Weed Should Not Be Legalized Essay

Marijuana has been a plant for longer than any human has been alive. Civilizations have used marijuana for hundreds of years for hundreds of purposes. But ever since the 1970’s when growing or having possession became illegal marijuana has been looked down upon by a majority of people living in the United States. Just because it’s illegal doesn’t give someone the right to look down upon you for doing a drug that’s been here longer than we

Cannabis. It’s been called everything from “Weed from the Devil’s Garden” to “the happy little herb”. Cannabis, which is also called Marijuana, has a known history that dates back over 10,000 years. The oldest remnant of the industry of mankind is a little piece of hemp cloth/fabric that dates back to around 8,000 B.C. (website, HIA: Resources: Education: FAQs & Facts: Facts).

is wasted on a cause that there seems to be no end to.” In 1989, a

How many times have you heard or read about legalizing marijuana in the last year? I have heard about it numerous times whether on TV, on the radio, on the Internet, or when reading a newspaper. Many people wants marijuana to be legalized and each has his or her own reason. Some of them want marijuana legalized to reduce drug related violence in southern states that border Mexico and in big cities such as Chicago. Others want marijuana legalized to offset the impact of the current rescission by generating additional revenues to states from collecting taxes on marijuana. Many people believe that marijuana is not a drug and that it’s simply a plant therefore it should be legal just like tobacco. Finally, there are people who

The legalization of marijuana has gotten to be a very controversial topic over the last few years with many valid arguments for both for and against marijuana. Use of marijuana dates all the way back to 2727 B.C. where it was used by the Chinese Emperor Shen Nung. By 1515 marijuana spread to the west where it was used for its use as fiber. “... made into things such as paper, rope, and clothing” (DEA Museum). Hemp was even encouraged to be grown by the US government. “... marijuana became a popular ingredient in many medicinal products and was sold openly in public pharmacies” (PBS). In the United States people began to fear marijuana along with Mexicans after the Mexican Revolution of 1910. The reason for this is that Mexicans initially introduced the recreational use of marijuana in the United States. Anti- drug propaganda warned American people about the dangers of Mexicans and their “Marijuana leaf” (PBS). It officially became illegal in 1937 following the Marijuana Tax Act. Which made marijuana a schedule 1 drug along with meth and heroin. This is simply crazy because when you look at meth users and compare them to marijuana users you can see the vast differences and the reasons why marijuana does not fit in this category. Even with its large variety of uses and low addiction rate, marijuana is still a schedule 1 drug along with way more disastrous drugs such as heroin. The reason for this is simply because of the War on Drugs which spends more than 12 billion dollars

“Each year, hundreds of thousands of people are around the world who die from preventable drug-related disease and violence. Millions of users are arrested and thrown in jail. Globally, communities are blighted by drug-related crime. Citizens see huge amounts of their taxes spent on harsh policies that are not working,” ( http://www.wptv.com/news/health/kofi-annan-stop-war-on-drugs). Many citizens use marijuana, illegal and legal. Marijuana use should not be decriminalized because in most states it’s already legal, such as, Columbia, Alaska and Washington, D.C. More decriminalization will decrease funds used to fine, prosecute, and house marijuana users.

For years people that have used marijuana have been looked down upon in America and it's wrong when a person looks at the facts marijuana is a harmless plant that is more beneficial to society than negative. Marijuana prohibition cost the American taxpayers approximately 41.8 billion dollars annually including a loss in potential tax revenue (16 Facts about Marijuana and the U.S. Economy). Thirteen billion dollars being what the U.S. government spends annually for marijuana to stay Illegal (16 facts about Marijuana and the U.S. Economy). Ninety four million U.S. citizens admit to trying marijuana at least once in their lifetime (Smith). Consequently, six hundred and ninety three thousand people getting arrested each year for less than an eighth ounce of marijuana (About Marijuana). Currently, marijuana occupies 40% of all drug related arrests (Smith). Therefore people that serve jail time for small amounts of marijuana cost taxpayers one billion dollars every year (16 facts about Marijuana and the U.S. Economy). In the past marijuana had a reputation of being horrible for you, but research says that it is a safer alternative to alcohol or tobacco (Whitley). Alcohol and tobacco have a combined death rate annually in the U.S. of four hundred and fifty thousand people

