Will Marijuana Ever Be Legalized?

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Kiara Jackson Carol Johnson ENGL 1101/20271 19 February 2013 Kiara Jackson (student) Will Marijuana ever be legalized? A Response to Gore Vidal In the article “Drugs: Case for Legalizing Marijuana” by Gore Vidal, he explains why keeping drugs illegal does not stop some of the root problems that drugs cause in society such as drug addiction and drug trafficking. Drugs are a big problem in society and there are many different ways to approach the problem. Some say that drug users and addicts should be punished; others say that drugs should have medical uses. Still others, such as Vidal, argue that drugs should be legalized and regulated, so that the people of the nation have the freedom to make their own choices. He also mentions that “it is possible to stop drug addiction in the United States within a very short time. Simply make all drugs available and sell them at a cost” (para.1). Vidal makes many strong arguments, with which I agree. All people are individuals. That is, they all have their differences, be it biologically, emotionally, and/or mentally. People can react to drugs very differently. Vidal uses marijuana as one of his more frequent examples. Although it has been proven to not be biologically addicting, it can, for the right person, be mentally addicting. I, for instance, know of many people who fall under the mentally addicted column and many that don't. For some people, marijuana is just one of life's "little pleasures" like sex, alcohol, and chocolate. It reduces stress, and enhances creativity. Our economy could benefit through taxing marijuana. Legalization would result in lower prices. This would help reduce crime, such as theft. Street crime derived from drug disputes would be reduced. The FDA would be able to regulate drugs. This would lead to a safer environment. Law enforcers could focus on more dangerous and serious crimes.

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