Pro Marijuana Debate

The legalization of marijuana has been a debated subject in America since the 1970's. The pro-marijuana society in America has made claims as to how marijuana can help cure or lessen the effect of some diseases and that by legalizing the drug; the use of pot will actually decline. The fact of the matter is that marijuana is a drug that can be placed into a similar category as cocaine or heroine. Like these other drugs, pot (marijuana) smoking carries with it serious side effects that can effect the user forever, and sometimes-even cause death. Marijuana was first cultivated in America during the colonial time period and was used as a fiber for rope and even clothing. The plant was not used for its psychoactive properties until 1910,

Legalizing marijuana is a concept that can potentially benefit the public as well as the local economies. There has been a nationwide debate on whether marijuana should be legalized or not. The major consensus is that marijuana is not only bad for one’s health, but it is also dangerous to the community. These allegations are not true. Marijuana actually has health benefits that most people overlook. The following essay will address these health benefits in an attempt to present this concept in a way that the audience can better understand how legalizing marijuana can beneficial to an individual health, how it can give an increase to the economy.

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.

Anslinger also tried to confront the public relations nightmare that resulted from many popular entertainers, such as musicians and Hollywood actors, who were known marijuana smokers. Anslinger warned that there were “100,000 total marijuana smokers in the US, and most are Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos, and entertainers. Their Satanic music, jazz, and swing, result from marijuana use. This marijuana causes white women to seek sexual relations with Negroes, entertainers, and any others.” Some jazz musicians even celebrated their marijuana use with songs such as “That Funny Reefer Man” by Cab Calloway, “Gimme a Reefer” by Bessie Smith, and “Muggles” by Louis Armstrong. Accordingly, he kept personal files or “gore files” on many celebrities.

The General perspective that society throws on marijuana is that equal to any drug; negative. However, many researchers have found that the effects of marijuana for medicinal purposes can be beneficial to the right patients, as well as the United States government. The negative effects from marijuana use in a medicinal environment are far less than that of most over the counter drugs, while the benefits remain the same. There are instances in which marijuana was legalized for people with prescriptions from licensed doctors; however, full legalization is leaps and bounds away from the current status. Another way full legalization could help is money the government uses to try and fight marijuana

Legalization of marijuana has been an extremely controversial topic in the united states, as well as many other countries, for years. There is evidence that marijuana has been consumed since around 2700 B.C. It often served as a substitute for alcohol in the middle east, as the Quran banned followers of Islam from drinking alcohol. Marijuana was first introduced to America in 1545 by the Spanish. The colony of Jamestown used hemp, a variety of marijuana, as a means of creating paper, clothes, and many fibrous materials, creating a fair amount of jobs and income. The production of cotton took over as a cheaper and faster means of making those goods, replacing marijuana. Marijuana was then mostly used for recreational use, sparking clubs called “tea pads” to pop up. The increase in popularity of reefer in the 1920s is often argued to be the spark that birthed jazz music. In the 1930s, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Narcotics (now the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs) intended to give marijuana a bad reputation, stating that it is highly addictive, and would lead users into doing other narcotics. It was made illegal in the 1930s to give the alcohol market much more room to grow. Marijuana is now considered a schedule 1 substance, meaning it is very easy to abuse and has no medical value, despite the evidence that it has many potential uses in medicine. It is considered as dangerous as heroin, despite

Marijuana is the most controversial topic in 2014 and 2015. The argument is to be for or against marijuana. I don’t believe in the legalizing of cannabis, but the situation could be viewed from both sides. You can’t take proper taxes on marijuana because it has been around too long. Marijuana is defined as the “dried leaves and flowers of the hemp plant that are smoked as a drug” (i.word.com). Marijuana is very controversial because it is surrounded by so many questions such as: Are people more depended on marijuana? Will legalizing Marijuana increase the use? Does marijuana mess with your mental health?

