Legalizing Marijuana Argument Analysis

The legalization of marijuana has been a hot topic in the media for many years now. There is a major divide in those who believe it should be legal, those who do not, and those who think it could be legal with modifications on the usage. The number of those who support the legalization of marijuana is on the rise with nearly 50% supporting recreational marijuana legalization, and 81% supporting marijuana legalization for medical treatment as of 2015 ("Public Support for Marijuana Legalization, 2015”). Marijuana should be legalized on a federal level because it is safer than alcohol, it will increase the economy, and there is an unfair criminalization of marijuana.

Studies have proven that marijuana is no more harmful to a person’s health than alcohol or tobacco. Every year, tobacco kills roughly 390,000 people, alcohol contributes to 80,000 deaths in America and marijuana contributed to 0; no deaths from marijuana have ever been recorded in US history (Abovetheinfluence.org). When smoking tobacco, the user inhales tar, nicotine, carbon monoxide, and 200 other known poisons into the lungs (Abovetheinfluence.org). All forms of tobacco, including cigars, pipe tobacco, snuff, and chewing tobacco, contain the addictive drug nicotine, and can also cause cancer. Alcohol alters a person's perceptions, emotions, movement, vision, and hearing. Alcohol plays a role in at least 50 percent of traffic deaths, about half of murders, and about 25 percent of suicides (Abovetheinfluence.org). Marijuana side effects include delusions, impaired memory, hallucinations and disorientation, which are no different from the side effects of alcohol alone.

According to Morgan Freeman (2012), “Marijuana prohibition is just the stupidest law possible...just legalize it and tax it like we do liquor”. Canada has illegalized marijuana in 1923.Since then marijuana has been the most used drug among Canadians .Moreover, Canada has the highest rate of marijuana use in the world. Therefore, many Canadians argue that the time that marijuana gets legalized in has arrived. Marijuana has been proven to be very beneficial to the country. Legalizing marijuana will reduce crimes, benefit the economy and help individuals medically.

In contrast, there are common believes that marijuana is not addictive such as alcohol and heroin, but research and experiences show that the user will slowly develop addiction on it even after withdrawal. The symptoms of marijuana smoker seem as in a cocaine addict. The drug is the most commonly found in the system of drivers who are fatally injured. Dependency on the drug may lead to use more dangerous drugs in future. It has a high impact on brain especially parts connected to memory and learning. One study, declare that the person who is highly addicted to marijuana in teen years his IQ points will decrease by 8 between the age of 13 and 38. Finally, the legalization of marijuana will lead to highly smoking problems and increase serious health problems, whether it has a medical condition relief property.

Legalization of marijuana, also known as cannabis, weed, etc. has been a trending controversial topic in many sectors of Canada. Although, there have been several studies, organizations and celebrities endorsing the legalization; marijuana should not be legalized due to its severe health effects. Cannabis has both short and long term effects on an individual’s health. These effects range from brain function and development, mental illness, heart rate to lung damage. With almost 44 percent of Canadians who have tried marijuana, the health of Canadians is at stake.

However, there is accumulating evidence of the psychological consequences of using marijuana. Many chronic marijuana smokers have a psychosis that is now medically deemed as, “A-motivational Syndrome” (Chopra 38). A psychosis is a condition where a person experiences some loss of contact with reality. A person with a psychosis can experience any or more of the following symptoms: auditory hallucinations (hearing voices that aren't really there), visual hallucinations (seeing things which aren't there), delusions (believing things that aren't true), jumbled thoughts and strange behavior. Patients with A-motivational Syndrome are left with the well-recognized and permanent symptoms of memory loss, apathy and loss of motivation (Chopra 38). After marijuana started to be widely used approximately 20 years ago, for permanent damage to occur it was felt by some that marijuana had to be heavily used over at least three years. However, there is accumulating evidence that smaller amounts will do damage. It is logical that to get the permanent “ A-motivational Syndrome”, small amounts of damage have to accumulate incrementally (Chopra 40). Although many marijuana connoisseurs of today may totally deny that that the use of this drug has lasting effects on the brain, research findings clearly indicate that long-term use of marijuana produces changes in the brain similar to those seen after long-term use of other major drugs of abuse (Erickson 89).

Smoking marijuana is best described as a one-way ticket to negative side-affects. Based on Lifetime Health by Friedman, D. P., Stine, C. C., and Whaten S. “smoked marijuana are felt within minutes and may last for 2 or 3 hours”(2009). Short term effects consist of slowed thinking ability, difficulty paying attention, distorted sense of time, and many more. (Friedman, D. P., Stine, C. C., and Whaten S. (2009). Long term effects include frequent respiratory infection, impaired learning and memory, and even panic attacks (Friedman, D. P., Stine, C. C., and Whaten S. (2009). Thus, the ingestion in smoking marijuana can cause harmful outcomes, which are

Marijuana has been used in religious ceremonies or for medical purposes for thousands of years. I have always been against the use of Marijuana up until four years ago when my husband at the age of twenty seven underwent invasive surgery on his knee and has never been the same since. Colorado took a huge step several years ago legalizing marijuana for medical use and in recent years took the plunge to legalize it for recreational use. Marijuana is not always a bad thing nor is it always a good thing. A lot of people will compare it to any other mind altering substance and have very valid points. I would rather have a loved one or myself smoke marijuana or ingest it, instead of popping pain pills or other harmful substances put on the market by the pharmaceutical industry; Recreational use can be safe and accepting if it is regulated correctly and used responsibly.

What if your child was dying? What if nothing the experts tried worked? What if your only choice was an untested drug? What would you do then? These questions, while hypothetical to many people, are the reality of others. The snake oil man of olden days could be compared to medical marijuana dispensers today. Many view medical marijuana as something adults should not partake in let alone children. Others see it as perfectly fine, comparing it to alcohol or tobacco products that need some monitoring, but not much. Giving it a medicinal purpose seems to make marijuana more authoritative.

Recreational marijuana is legal in Washington, Oregon, California, Alaska, Colorado, Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, Nevada, and Washington D.C. Many bills have been brought forth in other states to legalize the substance. In October, 2017, 64% of Americans believed recreational marijuana should be legalized. The debate about legalizing recreational marijuana is argued from moral and economic standpoints. From a purely economic standpoint, the US should legalize recreational marijuana, because it would create many jobs, bring in more tax revenue, and would save tax dollars by keeping many out from being arrested.

We all know that marijuana is an addictive substance. Legalizing cannabis use is an easy way for people to use drugs. Using marijuana impacts teenagers’ learning outcomes, ability to work as well as driving, increases car accidents. The consequence of using stimulants at a young age leads to conflicts

Marijuana usage is a topic that has been discussed for some time now but the recent medical and recreational legalization of this drug has brought about a new area of unchartered territory. The business industry will have to revise many of their employment and safety requirements. After viewing some current policies many businesses are likely to be forced to established new protocols for intra and inner state practices. There are many types of complications as to why the marijuana usage laws should stay at the federal level and not within the state.

Marijuana is a drug that has been used for medical purposes and as a relaxant for thousands of years. If one was to ask a marijuana user how it makes him or her feel, one may receive answers like, “It makes me calm”, “It enhances my creativity”, “It stimulates my mind” to name a few. How can a drug as so describe possibly be illegal in the United States? Well it all started when Mexican immigrants came into the United States after the Mexican Revolution. They introduced the recreational use of cannabis to the states. Americans considered the immigrants to be low class citizens and they demonized marijuana, making claims that it was the cause of many of the Mexicans frowned upon ways. Thus the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 was enacted which outlawed

President Trump’s stance on the legalization of Marijuana has always been complicated. When campaigning, Trump declared that the legalization would merely be a “state-by-state” issue, but since his inauguration into office his opinion has differed. Trump has indicated he wants to crack down on states that have legalized marijuana. Even with the differing opinions of the head of the nation, the price of marijuana seems to be decreasing at a very fast rate.

Cannabis is becoming increasingly widespread and increasingly common in modern-day society for both recreational use and for medication. The article by Craig Reinarman, ‘Criminalisation, legalisation and the mixed blessing of medicalisation in the USA’ generates many controversial issues of cannabis.