Many people debate over whether or not marijuana should be legalized. They argue about the moral issues or moral conflicts that would arise with the legalization of it. Although there is a lot of we could say for each side, if we put aside our personal feelings and see it from the economics point of view, we would realize that legalizing marijuana would be the right thing to do (especially with the recession we are in). In this paper I will be discussing why the government should legalize marijuana by analyzing the financial costs of keeping it illegal and the financial gain we would receive from being able to tax every sale. First reason why the government should consider legalizing marijuana is because expenditures on drug enforcement would
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.
They say that marijuana is not as harmful as alcohol or tobacco products so why shouldn’t it be legal? One of the biggest things on people’s minds is the money that can be made from the growing and selling of marijuana and how much the government wastes each year trying to fight a losing battle on the war against marijuana.
Recent polls taken by the Pew Research Center and General Social Surveys show that the main reason for support of marijuana is that the American public fails to see marijuana has a major moral issue (Galston, Dionne 1). Compared to gay marriage or abortion, many more Americans are indifferent when it comes to others using marijuana. Those against legalization who consider marijuana to be a gateway drug and a vice argue that legalization will lead an overall increase in consumption of the drug. They argue that legalization will decrease productivity in the workplace, influence children negatively, and increase drug induced automobile crashes. However, the pro-legalization Americans respond in saying increased marijuana use has no lasting health effects, legalization will allow for better regulation of distribution, and marijuana legalization will reduce alcohol consumption in America.
Legalizing Marijuana The legalization, or decriminalization, of Marijuana has been one of the leading controversial political issues in the past decade. Made up of dried leaves of the Cannabis Sativa plant, with THC as it’s main psychoactive ingredient, Marijuana has proven to be less harmful than tobacco and alcohol, and even non-addicting. According to the Drug Awareness Warning Network, “There has never been a death recorded from the use of marijuana by natural causes.” (DAWN) Many people ask why the government would add one more substance to the list of the harmful, legal ones already, but I’m a firm believer that if we do not use our rights they will be taken from us. So should it not be a right of the people to decide whether Marijuana
They will sell to anyone, including children. Merchants who legally sell alcohol and tobacco do not sell them to children. Many high school students say that it would be easier to obtain illegal drugs than alcohol and tobacco. Another myth clung to by anti drug activists is that marijuana prohibition improves public safety. Unfortunately for them, there is no evidence that the prohibition of marijuana reduces the net social risks.
The inability for employers to have a drug free workplace, since they will no longer be able to give the employees drug test for marijuana. It would send a permissive message to young adults that drug use is acceptable. This creates to the public perception that marijuana is not a serious or harmful drug, when in fact, it lead to numerous mental and physical harm. Loss of control over medical marijuana by physician. In consistency with other laws for example, if a state legalizes marijuana, this conflicts with federal laws, and this leads to confusion in the public and among law
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”.
Although alcohol is legal, it does not mean that it is better for you. There are arguments going both ways where people suggest that marijuana should be legal because alcohol is more deadly, while there are alcoholics that would say smoking weed is bad for you. Both substances are bad for your health and should not be used heavily by anyone. Marijuana has an immediate effect on the user, which last for about two hours after smoking. A person drinking alcohol may start to feel the effects after just one drink, and recover depending on how much the person drank, body weight, and how much they may have had to eat before drinking.
The topic of legalizing marijuana is a very controversial issue in American politics today. Marijuana has been vilified in America for over 70 years. Despite it’s many practical uses, medicinal and industrial, our Federal government insists on maintaining the status quo that the growth, possession and use of marijuana is criminal despite the evidence that the legalization of marijuana would have a positive influence on America. The illegality of marijuana has hurt society more than it has helped, legalization would benefit America both economically and medically. Twenty years ago, only 16% of the public said the use of marijuana should be legal and 81% said it should not be legal.