Only last month the Encyclopedia of Astrobiology reported that 6.6% of the general public claimed to have consumed marihuana. There are many reasons floating around on why marijuana should not be a legal substance and it has become a very controversial topic. Marijuana alters the crime rates in the U.S since it is illegal to own or consume. Therefore, enforcing the law on marihuana gets expensive for the state due to the fact that there are many people incarcerated creating a cost of over 44 billion dollars a year (mic.com). So with the legalization of marijuana those costs would disappear and the tax imposed on to the drug would drive the economy up. Society would be ecstatic that the economy would begin to recover but there is still speculation that the drug would be abused. Since the drug would be such widely available that the prices for the drug would decrease there forth making it prone to abuse. Yet, all the benefits it will provide for our society would outweigh the few negative impacts weed legalization would provide.

marijuana, that can help in such cases, but many patients complain that it is a

In our world today, it's often told to use that marijuana is bad for our health. The government has to put a lot of effort to put the people who do smoke into jail. But people no longer think the reasoning for illegal marijuana is to keep us healthy. Quote from Ronald Reagan, “ the most reliable scientific sources says permanent brain damage is one of the inevitable results of the uses of marijuana” Ronald base this information of an statement  on Tulane University Study of 1974. This puzzled people for six years, making them think it would cause carbon monoxide poisoning.

Usage of marijuana both medically and recreationally in the United States dates back to the nineteenth century. An article published by Ohio State University describes an advertisement in Vanity Fair to illustrate the nations attitude towards marijuana in the 1800’s it reads “The hashish candy advertised in an 1862 issue of Vanity Fair as a treatment for nervousness

There are many people in this world that feel that marijuana is an evil and sinful drug. They argue several points against marijuana that would support their position. Most of these have no relevance to what in general, and they can be easily disputed. Others have some basis, and they can be considered valid arguments. However, the facts remain that the positive aspects of marijuana far outweigh the negative aspects.

The following is a proposal for a public policy that would legalize marijuana and have the drug be treated as alcohol. This is necessary because the current policy is detrimental to society and the legalization of marijuana would be beneficial. The prohibition of the drug is unfounded because tobacco and alcohol, legalized substances, are more dangerous than marijuana. Also, the legislation regarding the drug was created on racist sentiments, reducing the law’s credibility. The current policy also creates a dangerous black market and renders our prison system ineffective. The legalization of cannabis would bring undeniable medical and economic benefits to society and the government. Varying degrees of marijuana legalization have

Marijuana is a green or brown mix of preserved, crushed leaves from the marijuana plant. A psychoactive drug, marijuana contains fifty-percent more tar than tobacco. Smoking the harmful plant can damage the brain, lungs, and the male reproductive system and may escalate the effects of epilepsy and psychosis (Kahler, 1988). Within campus colleges and universities, there are a lot of students who are using marijuana recreationally. Long-term marijuana use can induce negative effects on short-term memory, concentration, attention span, motivation, and problem solving, which clearly interfere with learning. Tetrahydrocannabinol, the active ingredient in marijuana, can reinforce dependence on the drug and on other addictive drugs (Joffe &

My best friend used to smoke marijuana on a regular basis. Over time, he developed many obvious bad habits and changed his life style tremendously. He started getting lazy with schoolwork, and did not show much interest in anything at all. His parents noticed all these side effects that had been occurring but were unaware that their son smoked marijuana. After the grades fell so much, they decided to take him to get checked out because they were afraid he had developed some sort of ADD. They come to find out that because of him smoking so much marijuana it had led to brain problems, memory problems and affected his thinking skills. He was unable to stay concentrated on something and constantly was out of breath when any physical activity