Additionally they claim marijuana’s addictive, interferes with fertility and impairs driving ability. Does alcohol not do the same thing? They go on to say that it also affects the immune system and the brain as well as that medical marijuana is a front for drug legalization and recreational use. Just as on September 4, 2007 Member of the US House of Representatives Mark Souder was quoted as saying “In April 2006, following my request the FDA release an inner agency advisory confirming the smoke marijuana is not medicine because it has a high potential for abuse, has no currently accepted medical use of treatment in the United States and it has a lack of accepted safety for use under medical
Ethical issues and a lack of research studies that prove the effectiveness of Cannabis are the reason the drug has not be legalized in all states. Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies is working on research to show the usefulness of medicinal Marijuana in a therapeutic situation. According to "Research Medical Marijuana" (2011), “The National Institute on Drug Abuse’s monopoly on the supply of marijuana for research and the DEA's refusal to allow researchers to grow their own has effectively paralyzed medical marijuana research,” (para.
There is no scientific evidence that marijuana prevents the progression of visual loss in glaucoma. While marijuana, as well as alcohol and a host of other substances, and lower intraocular eye pressure, the medication must be carefully tailored to the individual to prevent further eye damage. Besides numerous adverse side effects of smoking marijuana, the dose cannot be controlled. Several AIDS patients are using marijuana because of the claim that it gets rid of some of the side effects. Smoking marijuana to reduce the side effects of AIDS compromises the immune system and puts AIDS patients at a significant risk for infections and respiratory problems.
Parliament Debate: Opposition to the Legalization of Marijuana I argue in opposition to the statement that Texas should legalize marijuana and reject the proposal that would change the status quo by recognizing smokable marijuana as an accepted drug. I argue this because marijuana is not a safe or healthy alternative to other drugs and has not been scientifically tested with the results that classify it as useful for medicinal purposes. (TAB) According to Mark Kraus, a physician in Waterbury, Connecticut, and a member of the board of directors of the American Society of Addiction Medicine, “smoked marijuana contains many of the same toxic or carcinogenic compounds that have been linked to lung cancer and emphysema” (Kraus). Kraus also states
Mohamed Alamoudi Why We Should Legalize Marijuana Many people believe that legalizing marijuana is only an issue of importance to “stoners” and other stigmatized groups in society; they couldn’t be more wrong. Marijuana is much less unhealthy than prohibition propaganda would lead you to believe. Furthermore, the government wastes vast resources on prosecuting and incarcerating nonviolent marijuana users. For these reasons, the United States should legalize and tax marijuana. The examples of the Netherlands and Portugal show that decriminalizing marijuana does not lead to “pot epidemics”.
Conservatives will always be against it and Liberals will always be for it. The only conclusion we can come down to based on hard facts is that marijuana should be legalized. Although most of the time people make decisions based on their emotions, I refuse to agree that the government should make decisions in the same manner. The government and people voting for these propositions should look at what its best for the country. After looking into all the issues of legalizing marijuana and looking at the pros and cons, the only conclusion we should come to is to legalize it.
Our nation was made for the federal government and state governments to have their own separate laws, and that whatever federal law there is in place, states can’t make laws that affect the federal ones. In response to this, I feel that the federal government should let the state governments have medical marijuana laws, but work together to make the state laws legal on the stance that it doesn’t affect the federal laws that are already in place. Speaking on behalf of the federal government thinking that with state medical marijuana laws in place, will make the controlled substance act ineffective, my argument, which is also the state governments argument, would be that the state laws won’t make the act ineffective because the marijuana isn’t being sold from state to state. In addition, if it does end up effecting interstate commerce then the federal government can then prosecute those people not following the Act. All in all, if the medical marijuana is regulated properly then the federal government won’t lose oversight of illegal drugs.
Controversy The Marijuana Controversy Dianne L. Joy Kaplan University HA545_Unit 4 Project Professor Shalah Watkins-Bailey Introduction Since considering marijuana to have no accepted medical use DC and 20 of 50 states have since then legalized the medical use of marijuana. But the issue with marijuana is that they are n sure if it actually helps patients with diseases. It is argued that marijuana is a safe and effective treatment for people suffering from diseases like cancer, multiple sclerosis, AIDS, pain, epilepsy, glaucoma and other conditions. But the others argue that marijuana is dangerous, it lacks the approval of the FDA, it is addictive, leads to harder drug use, interferes with fertility, impairs driving ability, and
Dylan Kelley Rough Draft 11-15-10 Yes We Cannabis Should marijuana be legalized in the United States? Should people be punished for smoking a harmless natural plant? The legalization of marijuana is a topic that most Americans have a powerful say in. Some believe it should remain illegal because they believe it’s a “gateway” drug or because it causes violence. Others, like me, think that the government shouldn’t have the power to outlaw if it’s not harming or endangering others.
Despite the effort to decriminalize medical marijuana, there is no general agreement that marijuana helps patients (DEA, 2006, p.1). The Food and Drug Administration has not approved medical marijuana in the use of treating any condition of disease (DEA, 2006, p.1). The FDA has stated that “no sound scientific studies supported medical use of marijuana for treatment in the United States, and no animal or human data supported the safety or efficacy of marijuana for general medical use (DEA, 2006, p.1).” In general, there is no documented evidence supporting the medical value of the use of marijuana. Many influential sources in the medical community have supported the ideas and decisions of the FDA in regards to their position on medical marijuana. “The American Cancer Society ‘does not advocate inhaling smoke, nor the legalization of marijuana’ (DEA, 2006, p.2).” In addition to the American Cancer Society, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, and British Medical Association have all denounced the use of marijuana for treatment of medical conditions (DEA, 2006,