Should Marijuana Be Legal?

The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA) is probably one of the most credible sources of information on the issue of substance abuse. For this article the survey conducted by the CASA had 1,987 teenagers participate to gain insight on marijuana use amongst the youth. CASA’s results where calculated in 2003 and the report was produce and copyright in 2004 making the information pertinent. Lynn Zimmer is a professor of sociology at Queens College in New York and coauthor of a book titled Marijuana Myths. Lynn’s resume speaks for itself making her knowledgably on the topic of marijuana use. This article could be look at as not

Marijuana has been a hot topic of conversation over the last few years, as some states in America have legalized it medically and recreationally. By discussing the legal aspect of marijuana, the economic benefits, medical usage and how marijuana affects the family, we can see the positive and negative impact that marijuana has on sociology.

The flame ignites, the smoke builds, the mind relaxes. It’s a process that at one point, could have

Should marijuana be legalized? Many Americans have been asked this question or have heard some type of news about the issue. Marijuana is commonly known as cannabis which refers to the dried up hemp plant cannabis sativa, even though marijuana is a plant and has no chemical additives it has been a tropic of controversy for many years but nowadays it is in the spotlight more than ever. For centuries, marijuana has been used by people throughout the world for religious, recreational and medical use. A few countries like the Netherlands and Uruguay have already legalized marijuana for recreational use and many other countries are taking a step towards doing so. Is it finally time for the United States to take a closer look into possibly legalizing marijuana. Marijuana should be legalized for medical and recreational purposes because it would aid in the War on drugs, it would become an important source of revenue for the government and reduce overpopulation of American jails.

Attitudes toward the legalization due to the shifts over time take into consideration a shockingly exact reproduction of four decade of American social history. In November 2012, voters in Colorado and Washington State passed a law allowing, dispersion, and ownership of marijuana for medical and recreational use. This paper does not address the subject of whether cannabis ought to be legal; it concentrates on the configuration contemplation of making an adjustment in cannabis strategy. Regardless of whether marijuana authorization is positive or negative for general well-being and public security largely relies on upon administrative choices and how they are actualized. This paper contends that current federalism precepts neglect

Marijuana while illegal on a federal level has been legalized in 18 states and the District of Columbia for medical use and also for personal use for anyone over 21 in Washington and Colorado. 48% of Americans admit to using marijuana according to a 2013 survey conducted by Scientific America. With the change in public opinion concerning marijuana the need to understand the effect and consequences associated with its use are vitally important. What are the effects on the brain and the rest of the body? Does it matter when you start using marijuana? Also what is the effect marijuana use has on a person’s life, to include school, work, family and friends.

According to world recognized American Scientist Carl Sagan “the illegality of cannabis is outrageous, an impediment to full utilization of a drug which helps produce the serenity and insights , sensitivity and fellowship so desperately needed in this increasingly mad and dangerous world”. These are just some of the benefits of Marijuana along with many others. All you have been taught about cannabis in your lifetime is the negatives but it is important to consider facts about the benefits if you would like to form your own opinion. The heavily scrutinized legalization of cannabis would have many benefits including an estimated 28

It seems every decade marijuana studies show that it has no side effects on users, in turn it become more available like when some states in America had legalized it. Dr Kevin M. Gray believes that the only side effect of smoking weed is the physical addictions it causes, he believes that over 51% of all teens have used weed at least once and the biggest problem we are facing with this rapidly growing drug use is only addiction. Dr Marshall M. Gay believes that the health effects of weed isn’t that much as smoking cigarettes and doesn’t see it a threat to people’s health. “More than half (51%) of adolescents reported that marijuana is fairly or very easy to obtain.2 this ease of availability may have contributed to a recently reported "reverse gateway" from cigarettes use to marijuana”. The more ignored belief is that marijuana can lead to a variety of developmental, mental and physical side effects. The effects of smoking weed can extend to those of smoking cigarettes “studies show regular marijuana use can lead to many of the same

But only 9 percent of marijuana users develop a dependence” (Boffey). Even still, of those 9 percent that develop a dependence, marijuana addiction is dissimilar to that of heroin, alcohol, or nicotine, from which withdrawal is often an extremely painful, physical experience. In addition, the long-held belief that marijuana is a gateway drug has been debunked, and even quietly removed from D.A.R.E’s list of gateway drugs. As far as medical research is concerned, the clear consensus is that marijuana use is less harmful to human health than most other banned drugs. While tobacco causes cancer, and alcohol abuse can lead to cirrhosis, there is no clear causal connection between marijuana use and any deadly diseases. Furthermore, it is less dangerous than highly addictive but legal substances like alcohol and tobacco. Marijuana use cannot, in and of itself, lead to fatal overdoses, and there is little evidence that it causes cancer. Like tobacco and alcohol, public policy concerns support the notion that it should be kept out of the hands of minors. The downsides to marijuana use are less compelling as reasons to foist criminal penalties on its possession, especially not in a society that allows nicotine use and celebrates