The whole topic on whether marijuana usage should be legal or not has been a hot debate topic for quite a while now. The use of marijuana has become even more popular, mostly with the younger generations. Many people fought on how it could be useful those who are sick in America and that need medications that could maybe help calm their disease and make it possible to overcome. Currently, you can legally smoke marijuana without a doctors note in 9 states and use medical marijuana in 29 states. 64% of Americans favor legalization, and even a majority of Republicans back it as well. (Robinson)

Maine voters faced five referendum questions. The approved four, which will legalize recreational marijuana use, increase school funding through a tax surcharge on high earners, increase the state’s minimum wage and implement ranked-choice voting. Voters rejected expanded firearm background checks. Many people have different viewpoints on all of these questions. Governor Paul LePage voiced his opinion that this system of how questions get on the ballot needs reform. Some Mainer agree with this, but the results of these five questions show mixed reviews. Stone’s Chapter on “Liberty” ties into the idea of the referendum in Maine, because it is the way our voices are heard on a ballot we vote on.

It is the end of the semester and it is time to prove that I have become a better writer because of English 102. I grew as a writer in English 101 and I was curious if I would continue to grow as a writer in English 102. In my opinion I have become a better writer through English 102. The reason I believe I grew though English 102 is because; I am able to write critical analyses, gather information and use it rhetorically, and accurately proofreading my own work.

In March, 2015, The New England Journal of Medicine published an article on how the legalization of marijuana affected the state of Colorado. The article, titled “Medical Marijuana's Public Health Lessons — Implications for Retail Marijuana in Colorado,” was written by the combined efforts of many individuals highly distinguished in their respective fields. The authors are: Tista S. Ghosh, M.D., a physician with a master's degree in public health from Yale University and specialized training in applied epidemiology and public health practice through the U.S. Centers for Disease Control; Michael Van Dyke, Ph.D., an Associate Professor of biochemistry at Kennesaw State University; Ali Maffey, M.S.W., the Policy and Communication Unit Supervisor

Over time people continue to misunderstand marijuana. Many link it to several adverse effects, however, the drug can have positive contributions. In 2015, Canadians elected a federal government that proposed to legalize marijuana after four states, Alaska, Colorado, Washington and Oregon and the District of Columbia legalized marijuana for recreational purposes. The question, therefore, is why this is a good move?

What are the prevailing issues for and against legalization of marijuana? Just because something is labelled as “illegal” does not mean it is bad. Likewise, when something is labelled as “legal” does not mean it is not bad. Throughout the progression of time, the Western outlook on Marijuana has changed drastically. A few decades ago, the idea of smoking Marijuana was perceived as a menace to the public and the discussion of legalizing Marijuana was greatly frowned upon. Particularly during the early 1970’s when President Nixon proposed the ‘war on drugs’ policy, where he proclaimed, “The public enemy number one in the United States is drug abuse (Sharp, 1994, p.1).” Despite the ‘war on drugs’ policy, several decades later, America began legalizing the recreational use of Marijuana in four different States including; Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington. Similarly, with the United States’ impact, Canada is in the midst of legalizing Marijuana with the new Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau in power. Throughout Canadian history, the United States has greatly influenced Canada’s policies and regulations. For instance, the issues of Doctor-assisted suicide and Abortion were first legalized in the United States and not too long after, Canada followed. In spite of the U.S influence, the discussion of Marijuana is a very prominent and controversial topic among Canadians. In fact, Marijuana can be both beneficial and harmful to all users.

Many people claim that there is no known case of people dying due to marijuana. This is a half truth since it’s not the marijuana itself that kills; it’s its side effects. Marijuana causes lung and throat cancer much like cigarettes. As a matter of fact, marijuana is worse for the lungs, since it contains three times as much tar as cigarettes and it’s usually smoked without a filter. They also claim there is not nearly as much crime due to marijuana use compared alcohol. This is also true but for one simple reason. Alcohol is legal and more easily accessible than marijuana. It’s the fact that marijuana is illegal that is keeping these numbers so low. Legalizing marijuana would be like adding fuel to a fire. If marijuana were to be legalized these number are sure to increase.

The medical use of marijuana has been a discussion that has been in the news and all around us recently. This is currently a hot topic of interest. There is an enormous amount of evidence that marijuana could be effect against many things. For example evidence shows it could be used to help relieve pain during chemotherapy, but along with this there is also evidence that at times marijuana can cause harm to someone as well. As nurses we must see each side of the debate to make our care for our patients sounder. One quote that directly applies to this topic, which is very important, was written in the Journal of Clinical Nursing: