Should Marijuana Be Legalized?

This paper will look at the benefits and drawbacks to legalizing marijuana by looking in at Colorado.The state made forty million dollars by taxed marijuana in 2014 alone, also Colorado saved countless millions because of the extremely lower amounts of marijuana arrest and court cases. It is not clear how having new recreational marijuana stores opening will affect the cannabis market, or businesses expanding around them. Gov. John Hickenlooper says that the economy is thriving with record setting numbers of tourists (73.1 million). 49 percent of those tourist said that legal marijuana influenced their decisions to vacation in Colorado. The ER’s in Colorado have also seen a rise in numbers of marijuana related cases and those cases in non-residents have almost doubled. An unexpected situation that arose from legal cannabis was the amount of electricity that is being use to grow the drug. Some cannabusinesses have to go green with solar or wind power. There are many varying views on the effects of legal marijuana have developed in Colorado since marijuana became legal in 2014.

To legalize or to not legalize drugs, that is the popular question lately. The current repeat visitor to each states legislative sessions is making marijuana legal. Currently in the United States there are twenty states with legal medical marijuana and the District of Columbia. Out of those twenty only Colorado and Washington have also legalized marijuana for recreational use. When it comes to legalizing drugs marijuana appears to be the most popular one being advocated for. However, does that leave the door open for other drugs to be advocated for as well? Should they all be legalized or just a select few?

Ferrets are a part of the weasel family. They are closely related to animals like otters, minks, wolverines, and badgers.

The majority of clinical research studies concerning marijuana use and its effects unravel the uncertainty which surrounds the subject and present the common pattern of insisting that further clinical enquiry is necessary. Measurable immediate effects generally translate in a temporary alteration of perception, as "colors and sounds may seem more intense, and time appears to pass very slowly. The user's mouth feels dry, and s/he may suddenly become very hungry and thirsty" (Yacoubian). Admittedly, these manifestations hardly seem to pose any social danger. However, the overall objection to marijuana is based on negative long-term effects, which seem to be carcinogenic, harmful to human immune, respiratory and reproductive systems, and compromising of short-term memory and cognitive capacities.

Cannabis, regularly known as marijuana, and by various other names is a composition of the cannabis plant intended for utilization as a psychoactive medication and physiological effects. People usually think that marijuana is unhealthy drug that needs to be avoided, but is it harmful than alcohol and tobacco? In modern days, cannabis is used as a recreational or medical drug, depending on the laws provided by different states in the USA. Although marijuana faces a strong opposition, a force for its legalization is extending across the nation. However, what are the after effects if marijuana is legalized? What are the pros and cons of it being legalized?

Marijuana has earned itself a terrible name over the years. This plant has a long history with humans, from early medical uses to spiritual and even recreational use. In recent years, many states have seen the legalization of marijuana for medical uses. Most large scale experiments have been hindered because of the difficulty of getting experiments involving marijuana approved. Despite this roadblock for the research of marijuana, surveys and observations of the medical use of marijuana show that the plant may have legitimate medical uses. The lack of evidence showing that weed is a dangerous drug also pushes for its legalization for recreational use. Based on all of the evidence about marijuana for recreational and medical use, marijuana

Marijuana or cannabis is a preparation of the cannabis plant intended for use as a hallucinatory drug and a medicine as well. The principal hallucinatory constituent of marijuana is Tetrahydrocannabinol or THC. Twenty three states and the District of Columbia has legalized marijuana for medical or recreational purposes in the United States. Legalizing marijuana has many benefits to it. Not only has marijuana been proven to counter act some symptoms of cancer and other diseases, it can also boost the economy and increase tax revenues. Along with all these things legalizing marijuana can also lesson crime rate and allow police and federal agents to focus

Marijuana has been successfully used to treat pain, nausea, anorexia, and seizures. No serious side effects have been noted in these patients (Britannica 2). Along with these pain-killing effects, marijuana has been linked to helping fight certain cancers and diseases. Studies show that marijuana can help kill breast and liver cancer cells. The potential to prevent Alzheimer’s and Huntington’s disease is also present (Szalavitz 2). Most medicinal organizations are against the use of medical marijuana due to the popular “gateway theory” myth. The “gateway theory” states that marijuana users are more likely to try harder drugs, but it is simply not true. Marijuana sales are in an underground market, which gives drug dealers an opportunity to push harder drugs to potential buyers. The illegal status of marijuana is what makes it a “gateway” drug (Ferner 3). Consumption of deadly drugs, such as heroin and crack, would reduce significantly if marijuana was sold in a store and not on a street corner (Nathan 1). , Despite the controversy, researchers are continuing to develop and investigate herbal medicine solutions using marijuana to treat patients (Britannica

The argument of legalizing medicinal marijuana and marijuana used for recreational purposes has been around for quite some time now. Recreational use is when one smokes cannabis just for fun and with the intention of altering the state of consciousness while medicinal marijuana is used for treating certain maladies and alleviating their symptoms. Though marijuana use is not as harmless as many people seem to believe. Like any other drugs, marijuana can affect the body and mind and may have a majority of side affects. It has an addictive nature and is also known as the gateway drug. It can even affect those around you in more ways than one. For instance if something were to happen to you or if for whatever reason you lash out at them. The