The issue of Legalizing marijuana is a very controversial topic of modern times. The use of marijuana is all over the media with celebrities doing it and young people in on the craze. Marijuana is the world’s oldest illegal drug, not only that, it is also the drug that is most widely used among society today (Aanstoos, 2015). Different types of people use this drug for a variety of reasons, such as, as a way to disconnect from todays hectic world, something they are peer pressured into, or even medical reasons. My argument is against the concern of legalizing marijuana in general including medical marijuana. Before completely going all in against this drug, note that there is some relevant research, which shows Marijuana has some benefits to it. This paper will explore both points in against and in favor of legalizing marijuana to be revealed, aiming for an understanding of the issue and present a public health policy to improve and educate the public of this hot health topic.

Cannabis also commonly known as marijuana is a product that comes from the cannabis plant. Marijuana is mostly used as a psychoactive drug and as medicine although the cannabis plant does have many other uses. Marijuana although legal in 20 states and the District of Columbia for medical purposes and 2 states for medical and recreational purposes is still federally illegal and is considered by the United States a scheduled 1 drug. This means that according to the United States, via the Controlled Substances Act, marijuana has been found to fit the following three categories; The drug or other substance has a high potential for abuse, the drug or other substance has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and

Bringing together experts they asked the question “Knowing the impact alcohol and tobacco have had on public health, and if you could have written the tobacco control bill 150 years ago or the 1933 law repealing Prohibition, what provisions to protect children would you have included?” (“NFIA launches campaign”, 2010, p. 5). Opponents of legalization also argue the “gateway” effect, asserting that the younger one begins using marijuana, the more likely he or she will be to use cocaine or heroin as an adult. However, proponents highlight that in 2006, eight out of 10 states where marijuana is legal saw a decrease in teen use of marijuana over a seven year period. In addition, advocates of legalization have shown that while marijuana was the cause of 279 deaths between 1997 and 2005, there were 11,687 deaths from 17 different prescription medicines (Anonymous, 2010). Beyond these more obvious arguments, legalization would bring new issues to the forefront. Employers would be faced with revamping drug testing policies and the health insurance agencies would have prescription and treatment ramifications to deal with. Weighing the arguments and implications is a daunting task.

This video I watched “Should Pot be Legal?”, brought up some really good points about the legalization of marijuana and it showed both sides of the argument. There was two people back and forth debating if marijuana should be legal or illegal. Hutchinson was against legalizing marijuana and Ethan Nadelmann was for legalizing marijuana. As it goes for me I agree with Ethan Nadelmann, I think that medical marijuana should definitely be legal and people should be regulating it. A great point was brought up that marijuana has been proven that it helps people with severe medical conditions, for example it has been a huge success for people with arthritis.

The amount of cannabis commonly usefulness for medicinal intend is not believed to cause any permanent cognitive damage in adults, though thirst-term entertainment in adolescents should be balance carefully as they are more impressible to these impairments. Opponents of medical marijuana debate that it is too hazardous to use, lacks FDA-imprimatur, and that several legitimate pharmaceutical mate marijuana habit unnecessary. They are also running a phase 2 ponder of no-psychotropic cannabidivarin.

Marijuana’s popularity has grown every year and who knows when it will reach its peak. This will talk about the positive effects of marijuana and why it should be legal from an opinionated view with factual information included. It also shows how it would benefit people with minor to serious medical issues. The effect that the legalization of marijuana would have will be discussed as well. Alcohol, which is legal, is compared to marijuana, and how it is more dangerous than the drug and the long-term effects as well. Marijuana has come along way since it was first introduced to us, and its history will be explained. You will learn a lot more about marijuana than you did before, and probably won’t think of it as a drug, but as something that could benefit people in society today. More and more uses for marijuana have been discovered over the years and I’m sure there will be more to come in the future. Hopefully, you have a different view on the subject and you have questions after you read through. Nobody has the answer if it is truly good for you or if it is bad for you. We still are learning about this plant, and what it can bring to the table for us.