...Student’s Name Instructor’s Name Class Date What do you think would be the consequences of the legalization of marijuana? The legalization of marijuana has been a hotly contested topic in the US and other countries for a long time. This is because many people disagree on the effects it will have on communities and the country in general. Some people argue that it may encourage abuse and thus result in promotion of negative aspects. Some people argue that legalizing it would increase its impact on teens because fo corporations marketing to them (Bodkin). A significant number of citizens argue that legalizing marijuana would reduce its criminal impact. Many scholars and members of the public argue that legalization of marijuana is beneficial for the community because of the increased revenue from taxation. This is based on the increased usage of the drug for recreational and medical purposes because of legalization. Marijuana is consumed by a lot of people for different purposes and legalizing it will provide a way for the government to benefit from the market. Currently, the market is highly regulated and sale of marijuana is not taxed resulting in lost revenue (Nitti). Legalizing it will provide a way for states to benefit from this large market and improve service delivery from the revenue. The debate on the effect of marijuana legalization on the level of drug abuse in the US does not hold much. This is because legalization will include introduction of regulations...
Words: 325 - Pages: 2
...The Great Marijuana Debate Cory Williamson Keri Keith University Composition and Communication 2 May 08, 2014 The Great Marijuana Debate A question that has been asked over decades is “What should the US do about marijuana?” Recently Colorado voted for the legalization of recreational marijuana, and according to the New York Times article by Rick Lyman (2-26-14), the state is bringing in more money than expected. There are Arguments for and against the legalization of marijuana. Some of the arguments for legalization are the medical benefits, high taxation dollars, and the creation of new jobs. Those who oppose the legalization of marijuana cite a higher crime rate, consequences of smoking to both the user and the family, and more people becoming addicted. The medical advantages of marijuana are well documented, but many people prefer to keep it illegal; however, economic possibilities compared to criminal consequences show the benefits of legalization. “Something that cannot be argued is the stimulation that selling and taxing marijuana would provide to both the state and national economies,” according to Rick Lyman. Colorado governor John Hickenlooper, in a CNN.com interview with Evan Perez (2-17-14), said that marijuana shops opened in Colorado and the revenue from sales alone was over one million dollars. Colorado also has a 12.9 percent tax rate statewide on regulated recreational marijuana. Using those statistics, the predicted sales and tax...
Words: 1462 - Pages: 6
...2012 Marijuana: Opening New Possibilities for the Growth of the United States Cannabis, more commonly known as marijuana, is a plant that is grown for its recreational and medical effects. Marijuana was mostly used by individuals who were active in the counter culture movement which is better known as the hippie movement in the United States. Today, while marijuana has been known to have positive medical purpose, it is a federally illegal drug. Due to the drug’s growing fan base, it would not be a surprise if it were to become legalized sooner rather than later. Marijuana should become federally recognized as legal because of its medical effects, possibility for economic prosperity, and harmlessness. Not all People use marijuana just to get high. A growing number of citizens smoke cannabis because it helps with sleeping, headaches, and insomnia. Studies at University of California Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research indicate that inhaling marijuana smoke can lead to positive medical effects for patients that have serious illnesses. For example, cancer patients have been known to experience a great reduction in neuropathic pain after taking the drug (norml.org). Commoners without serious health problems smoke marijuana to alleviate eye irritation and anxiety. With such a large percent of the population that takes the drug illegally, marijuana is bound to benefit the government as well that the people. By legalizing marijuana for both medical and recreational use, the...
Words: 790 - Pages: 4
...The debate over the legalization of marijuana has done its rounds through the federal legislature for decades. Two years after Colorado and Washington State became the first states to legalize the sale of marijuana, the conflict rears its head yet again in the national debate. The anti-drug coalition has had its time in the limelight, as it now seems that the pro-legalization groups have achieved success in the past few years. America is known for being the “land of freedom”; therefore, granting the right to legally possess and use marijuana advocates the freedom that America is so well known for. However, with so much room for abuse, this “right” is more of a test on how well the nation’s residents can control themselves. Along with the legalization of marijuana use, guidelines and punishments must be heightened to remind Americans that actions always come with consequences....
Words: 662 - Pages: 3
...The legalization of marijuana, whether for recreational or medical uses, is a controversial topic making headlines all over the media. It is an issue both the state and federal governments are facing and being forced to make decisions on. What’s important to understand is legalizing marijuana will affect each and every one of whether we choose to use consume it or not. Legalizing marijuana could not only harm the intended user, but consequences of such an action could also negatively affect society as a whole. Usage of Marijuana upon Legalization Understanding how legalization affects the usage of marijuana has been recently able to be studied after Colorado’s legislature changes in 2010 and again in 2012. In 2010 Colorado passed legislation that “included the licensing of medical marijuana centers, cultivation operations and manufacturing of marijuana edibles for medical purposes” ("The Legalizaion of Marijuana in Colorado," 2013). In 2012, Colorado voters proceeded to take legislation a step farther and legalize recreational marijuana. As expected, adult usage increased as restrictions were removed. One of the most shocking figures is from a report created by the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (RMHIDTA). This report shows the increase in percentage of youth that use marijuana in an area that has legalized marijuana. In Colorado, during the time frame between 2007 and 2009 an average of 5.6 students tested positive for marijuana. During the time...
