Cannabis is widely known by the terms Marijuana, Pot, Mary Jane or Ganja. Growing up your parents would tell you “Drugs are bad for you”. But your parents were always right, so you would listen to them. You could never understand why people would smoke marijuana even if it was illegal and put themselves in the position to get into trouble with it. I’ve had my experiences with marijuana and what it does to you mentally and physically and still didn’t quite understand why it was illegal. People say cannabis is a gate way drug but it’s not. It’s a stimulant that raises the level of nerves in your body. Some states in America such as Colorado and California have already legalized marijuana and has made positive changes by doing so. Cannabis is advertised by everything around us including music, television, social media and your peers. Marijuana is proven to have a positive effect on people for various reasons. Some of these reasons may include crime reduction, economy, and health. These reasons could really help people succeed in their future and these are reasons why cannabis should be legalized.
After a full year of legalizing cannabis in Colorado, arrest for cannabis has dropped a whopping 90 percent. Each prosecution cost over $1 trillion while each arrest cost $300. 25 million people and some have been arrested for cannabis and legalizing it can save us a considerable amount of money. Cannabis can become a multi-billion dollar industry. It can also help with tax revenue
It concluded that just under half of all drug related arrests are a result of marijuana. On average, that is an annual cost of nearly $4 billion dollars. The study also found that 25 percent of incarcerations that were related to marijuana were "low level offender:" which means that they were jailed for possessing only a small amount of marijuana ("Legalization of Marijuana"). That is a staggering amount of money. That $4 billion dollars is tax payer money that could be going towards catching other criminals or improving society. Things such as homelessness, serious drug abuse, and human trafficking are just a few of the many serious issues that could receive much needed funds and resources. Legalization would take the funds out of the hands of illegal drug suppliers and direct it straight to the government. As previously stated, the government is doing a variety of things with this money to give back to the community. It is also surprising to see the number of people that are being incarcerated on petty charges. Rather than chasing serious criminals, the justice system is wasting time and energy focusing on menial crimes. The legalization of marijuana would not only redirect money and resources to important issues; it would also help to promote safer
The fact that Marijuana is still illegal is mind boggling to me. The fact that Marijuana, after being proven to have numerous medical benefits, and being proven to cause little to no harm whatsoever with long term use, is still labeled as a schedule one narcotic, is even more mind boggling to me. State and federal governments spend so much money trying to get rid of marijuana. State and federal government's spend even more locking up these "drug offenders" for the most harmless crime you can commit. This is a free country right ? So why are these marijuana users not free to put whatever it is they desire into their bodies? Now, of course there are violent crimes assosciated with marijuana, however a simple solution to that would be to legalize
Decriminalizing cannabis can decrease drug violence, gang activity, laced marijuana, and drug cartels. “The knock-on effect is a reduction in levels of drug-related violence. “The cartels are in competition with one another,” Gavrilova explained. “They compete for territory, but it’s also easy to steal product from the other cartels and sell it themselves, so they fight for the product. They also have to defend their territory and ensure there are no bystanders, no witnesses to the activities of the cartel,” (The Guardian). Legalizing weed allows dispensaries to control sales and the government to set restrictions. Taking weed out of the publics discretion allows for organized distribution, taking sales away from drug cartels. Smuggling decreases and overall the war on drugs shrinks since people have safer options to gravitate for. Without this drug related violence, murder has dropped 10%, robbery dropped 19%, general crime dropped 10% in California, and homicides decreased by 41%. Not to mention, keeping an inmate for one day costs an average of $87.61 according to the Federal
Legalizing recreational marijuana use is a huge national debate right now even though it has been legalized in some states. A major benefit of possibly legalizing marijuana could be the amount of revenue generated from selling recreational marijuana. From January through June 30 the state of Washington grossed 18.9$ million in tax dollars at the producer, processor and retail levels. Nationally the legal marijuana market is expected to be worth 10.2$ billion dollars in 5 years compared to 1.53$ billion it is at now.
Additionally, marijuana prohibition only allows the underground drug market to flourish and, as a result, cartel violence escalates and the cartels’ profits continue to fund terrorism. Due to this indication, the policy makers need to consider a policy shift that can be more effective than prohibition. Alternatively, the legalization of marijuana will establish control and regulations of its use. The illegal drug market is saturated, which means that decriminalizing certain drugs would contribute substantially to the economy through the establishment of their legal distribution and taxation. Marijuana is the cheapest intoxication that most individuals have access to in most parts of the world. Moreover, it can be even cheaper when legalized. An excise tax on its commercial sales, excluding the economic benefits from the other industries such as agriculture, will save the taxpayers a lot of money which can be used in community development. In the state of Colorado where marijuana is completely legal, legal marijuana sales raised tax revenue of $6.17 in January and February 2014 (Stuart). In the state of California, medical dispensaries generate about $105 million annual sales tax revenue (Stuart). Taxes raised from legal marijuana will be utilized to
Marijuana use has become one of the most controversial topics in society today. There are a number of positive reasons why people feel the drug is good, but with the pros always comes cons. With this in mind, a number of laws have been created restricting the use of marijuana in the community. Although it is illegal, people still continue to abuse the drug and resort to its history to showcase that its use was once a normal part of life. Marijuana, also known as cannabis, has been used for recreational, medicinal, and religious purposes for thousands of years. Its first known uses are traced all the way back to 2900 B.C. and it is still one of the most commonly used drugs today. The use of marijuana is engrained in our past, and probably will
America paints this picture that nothing good can come from this plant, but on the contrary, it has a lot of beneficial factors if it was legalized. For example, marijuana being legalized in Colorado brought in millions of dollars in tax revenue. Colorado collected almost $70 million in marijuana taxes, nearly double the $42 million collected from alcohol taxes. There are numerous ways that marijuana can benefit the U.S. if it were decriminalized. Marijuana could save America money by not having to spend money on enforcing the law. at the same time bring in money. Marijuana can play a huge role in medical research. Marijuana should be legalized in the U.S.
Marijuana is an addictive substance that many people get affected by. Many people know the negative effects of marijuana but they still continue to smoke weed. The government should not legalize marijuana because it would cause a lot of harm to the user and if they legalize it, more people would start smoking weed. Marijuana affects their education, causes health problems, and it also increases the chance of being schizophrenic. Marijuana should not be legalized resulting in a better lifestyle.
As Washington lawmakers struggle to find different new ways to balance the budget, a significant source of revenue may be burning away right in front of their eyes. This significant source has been a debated topic for many years now, the legalization of marijuana. Currently, 23 states are allowed to sell marijuana for medicinal purposes and 2 states, Colorado and Washington, allow marijuana to used and sold for recreational purposes. A large support from the public has now opened up other states to the consideration of the legalization of marijuana because of the potential of a positive fiscal impact that the sales of marijuana might have marijuana might have on the economy through taxes, jobs, and cutbacks. Can the legalization of marijuana turn this struggling economy into a booming one? Given that, if marijuana is legalized then this would open up useful resources and untapped markets. If useful markets are opened up then state and federal governments would increase their revenues and help stabilize the economy. Therefore, if marijuana is legalized then it would help state and federal governments increase their revenues and help stabilize the economy. First let’s discuss how marijuana can open up resources and untapped markets.
If marijuana were to be legalized than the government would benefit greatly from the taxes placed on it. “Legalization would generate tax revenue of roughly $8.7 billion if marijuana were taxed at rates comparable to those on alcohol and tobacco,” (Miron). Along with the taxation on weed, the government would save money due to a decrease in the population of jails and prisons. In Colorado alone, “analysts suggest that taxing the drug could raise anywhere from $5 to $22 million annually,”
Is legalizing Marijuana a significant step to take? There has been an absurd amount of concerns as to what will happen to the community. Will the community grow from this new law, or will this end in a horrible problem? Although Marijuana is a narcotic, it does not cause harm to your body in comparison to other narcotics and alcohol. Legalizing Marijuana in the states of the U.S should be acknowledged because it can be used for medical reason, it is not harmful to the body, and police want strong relationships with their community.
Increasing popularity in marijuana may leave many wondering if it should be legalized but, considering the negative effects, it should not be legalized. Use of marijuana can damage the brain, heart, lungs and immune system. It also impairs learning, memory, perception and judgement. Also, some short-term effects of marijuana are anxiety, poor coordination and increased heart rate. Looking at the effects of marijuana, it should not be legalized. Looking at the effects of marijuana, the initial high a person experiences is not worth the risks. Looking at the effects of marijuana, would you want to find out that someone you loved had died because they were in an accident with someone who had been smoking marijuana?
Does marijuana hurt your bodies health, or can it help it in some ways? This debate has been controversial for a very long time now but both sides have some arguments about whether to legalize it or not. This is important because it could affect our futures and our children’s futures. People want to legalize medical marijuana so for people who can’t have regular medication pain killers, so they have something that eases the pain. I do not think that Medical Marijuana should be legalized because some people will try to use this to get marijuana not for medical purposes but for recreational uses.
The cannabis plant has been around for thousands of years since the 3rd millennium BCE in countries such as China and India. The plant grows in tropical and humid parts of the world and it was used as a medicine, and in some cases was turned into a holy oil. In the year 1545, the cannabis plant spread west and the Spaniards imported to Chile to use it as a fiber. In North America, cannabis was in the form of hemp and farmers grew it on plantations so that they could use it to make rope, clothing, paper, and it was also turned into oil to be used in paint. Just after the year 1900, cannabis, commonly known as marijuana, became illegal shortly after the Mexican Revolution. During the hearings, the claims stated that marijuana had the ability
At the beginning of the November, with the ending election for the next president of the United States, the California marijuana legalization initiative which is also called “California proposition 63” was approved at the the same time. Combined with the proposition 215 passed in 1996, the ballot’s consequences announced that not only the medical marijuana is legal in California, but also the recreational use of it for people over 21 years old is authorized. According to the content, Californian are free to possess up to 28.5 grams marijuana and permitted to smoke it in their private house or other business licensed places, they can even grow six marijuana plants in their own backyard as long as others won’t see it. It has been a long timely