Over The Years, There Has Been A Great Amount Of Discussion

Smoking of marijuana can cause the person to become addicted to cocaine, heroin, and other drugs. Heavy or daily use effects the parts that control memory, attention, and learning (Facts for Teens, 13). When teens are 12 and 13 they are more exposed to drugs and most likely don’t listen to their parents (Age in Stem., 1). Some other psychological side effects would be paranoia, anxiety, fatigue, Euphoria, and mood swings (Fact Sheet, 1). Studies have shown that when a person uses marijuana it causes the heart to beat faster and work harder (Fact Sheet, 2). When people have smoked large measures of marijuana for years, the drugs takes its charge on mental functions (Facts for Teens, 13).

The Canadian Liberal Government hopes to introduce legislation to legalize marijuana in 2017, but I don’t know if that is the right choice to make. Almost two out of every 10 Canadians reported having consumed marijuana in the past year, but more than 30 per cent of poll respondents said they would do so in the next year if it were legal. There are no benefits of doing this substance, so why do it! There are many side effects that marijuana can have on a person such as dizziness, lack of motivation, lung problems, etc. Hopefully, weed does not become legalized in Canada because there are many negative aspects of doing so.

One argument of these supporters is that the current penalties for marijuana possession are too harsh. Realistically, there is not chance that marijuana will ever be completely decriminalized in Canada, as the effects from this would be damaging to Canada's relationship to the United States. President George W. Bush has already stated that full decriminalization of marijuana would lead to longer and more thorough border searches, due to the possibility of increased drug trafficking across the border. This is why the Canadian government is leaning more toward decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana rather than legalizing it. The theory behind the decriminalization of the possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use should be tied to a national drug strategy that promotes awareness and prevention, and provides for comprehensive treatment. The government would sponsor programs to educate youths about the dangers of marijuana, and also support programs to aide citizens who have addictions to marijuana.

Using marijuana has been connected to paranoia, anxiety, depression, short-term forgetfulness, lung cancer and even heart attacks. It can complicate medical conditions like liver disease, low blood pressure, or diabetes. Some people use it to calm their anxiety or to escape their problems, but research shows a link between marijuana use and mental health problems (Web MD).

This is why the Canadian government is leaning more toward decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana rather than legalizing it. The theory behind the decriminalization of the possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use should be tied to a national drug strategy that promotes awareness and prevention, and provides for comprehensive treatment. The government would sponsor programs to educate youths about the dangers of marijuana, and also support programs to aide citizens who have addictions to marijuana.

Dr. Vokow, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, has also found that long term use of marijuana can affect the IQ of adolescent children in which they never recover (3). Furthermore, young people can also suffer from anxiety; depression; even thoughts of suicide.

The article, "We need to legalize marijuana now," by Ken MacQueen, dives into the topic of legalizing marijuana and the issues surrounding the matter.  The author expands the topics of why marijuana is illegal, the cost of keeping marijuana illegal, why the prohibition is unfair, the potential risk to public safety by legalizing marijuana and the positive effects of legalizing marijuana.  The author is able to firmly explain his point of view, why Canada should legalize marijuana, using examples, quotes and statistics.  MacQueen concludes his

Currently it is legal to use marijuana under a Health Canada license for medical purposes in Canada; however, the debate if Canada should legalize marijuana for recreational use has exploded in controversy of the years (marijuanaalaws.ca). For instance, Lupick argues British Columbia should be proactive with legalizing recreational use of cannabis since most of the West Coast has already legalized marijuana in all capacities (Lupick). Some opinions argue that legalization should occur because the perception is there are no health risks to the use of marijuana and there are benefits for individuals with medical issues (Pacula et al. 1021). However, the opinion alters for some individuals that claim

Since long time, there has been controversies over the legalization of marijuana. The government is unclear about its effects on society and on individual. As of today, marijuana is illegal in Canada. The government is just now looking at its effects. Marijuana should be legalized in Canada because marijuana is essentially medically beneficial, can also lower the crime rate in Canada and give benefit to the economy by diminishing the Black Market and providing the government with tax money.

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).

Marijuana is considered in popular culture to be a widely accepted mainstream recreational illegal drug used in the United States; its use comes with severe adverse side effects that are often overlooked. Long-Term use of marijuana 'sis shown to have negative effects on physical, mental, and environmental health. Studies have shown that in the United States, up to 20% of daily marijuana users become dependent (Marijuana and Lung Health) showing a physical or emotional need for the drug. Marijuana use has the potential to affect every aspect of a person 's physical and mental wellbeing negatively. Its use also comes with potentially life-altering risks to one 's future including an individual’s likelihood of obtaining a degree, impacting their future earning potential and decreasing their overall reported life satisfaction. Once dependent on marijuana, people stop caring about their schooling. Long-term use of smoking marijuana can result in the inability to learn, retain information and think critically.

Marijuana continues to be the most widely used drug in the Western Hemisphere, its cognitive effects robustly revolve around memory. There have been many studies done on the chemical effects that marijuana has on the brain centers concerned with memory and learning. There are more productive studies relating to the effects of cannabis on short-term memory that show different memory processes effected by this drug. Though there is not much knowledge on the effects the drug has on long-term memory due to suspected confounds that temper with the process of collecting proper data, there have been studies showing lasting effects in adolescents and chronic users (Schoeler and Bhattacharyya, 2013). More research should be done on the long-term processes in order to better understand the lasting effects of cannabis use. Marijuana causes these adverse effects on memory by first altering chemical processes in the brain.

One common myth associated with smoking marijuana is smoking marijuana can cause permanent mental illness. There is no convincing scientific evidence proving that smoking marijuana can cause psychological damage and mental illness in teenagers and young adults. Marijuana does not cause profound changes in people’s behaviors.

The article, “Marijuana and the Teen Brain”, from the Scientific American journal, Claudia Wallis, argues that marijuana negatively affects the teenage brain. Wallis begins her argument by stating her viewpoint on the drug and then proceeds to provide information to support her stance. Multiple studies by scientists/researchers are cited in this article including those based on x-rays of a marijuana user’s brain and others that tested marijuana users on their cognitive skills. Wallis additionally mentions a study on rats which tested the effects of THC. The author provides background information on marijuana to give the reader a better understanding of the concept. This source supports the argument that marijuana use has negative impacts on the human brain because the author also stands behind that argument. Wallis discusses these negative impacts and provides evidence to support her claim. This source cites various studies in which researchers tested the effects of marijuana on the brain which reinforces the argument that marijuana has abnormal effects on the human brain.

Marijuana is a green or brown mix of preserved, crushed leaves from the marijuana plant. A psychoactive drug, marijuana contains fifty-percent more tar than tobacco. Smoking the harmful plant can damage the brain, lungs, and the male reproductive system and may escalate the effects of epilepsy and psychosis (Kahler, 1988). Within campus colleges and universities, there are a lot of students who are using marijuana recreationally. Long-term marijuana use can induce negative effects on short-term memory, concentration, attention span, motivation, and problem solving, which clearly interfere with learning. Tetrahydrocannabinol, the active ingredient in marijuana, can reinforce dependence on the drug and on other addictive drugs (Joffe &