Medical Marijuan Annotated Bibliography

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.

Thesis Statement: Marijuana has been regarded as a harmful plant that can endanger lives and is thought to be nothing more than an extra problem to be dealt with in today’s society. However, based on its economic value and medical benefits, the cannabis has proven to outweigh its negatives with numerous other positives.

Also, marijuana can be seen as being addictive in nature. “Approximately 9% of individuals that use marijuana become addicted” (Marijuana Statistics). Marijuana contains many chemicals, such as tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which can cause many positive and negative effects to the human body and brain. A major attribute for medical marijuana is the economic advantages that are produced from the distribution of the drug. Also, the legalization of medical marijuana can portray positive and negative outcomes for law enforcement. Therefore, medical marijuana has many positive effects, such as treatment for diseases, and negative effects, such as immune system suppression. Throughout this research paper, medical marijuana will be thoroughly explained to exemplify the advantages and disadvantages of legalizing the

Marijuana is a drug that is an ongoing issue in the United States for many years debating about whether it should be legal, so in 2010 the state of California proposed the “Tax, Regulate, and Control Cannabis Act” for voters to vote on which would make marijuana illegal. Charles Stimson, a former assistant U.S. Attorney specializing in crime, had strong opinions about what he thought about the issue and was paid to write an article by the Heritage Foundation where he could voice his opinion about legalized marijuana. In his article “Legalizing Marijuana: Why Citizens Should Just Say No,” Charles Stimson tries to persuade his audience, voters of California, that they should vote against legalized marijuana. He tries to persuade his audience

With all of the complex issues facing the nation today, it seems as if the legalization of marijuana is being set on the back burner of legislation. There are so many opinions, sides, and overall arguments for and against it that many vote seeking politicians and policy makers have put up a strong resistance to this issue. In this paper I will illustrate the reasons why I think marijuana should indeed be legalized and also the arguments from people who disagree and feel that it should stay an illegal drug.

Marijuana is a drug that divides people. Some people claim it as the wonder drug of the '90s, capable of relieving the symptoms of many serious illnesses. Others curse the day the cannabis plant was ever discovered. From pain relief to stimulating the appetites of patients on chemotherapy, marijuana seems to have plenty going for it as a medicine. The legalization of marijuana is a large controversy in many parts of the world today, but the obvious negative effects that the drug induces has kept it from being legalized. Many researchers have a strong positive attitude towards marijuana. It has been said that the drug is “worth investigating and even providing as a medicine for pain relief, severe

Cohen, R. (2012, November 8). The fight over medical marijuana. New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2012

The argument for medical marijuana legalization has been one of the controversial debates that have raised heated discussions in many conferences worldwide. Therefore, this essay will provide a consistent and comprehensive argument to support the position that medical marijuana should be legalized. In this essay, the stand will focus on the fundamental aspects behind treatment. In addition, it will present evidence for how marijuana treatment provides heaps of benefits for terminally ill patients as well as pain relief options for others. As if so, this essay corroborates that legalization will allow substance controls and regulations, in turn, minimizing the chances for abuse or addiction.

Marijuana is the familiar name for a raw drug made from the plant cannabis sativa. One of the active chemical in marijuana is tetrahydrocannabinal (THC); a stimulant it give users the pleasure effect of relaxation, known as a “high” or hallucinating when consumed too much either through oral or smoking. It is the mainstream drug and a blistering topic to our nation in this day and age. Legalizing marijuana is an ever-growing political and social battle making its way to the top of American controversial issues list. Marijuana is one of the prime adversaries on the outlook of America’s war on drugs. Numerous people crave this drug to be permissible and readily available similar to tobacco and alcohol. While it is mind-boggling that

Medical marijuana has been legalized in over twenty states and is already being used by over a million to treat various conditions. Its potential for medical use is extraordinary, but its growth is hindered by government officials who worry about the social and medical impact the drug may impress. This makes it difficult for researchers to validate the drugs potential and find new uses for it. Likewise, there are many potential uses for medical marijuana, but they cannot be pursued until officials acknowledge its cultural impact and promote researching the drug for significant evidence of its medical benefits.

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

Beginning in 1990s, the famous plant known as cannabis has increased its popularity among adults and teenagers, while still being both researched and labeled by the Controlled Substances Act in 1970 as a highly addictive drug with no known medical use. Yet, marijuana has gained popularity among U.S. citizens and calls for legalizing it has finally come. However, no one seems to be terrified from the consequences of using pot. They label it as “harmless plant” with great use for patients. Therefore, we debunk those claims and side with the non-legalization side, for the good of this country’s future generations.

Achieving pain relief under certain treatment regimes implicates a number of federal and state criminal statutes, as well as public policy. Those treatment regimes that rely on opiates (e.g., morphine) and cannabinoids (most notably, tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the primary psychoactive ingredient in marijuana) risk running afoul of the Controlled Substances Act [CSA] (21 U.S.C. Sec. 841 et seq.). Under current federal law, the use of marijuana for any purpose—other than government-sanctioned research—is a criminal offense. (In October 2009, the Department of Justice, in a guidance memorandum to United States Attorneys, stated that the Department considered federal prosecution of persons using marijuana for medical purposes in compliance with state laws “is unlikely to be an efficient use of federal resources” [p. 2]. The choice of words in the memorandum may be

There is extensive literature evaluating the merits and dangers of legalizing marijuana, or cannabis, for medicinal and recreational use. However, despite the quantity, it is difficult to draw a meaningful conclusion based on the quality of much of this evidence. In reviewing three recent articles addressing medicinal uses for cannabis (Whiting et al., 2015), negative health effects from its use (Gordon, Conley, & Gordon, 2013), and pharmacist recommendations for implementation of its use (Isaac, Bandana, & Chaar, 2016) it is clear that further research is needed on this issue. Two of these studies highlight the limitations and inconsistencies in the current evidence and the need for more investigation (Gordon et al., 2013; Whiting et al., 2015), while the third article exemplifies the role that bias plays in undermining the evidence (Isaac et al., 2016). Recently, investigators have begun to examine in more depth the roles bias and legal barriers play in limiting studies on medical marijuana (Rhodes et al., 2016; National Academies of Science Engineering and Medicine [NASEM], 2017). Research must be encouraged and facilitated at the federal level to reduce bias and promote the production of high quality evidence for or against therapeutic effects of cannabis, and health care providers should be better educated to objectively participate in this process (Evanoff, Quan, Dufault, Awad, & Bierut, 2017).

One of the benefits of marijuana is its diverse medicinal uses. Doctors prescribe marijuana as an alternative drug for many types of cancer, AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease, arthritis, various breathing and gastrointestinal disorders, Tourette syndrome, and many more and more that are waiting for discovery as further research takes place. Patients use marijuana to alleviate symptoms such as general pains and discomforts, nausea, lack of appetite, and anxiety. The legalization of medical marijuana will help soothe the growing opiate crisis in the United States and the more local crisis here in South Jersey; medical marijuana is far less addictive than prescription painkillers that lead to the use of opiates. Most agree that legalizing marijuana for medicinal use is a necessity; the real controversy lies with the issue of legalizing it for recreational use. Legalizing marijuana has three standout benefits: the