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Marijuana vs. Government
Tobacco claimed the lives of 435,000 people, and alcohol was third in line with 85,000. These staggering numbers combined total up to 21.6% of the American death total in the year 2000 (Drug War Facts, Annual Causes of Death, par. 1). If these innocent legal drugs can make up nearly one-fourth of the American populations’ death total then it must be mind boggling to think of how many people died due to the illegal use of marijuana. Well, the correct answer is even more mind boggling. There have been zero deaths recorded from the use of marijuana in its nearly 5,000 years of usage. That makes the ratio of deaths by legal drugs such as tobacco and alcohol to the illegal use of marijuana 520,000: 0 just in the year 2000. These statistics pose the question “Why is marijuana illegal in the United States?”, yet its murderous counterparts tobacco and alcohol are not only legal, but socially acceptable, which is something that has never been said for smoking marijuana. That is why I believe that the government should move for the legalization of marijuana in the United States.
Although marijuana is not an entirely safe alternative to tobacco or alcohol, it should be legalized. It should be left up to the consumers and the citizens of the United States to choose between the three as a form of recreational use. There are several reasons why the United States should legalize marijuana. First, there is no existing case of a marijuana overdose. Tests performed on laboratory mice showed that the amount of toxins necessary to overdose from intoxication is nearly 40,000:1. In comparison, the amount of toxins required for alcohol poisoning is between 4:1 and 10:1 (The Benefits of Marijuana, par. 6). A second reason is in the case of brain damage. We all know the burnout pothead stereotype that shows how marijuana makes you unusually stupid, but actually marijuana does not produce toxins that kill the stimulated brain receptors (like...