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Why We Should Not Legalize Marijuana

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Don’t Be Absurd Smoke Some Herb America's attitude towards marijuana has changed dramatically. The plant that used to be considered dangerous by most has now been decriminalized and smoked almost everywhere. Although the federal government prohibits marijuana, four states have already legalized it for recreational use. California should take this opportunity to legalize marijuana for its economic benefits and also because of the evidence on the states that have already legalized the plant, it is not as harmful to society as perceived. There is already a price being paid for marijuana in arrest costs, it would be illogical to not take advantage of being able to make money instead. Peter Wong wrote “Marijuana legalization: Pros and cons” for …show more content…

Many people believe that if the drug were legal, teens would be given easier access to the plant and marijuana use would increase. An unknown author wrote “Why We Should Not Legalize Marijuana” for CNBC.com on April 20, 2010. The author hypothesizes that the legalization of marijuana would only lead to abuse. It is suggested in the article that marijuana would be a significant factor in highway crashes and teen use is predicted to increase along with all users. The author believes that the increase of marijuana smokers would lead to dependence of the plant as well. The unknown author claims, “New marijuana users would not be limited to adults if marijuana were legalized, just as regulations on alcohol and tobacco do not prevent use by youth...Lack of public understanding on this relationship is undermining prevention efforts and adversely affecting the nation’s youth and their families”(Why We Should Not Legalize Marijuana 2-3). Logically speaking, the legalization of marijuana would have no influence on adolescents and their decisions. Regardless of a person's age it isn't difficult to purchase marijuana, and teens who have chosen to smoke are already smoking. Therefore, the authors claims on an increase of teen smoking is obviously speculative and should not be considered when deciding whether or not cannabis should be …show more content…

On April 14, 2015 and unknown author wrote the article “In Debate Over Legalizing Marijuana, Disagreement Over Drug’s Dangers”. The author explains the reasons for both supporters and those against the legalization. It is written in the article that supporters believe it has many medical benefits and would have good outcomes if taxed, while dissenters believe it is dangerous and morally wrong. The author also explains that the majority of people would only be bothered by public use and most who are against marijuana have never smoked it. The author reports, “ ...the belief that marijuana is no worse than other drugs (36%) - with many explicitly mentioning that they think it is no more dangerous than alcohol or cigarettes” (1). Marijuana is proven to have medicinal uses, which is why it is legal for medical use already in California. If citizens believe it is no more dangerous than other substances than why are those substances legal? These substances bring more harm to a body, have a higher addictive rate, and have no medicinal use. Marijuana is not as much of a threat to a body than what is already

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