed which can save the government a lot of money. In this instance, legalizing marijuana would bring many benefits to society such as stimulating the economy, treating sicknesses, providing government relief, and lowering opioid use.