Alcohol vs Marijuana Clifford (Buddy) Haynes Dr.Ronald S. Ipock Ivy Tech Community College English 111 05/03/2011 Marijuana is a drug associated with only the most rebellious of people, it is said to ruin lives and cause major health and social problems. However, alcohol and the potential dangers it can cause questions the user on the physical and mind altering effects that can be had. The causes are different in both substances however the severity of one highly exceeds the other; yet are out casted and frowned upon by society. Marijuana has been proven to not be addictive physically, have no recorded deaths, and cause less harm to the body than alcohol. The mind altering affects, the side effects given after consumption, and of the potential
While some do not believe the theory that drugs are used for the risk, it is an interesting way to look at the reason people do drugs. People who are pro drugs promote that drugs, such as marijuana, are used for medical use as well as recreational use, because they enjoy the effect drugs have on them. Prohibitionists state that if drugs were legalized they would be only consumed for recreational use or to escape from reality instead of dealing with issues (Marijuana Abuse, 2012). Some prohibitionists do not even believe that drugs help in medical ways. This controversial topic is one of the reasons the drug reform is such a debated movement of today.
Another premiss is “Severe laws against marijuana do not discourage use of marijuana, but rather breed this contempt not only for drug laws but for laws in general.” This ties in with the first premiss, but can stand alone as its’ own as well. The conclusion would be “Severe laws against marijuana are more dangerous to society than the activity that they are designed to prevent.” This is a conclusion that explains its two premisses and makes an argument against the laws in which are enforced to prevent the use of marijuana. Also, in this case for this particular argument there are no extra superfluous premises. This is mainly because almost all the argument is used for the conclusion and
Unlike soma, the drugs produce numerous negative aftereffects. Furthermore, the use of drugs is not regulated. As a result many accidental overdoses do occur. Although drug use is not mandatory as it is in Brave New World, many people choose to take drugs. In both societies, people use drugs for the euphoric feeling to escape from their worries and problems, instead of dealing with their emotions.
He dismisses this argument by listing other activities that could be harmful to an individual such as smoking tobacco, riding motorcycles, and having unprotected sex. This comparison makes the idea of prohibiting these activities because they are harmful to the individual participating in them seem rather ridiculous. Basically, illegal drugs CAN be harmful to a user; at the same time, smoking tobacco IS harmful to a user, yet smoking cigarettes is perfectly legal. I think Huemer’s argument effectively defeats the prohibitionists’ standpoint that drugs should be outlawed because they are harmful to the user. Second, the author addresses the prohibitionist argument that illegal drugs cause harm to people around the user as well.
Bennett’s chapter against the legalization of drugs he speculates that the legalization of drugs would remove the criminal stigma that currently labels drug users. Bennett theorizes that a removal of this stigma would take with it the hesitation felt by the majority of people who see no positives in a life of crime. He is talking about every drug which one would agree that such a broad decriminalization would send our country into a downward spiral filled with addicted citizens barely able to function within society. The hard drugs that Bennett describes are in fact a danger to society such drugs like PCP, heroin or crack cocaine. However, he barely touches on the fact of marijuana alone.
Understandably, those who wish to promote the benefits of marijuana can sometimes downplay the negatives. Although no one has ever died from a marijuana overdose and its overall track record is safe, there are some hazards that are largely a function of context. Used in excess, marijuana has a clear tendency to diminish motivation, blunt ambition and generally stunt normal emotional growth. It can also cause confusion and disorganized thought patterns. It has been studied that marijuana is addictive, a “gateway drug”; leads to harder drug use, interferes with fertility, impairs driving ability, and injures the lungs, immune system, and brain (medicalmarijuana.procon.org).
The studies indicate that marijuana provides symptomatic relief for a number of medical conditions, including nausea and vomiting, stimulating appetite, promoting weight gain, and diminishing intraocular pressure from glaucoma. There is also evidence that smoked Marijuana 6 marijuana and/or THC reduces muscle spasticity from spinal cord injuries and multiple sclerosis, and diminishes tremors in multiple sclerosis patients. Patients and physicians have also reported that smoked marijuana provides relief from migraine headaches, depression, seizures, insomnia and chronic pain, among other conditions (Normal
Unlike natural marijuana, spice is sprayed with chemicals that can be toxic to the human body. Such toxicity, can produce dangerous side effects like tachycardia, which is an unusually fast resting heart rate (Camp, RN). Other reports have shown additional side effects include excessive sweating, agitation, inability to speak, aggression, and restlessness. These side effects are not the norm when natural marijuana is used (Gupta). Patients treated by medical professionals say that patients experienced short-term loss of consciousness, paranoia, hallucinations, tremors, and even seizures.
People in south Africa, can use marijuana as a medical purpose ,if marijuana is made legal. Marijuana is known as a drug, but so is alcohol and tobacco. However, alcohol and tobacco , do not have medicinal qualities . On the other hand , marijuana does have medicinal qualities. These medicinal purposes, that benefits patients suffering from cancer , glaucoma and AIDS.