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.

The decriminalization of marijuana is an incredibly controversial topic in the United States. Conservative views deem the drug dangerous and debilitating, while reformers suggest that legalizing the plant would have an enormous positive impact on the economy. While others, the terminally ill, wish for the plant to be legal so it can be offered as a less toxic and sometimes more effective alternative to harsh prescription drugs. an overwhelming wealth of facts that state the benefits marijuana can have medically.

The legalization of marijuana will lead to a boost to the economy. With the United States being trillions in debt, an increase in tax money would be a big help to lower the national debt. Colorado, one of the first states to legalize marijuana for recreational and medicinal uses, is showing valuable data of an increase in tax money, “In 2015, Colorado collected more than $135 million in taxes and fees on medicinal and recreational marijuana. Sales totaled over $996 million” (Krishna, Mrinalini). Now, Colorado is joined by seven other states, Washington, Oregon, California, Alaska, Maine, Massachusetts, and Nevada, in the full legalization of marijuana. With these states joining with Colorado, the United States is seeing sales “[grow] by 30%, to 6.1 billion, in 2016 and a projected 20.1 billion in 2021” (Krishna, Mrinalini). With that in mind, these sales are shared among only eight states, add another forty-two states and the rates could surpass the trillions. Considering the evidence, the act of not legalizing marijuana would be foolish.

In the essay “Marijuana Should Not Be Legalized,” there are four supporting arguments stated of opponents on legalizing marijuana. For instance, opponents argue “scientific reports show harmful effects of habitual marijuana use” (2). In addition, prominent politicians in Massachusetts contend “legalization provides a veneer of acceptance that will encourage children and teens to try it” (3). Furthermore, “legalization will give the cannabis industry the same incentive the alcohol industry has to encourage excessive use and lobby against tax and regulation” is argued by opponents (6). Lastly, the essay counters “legalization has already had negative consequences on

A problem in the US today is smoking cigarettes. Cigarettes are made up of literally hundreds of very harsh chemicals that are inhaled into the lungs and can cause serious consequences down the road. Marijuana has been compared to cigarettes in some studies. The good part about marijuana is that it doesn’t affect the lungs in a bad way. Marijuana contains THC which acts like a sort of cough drop and opens the airway leading to your lungs. Cigarettes on the other hand or as I like to call them, (sick)arettes do the exact opposite by filling up your lungs with

This book explains real the medicinal value of marijuana. why is it illegal? David Ford explains how the federal government created a systematic campaign of deception that began in the 1930's. From fifty years of research and interviews with hundreds of marijuana users, the author offers many arguments why marijuana should never have been illegal. The government is aware that marijuana never resulted in even one documented death. In 1966, the voters of California and Arizona approved marijuana for medical purposes. This has sparked up a controversy. Should it be legalized or not? I want to write about this because, this is one of the most talked about and most argued about subjects in America today. It is definitely a subject that should be examined and researched a little more. I will use David’s book to illustrate whether or not marijuana should be legalized or not. In honesty I am not a fan for marijuana, I think the world functions just fine as it

The legalization of marijuana is a controversial issue in North America today. Despite the outstanding benefits of legalizing this drug, we haven't gotten any closer to ending the war on drugs. There are major social, law enforcement and fiscal benefits with very minor drawbacks. Many European countries have proven than legalizing drugs can reap many benefits and we should follow these liberal ideas so we can also enjoy the benefits.

Throughout this paper, there will be the highly debatable discussion between legalizing medical marijuana and regular marijuana. Both sides of the argument have their pros and cons and there is an in depth description of both sides of the argument. At the end of the day though, the paper thoroughly supports the legalization of medical marijuana and marijuana in general. Medical marijuana less harmful than most other legal tobacco products and has the ability to reduce the pain within ailing people. Cannabis also can be a curable and more natural drug to help people in pain. Marijuana also has the potential to raise the U.S. out of their tough economic struggle as well as lower crime rate and create more jobs for many more

The legalization of marijuana became a heated political subject in the last few years. Twenty-one states in America have legalized medical marijuana. Colorado and Washington are the only states where marijuana can be purchased recreationally. Marijuana is the high THC level part of the cannabis plant, which gives users the “high” feeling. There is ample evidence that supports the argument that marijuana is beneficial. The government should legalize marijuana recreationally for three main reasons. First, I will present two common arguments against the legalization of marijuana and then refute them. Second, I will explain how there is no proof of harmful effects from marijuana and that there are many health benefits prominent. Third, I will describe how legalization would bring in tax revenue for the government. Finally, I will go into detail on how legalization would decrease crime rates.

Marijuana is a very prominent and controversial issue in society today. Although many slanderous claims have been made about cannabis in recent history, the truths are slowly starting to resurface. The big question succeeding these truths is if marijuana should be legalized in the United States collectively. Unfortunately, these truths are under a substantial amount of criticism due to the stereotypical view of what people see as the typical “pot smoker.” This twisted perception of a lazy and unmotivated America is the product of almost one hundred years of propaganda and deception spread by private interests who needed cannabis to be illegal for their own personal benefits. When taking into account the positives and negatives of the legalization of marijuana in the United States, the amount of benefits greatly outweigh the costs, making legalization necessary in a

Legalization of marijuana also provides a unique opportunity for government to gain revenue due to potentially high income from taxation of the substance. The cost of marijuana prohibition runs to billions of dollars annually. This expense can be turned into revenue by the legalization of the substance for medical purposes. Legislators should consider the benefits of marijuana as a substance with medicinal value. There are many people suffering from chronic conditions and personality disorders who can be effectively treated using marijuana to complement the medication provided by pharmaceutical companies. Research has shown that legalizing marijuana holds both economic and medicinal benefits. It is therefore in the best interests of the society as a whole to allow marijuana to be used for medical purposes by all those who need its medicinal

Directly compared to other legal substances such as alcohol and tobacco products, the health risk is minimal in the sense of death count to substance related deaths in the US. While Cannabis has never directly caused any deaths at any point, it does not mean it comes without health risks. A few health risks include damage to the lungs, stunting the growth of a developing teen’s brain, and some instances it could cause a lack of motivation in users. Daily and often consumption of inhaling smoke could cause damage to the lungs. Although marijuana smoke does not contain the chemicals often found in cigarettes such as nicotine, tar, and ammonia, which does not mean it is completely harmless. Inhaling smoke into one’s lungs is never healthy for them and marijuana is not excluded from this. The Effects of marijuana can also be dangerous in different scenarios. It is never safe nor smart to operate a vehicle while under the influence of marijuana as it hampers coordination and impedes the judgment of the brain. One should never smoke marijuana daily while their brains are still developing as it can lengthen and disrupt the growth of the developing brain and can also damage nerve cells. Studies show that frequent chronic marijuana users have a lower Intelligence Quotient compared to a nonsmoking population. Many argue that it is impossible to get addicted to marijuana which is not the case at all. Addiction isn’t always your body developing a dependency on a substance to function because addiction can be completely mental. Anybody in this world can get addicted to anything; it’s possible for people to get addicted to chocolate, coffee, soda, collecting something, sometimes an addiction can be helpful instead of harmful. Addiction is defined as “an unusually great interest in something or a need to do or have something.” Marijuana fits right into this

A lot of people are still stuck to the ideal that marijuana is dangerous to society and body. The facts are that the government has misled a lot of people about marijuana. These people are not well educated about the use of marijuana. Most people think person using marijuana is dangerous to the community, however, all the outcome of the research that the government carry out does not say anything about marijuana being dangerous. Use of marijuana for treatment has not just been discovered, according to Cohen Peter stated \" Cannabis, more commonly referred to as marijuana, has a long history of medical use in this country and worldwide\"(Cohen 20). Marijuana has been prescribed for pain relief, nausea, and glaucoma. It is the use as a powerful appetite stimulant which helps patients that have HIV/AIDS or cancer patients going through chemotherapy. Cohen wrote, \"smoked marijuana could ease the symptoms of AIDS wasting and produce gains in body weight\"(Cohen 21). When comparing, medicinal marijuana to other prescribed drugs, the prescribed drugs are a lot less effective, more expensive, and have dangerous side effects. Pills that were often given to people and some is strong painkillers which, are highly addictive, and that can cause overdoses. Marijuana leaf call \"cannabis\"(Cohen 20) is safer if used in the right dose without side effect. Today many patients are able to use marijuana as a method of treatment for their sickness. This is possible for some patient because, some state governments across the country have acknowledged cannabis known as marijuana for treatment. For the useful of marijuana for treatment, some physician were been given license to prescribed marijuana for the patient. However, these patients can have the necessary treatment, without been in

A couple hits of cannabis are capable of stimulating sensations for the individual that ultimately result in a euphoric experience. The legality of this astounding drug has been a controversial subject for decades. Marijuana officially became illegal in the United States in 1937, on account of the Marijuana Tax Act (Gahlinger 35). Since then, the topic of legalizing marijuana has been discussed, but never exhausted. Many compelling arguments have been made in support for the legalization of marijuana. Marijuana is the most commonly used illegal drug in the United States; in fact, more than 70 million Americans have tried marijuana (Marijuana Myths…).Prohibition has proved to be ineffective and supporters believe that legalization could enhance the quality of American life by spurring economic prosperity and encompassing many health benefits.

Did you know that almost half of the population in the United States belongs in jail, according to the law on marijuana? It’s true. In 2008 Time Magazine reported that researchers had found more than 42% of people surveyed in the United States had tried marijuana at least once (Lynch, 2008). So if marijuana use is so common in the United States, why should it not be legalized? In this paper I will discuss both the supporting and opposing positions on the legalization of marijuana. I will also explore the moral and ethical views for legalizing marijuana.