Many believe that Marijuana is addictive, and for that reason, should not be legalized. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, “Marijuana use can lead to the development of problem use, known as marijuana use disorder, which in severe cases takes the form of addiction.” According to recent data, it is suggested that around 30 percent of marijuana users may suffer from some degree of marijuana use disorder and people who started using marijuana when they were younger than 18 are 4-7 times more likely to develop this disorder (“Addictive”). Similar to addiction, this disorder is associated with dependence to marijuana, which means that the user may feel withdrawal symptoms when not taking the drug. These symptoms can include irritability, decreased appetite, and sleep difficulties. These generally last about a week or two after giving up the drug (“Addictive”). This happens when the brain’s production of endocannabinoid neurotransmitters slows or stops because it has adapted to large amounts of marijuana (“Addictive”). Marijuana disorder becomes an addiction when the user is unable to stop using even if the effects of marijuana interfere with many aspects of their life (“Addictive”). In 2014, it was estimated that about 4.176 million people in the US, roughly 1% of the total population, abused or were dependent on marijuana, but it is hard to estimate the number of people addicted to marijuana because epidemiological studies of substance abuse use

Almost everyone in their lifetime has been involved with a person that was addicted to drugs. Most people, when dealing with a family member or a friend addicted to drugs, want to help the drug addict in any way possible. However, many people’s attitudes change when the drug addict is not directly related to them. According to Department of Justice statistics, forty-eight percent of all prisoners in federal prison were incarcerated for drug-related crimes in 2011(Carson). Therefore, rather than being helped, drug users are being incarcerated. If our goal, as a country, is to reduce the rate of drug use and help drug addicts receive treatment, then why are we merely incarcerating those who use drugs? Although many people are against decriminalization of drugs because they are afraid of how it will affect them, few people think of how decriminalization will affect drug addicts and our country as a whole. Drugs should be decriminalized because it would benefit the economy, drug addiction treatment, drug addicts, and increase personal freedom for all United States citizens.

Grass, hemp, wacky tabaccy, ganja, and many other names are what you might have heard as slang for marijuana. It is a cannabis plant that is most commonly used when the leaves are shredded and then hand rolled into cigarettes to be smoke. Many people see marijuana as a gateway drug, leading to other more hardcore drugs. Which is why it has been made illegal by the United States Federal Government in all 50 states. But some states have decided the federal government does not know what the people of their state do or do not need, so they have legalized marijuana for either just medical or recreational as well. This action by some states has lead to people wondering; does allowing a state to take action that opposes or violates federal law undermine the government’s authority? In order to reach an answer for this question we will need to look at both sides of the subject, the federal government and the states’.

The police and prosecution are capable of pursuing criminal charges for marijuana possession, however there is a lack of consensus with regard to the legal status of marijuana in Canada. Where the superior and appellate courts in Ontario have declared marijuana laws to be of no force and/or effect and public opinion polls have found an increasing majority of agreement in that marijuana use should not be a criminal offence, Justin Trudeau announced that the possession of marijuana for recreational and medicinal use would be legalized. Taking the form of a federal/provincial/territorial process created to discuss a joint suitable process for the legalization of possession for recreational and medicinal purposes, the plan is to remove marijuana consumption and incidental possession from the Criminal Code. Nevertheless the Liberal governments pledge to legalize marijuana use is a step that raises health, social policy, and criminal justice issues, whilst also encompassing economic and financial impacts. However, the news article “Legal pot revenue could reach $5B a year”, neglects to incorporate many of these themes, focusing strictly on the tax revenues in which Canada 's federal and provincial governments will collect from the sale of legal marijuana.

Cannabis, formally known as marijuana is a drug obtained from the tops, stems and leaves of the hemp plant cannabis. The drug is one of the most commonly used drugs in the world. Only substances like caffeine, nicotine and alcohol are used more (“Marijuana” 1). In the U. S. where some use it to feel “high” or get an escape from reality. The drug is referred to in many ways; weed, grass, pot, and or reefer are some common names used to describe the drug (“Marijuana” 1). Like most drugs, marijuana has a very long history. People have been using the plant around the world for thousands of years. The oldest record of the marijuana plant dates back to 2727 B. C. in China where the plant was used as a medical herb for treating conditions like rheumatism, gout, malaria and even absent-mindedness (“Cannabis, Coca, & Poopy: Nature’s Addictive Plants” 1). Slowly, the plant started spreading around the world. By 1545, cannabis was starting to appear throughout the western worlds. Being introduced to South America by the Spanish to be used as fiber. The crop also had many other common uses around the world. In North America, cannabis was often used to make paper, ropes, clothing and other materials (“The Origins of Cannabis” 1).

The use of cannabis toward medicine should not be shocking to anyone, since it has been around for centuries. As a matter of fact, it has been under medicinal aid for an estimated 5,000 years. Western medicine truly grasped marijuana’s medicinal abilities in the 1850’s. Infact, doctors documented over one hundred papers about how marijuana helped numerous disorders, such as nausea, glaucoma, movement disorders, pain relief, depression, and anxiety. It also helps cancer patients and those with HIV or Aids. Currently, many American patients have access to marijuana use so that they can have effective treatments for their illnesses. Medical marijuana use is achievable because