Legalization of Marijuana

In modern society marijuana has always been considered a sort of taboo subject in the United States due mainly to the fact that it is illegal. Many people don’t realize however that considering the history of our country, marijuana has only been illegal for a relatively short time span. Several of our founding fathers, including George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, grew marijuana for hemp (the material derived from the plant) regularly and there is even speculation Washington smoked the plant occasionally. Back in those days marijuana did not have the sinister reputation it has today but instead was a vital part of colonial life, with the hemp material having a number of uses including rope, clothing, and paper (West, 1998). It wasn’t until the early 20th century that the public opinion regarding marijuana began to shift and restrictive laws were put in place that would eventually lead to illegalization.

The topic of marijuana has been a big topic for the past few years. The United States considers marijuana as a drug, in some other countries they say it is a natural herb that is grown from the ground. The issue at hand is “should marijuana be legalized?” the congress of the US stay in a constant debate on this subject. Why is the subject of marijuana such in high demand, if the US already considers it a drug? There are many facts that need to be looked at before a final decision can ever be made. In contrast since the past two weeks the state of Colorado became the second state in the US to legalize marijuana. Obviously it is possible for marijuana to be accepted into society, obviously there are as much pros as

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Out of four possible connections between drugs and crime, at least three would not exist if drug prohibition laws were repealed.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.

The issue of legalizing marijuana, also known as Cannabis Sativa, has been controversial for a long time, and has become even more so in recent years. Cannabis Sativa is a plant that has been used for a variety of purposes by many cultures for thousands of years. Not only does the Cannabis Sativa plant produce Marijuana, it also produces Hemp. Hemp was used to make food, clothes, shoes, ropes and paper, making it a very useful cash crop. Legal up until 1937, Marijuana was used in America for recreational use, medicinal, and industrial products as well. In the 1960’s the government’s war on all drugs was created putting Marijuana in the same category as Cocaine, Heroin, and Morphine. Today Marijuana remains a

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.

Cannabis Sativa, more commonly known as Marijuana, is made up of dried parts of the Cannabis hemp plant and is the most commonly used illegal drug in the United States. For centuries, people all over the world have been using marijuana to achieve “euphoria”, but the drug has remained illegal in the United States despite countless efforts to reverse the law. In the last few years, the legalization of Marijuana became both a prominent and controversial issue in our country and remains an extremely touchy subject. Despite its short term effect of distorted perceptions and memory impairment, Marijuana has several pro’s that can not only help individuals but could benefit our country as a whole. These “pros” include medical use, a boost in our

Illegal drug use is a huge part of American culture and one the most controversial of those drugs is marijuana; its technical name is Cannabis Sativa. But whether you call it cannabis, marijuana, pot, reefer, weed, bud, herb, Mary Jane, hemp, grass or wacky tabacci, it is still illegal in the United States. Actually, all over the world the deliberation rages about the harm or benefits that marijuana has to offer. Attempts to legalize it in the United States have been going on since the Marijuana Tax Act was introduced in 1937 and have thus far largely failed. The debate whether or not to legalize marijuana seems to circle around numerous points, including the recreational use verses being a gateway to

On average, Americans spend about 5 billion dollars on marijuana every year. Thats about how much the country contributes to the purchase of alcohol! The only problem is that the money made from people selling marijuana illegally mostly goes into the pockets of mafias because they contain the largest portion of distribution in the marijuana chain. On average each state spends right at about 1 billion dollars to make sure the marijuana laws are enforced. Asa Hutchinson, the former DEA director mentioned in a CNBC interview that "The cost to fight marijuana is worth it and the people should not mind the cost, but instead look into the benefits it would bring to the country." However, its difficult to see what the benefits really are, because the law enforcement says that criminalizing marijuana will reduce the number of accidents associated with people under the influence of marijuana, reduce violence caused by the intoxication of the drug, and reduce the number of drug dependents. But these arguments to criminalize the use of marijuana are completely unproven. Alcohol also intoxicates the drinker, which obviously causes vehicle accidents. Tobacco poses health risk to smokers after years of continuous use, but they are still considered legal? Therefore, the reasons given to criminalize marijuana aren't very accurate and unproven. It is ironic that the given effects of marijuana are almost the same that made it illegal and are the same

Drugs like marijuana might end the costly war between legalizing drugs or not. There is estimation that legalizing the most influential drug marijuana or other drugs would save the government. Drugs would be such a good business for the government because approximately $41.3 billion in savings, $8.7 billion on legalizing marijuana, and $32.6 billion from the legalization of other drugs, like cocaine and heroin. Those savings of savings $25.7 billion would go to state and local governments. This bad because it’s going to make it easier for

The topic I chose is the legalization of marijuana. My research was enjoyable because I love reading on a topic that I fully support and agree with. The four sources I found are very persuading and contain strong points. I used the web for research but as I found sources, I made sure they were credible sources since this is such a debatable issue.

Marijuana is the most popular illegal street drug in America. It is something that has been a part of our society for many years. The name Marijuana is a Mexican term that was originally used for “low quality tobacco”. Forty eight percent of Americans have tried Marijuana and six and a

There has been much controversy over the legalization of marijuana. Some say that it would help the economy, while others argue that legalization would promote even more criminal activity. However it is, there are some positive economic benefits and negative social costs that would arise if marijuana were legal in America. One of the positive benefits would be the increase in tax money. America is currently in debt and this could potentially help us get out of it since Marijuana seems to be a popular recreational drug. Additionally, a positive economic benefit would be helping some companies that are in the agricultural realm flourish. On the contrary, there are some negative social costs to marijuana. Legalization might further a person’s

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.

"In any civilized society, it is every citizen 's responsibility to obey just laws. But at the same time, it is every citizen 's responsibility to disobey unjust laws." Martin Luther King Jr. Many people ask “why should marijuana be legalized”? when the real question that we should be asking is “why shouldn’t marijuana be legalized”?. Marijuana also known as hemp is a naturally grown plant that has been around for decades dating back to around 2697 B.C., when the Egyptians would use it to cure many common ailments, and the Chinese would use it for therapeutics. Using marijuana not only to cure common illnesses but for your pleasure as well should be up to you the free citizens of California and not to the government. The first major reason