Words: 862 - Pages: 4
...Consequences of Legalizing Recreational Marijuana and Hemp Throughout the US Colorado is expected to bring in $185 million in revenue from taxing recreational marijuana sales. This money will be used to fund substance abuse support, law enforcement support, education support and funds to what they call “statewide coordination.” Recreational marijuana alone however, cannot get our federal government out of the hole that it is in now. Even if the revenue was about $100 million from ever state that has recreation cannabis, and if all states had legal recreational cannabis, it would still not even get close to how much money the government needs to generate. The problem with that is that once the government legalizes marijuana recreationally everywhere, it will create a black market due to people not wanting to be charged such outrageous prices and taxed so intensely. If certain states make marijuana recreationally legal, that would be for the best in my opinion. The US government wouldn’t really benefit from that amount of money even if all the states were legal, there was no black market and everyone was making a lot of money. According to an article in Forbes about a report made on the inefficiencies of legalized cannabis, Colorado won’t even make half of what they were estimating to make. The article explains how right now the cost of growing is around four hundred dollars per pound of cannabis. This price would have to increase to eleven hundred dollars per pound of cannabis...
Words: 496 - Pages: 2
...Medical Marijuana Laws and their Effects Keith Reese COM/156 7/23/2014 Jennifer Preus Medical Marijuana Laws and their Effects In 1936, George Herliman produced the propaganda film “Tell Your Children”, later titled “Reefer Madness”(“IMBD”, 1990-2014). This film, financed by a church group to display the exaggerated consequences of marijuana usage, was intended to inspire fear in parents and children alike. Though marijuana legalization has become a front burner topic, one would assume that our technological advances would invoke more rational responses from the general public seeking facts to support claims. However, the same type of fear induced media messages are employed today by anti-marijuana groups and politicians to sway public opinion. Contrary to the seemingly credible publications throughout the media, the legalization of marijuana, medical or recreational, does not increase crime. As the debate regarding the legalization of marijuana, both medicinal and recreational, has heated up, several groups have been formed to speak out about the perceived consequences. Former Congressman Patrick Kennedy has co-founded the anti-marijuana group, Project SAM, with Kevin Sabet who also is the director of the organization. After the Justice Department allowed Colorado and Washington to move forward with their respective marijuana legislation, Kennedy claimed, “we can look forward to more drugged driving accidents,...
Words: 1669 - Pages: 7
...Legalization of Marijuana Michelle Shepard Soc 120 July 16, 2012 Danielle Camacho There is no denying that the drug problem in our country today has reached an epidemic proportion. The problem has gotten so out of hand that many options are being considered to control and or solve it. Trying to end the drug war may not seen to be the best answer in the beginning, but those so-called wars on drugs have not been very successful at stopping the drug wars. I feel that there should be some different options. The legalization of marijuana is an option which hasn’t received much of a chance, but should be given one. Given that marijuana has known important medical uses, such as the alleviation of nausea, and the treatment of glaucoma, can the government justify banning it just because some individuals use it for recreational purposes? Is it even the business of the government to regulate the private lives of its citizens? I really don’t condone the use of any kind of drug use, but a drug such as marijuana should be legalized to a certain extent, because marijuana helps people with some medical conditions they may have. In order for one to solve the ongoing issue of the legalization of marijuana one must take a look at the classical theory of deontology. Deontology is the classical theory where the reason for which an act is done is assessed. (Mosser, 2010) When assessing the issue of the legalization of marijuana, one must question the exact reasons as to why individuals...
Words: 2618 - Pages: 11
...Legalization of Marijuana Jimmy Martin, II Saint Leo University Author Note This paper was prepared for Drugs, Society, and Human Behavior CRM 328, taught by Dr. Pappas. Abstract With exception to the debate surrounding the Affordable Health Care Act and the attacks on the United States Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, public policy regarding legalization of recreational and medical marijuana has reached a boiling point in most state legislatures. However, possession and use of marijuana is still viewed by many as comparable to consuming an alcoholic beverage. Regardless, it (marijuana) is still classified as a Schedule I Controlled Substance by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Introduction After prohibition of alcohol was rescinded by the Twenty First Amendment, years later the focus from the United States government shifted to prohibition of drugs. But there have always been varying ulterior motives. According to Baylor University Professor of Sociology, Dr. Diana Kendall, the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 was passed solely to criminalize marijuana by taxing it; this would dissuade migrant Mexican workers who smoked marijuana to seek employment elsewhere and not take jobs from U.S. citizens as the country struggled during the Great Depression (Kendall, 2010). Last year, voters in Colorado and Washington State approved legislation that supported the commercial growth, sale, possession and use of recreational marijuana. In response, United...
Words: 1535 - Pages: 7
...Amanda Martinez Proceed with the Weed! Although people say marijuana has no benefit or purpose of use, I strongly standby the fact of it becoming legalized acknowledging that there has been positive results’ concluding from the medicinal uses of marijuana, growth in job marketing and fiscal matters. The first and most essential reason that marijuana should be legal is that there are no cautious proven facts or reasons for it not to be legal. Some people ask 'Why should marijuana be legalized?" but we should really be asking "Why should marijuana be illegal?" Some of the United States labels Marijuana as a gateway drug leading to a life of failure because it is assumed to not having a legitimate purpose of use. Although there has been proven facts of positive benefits from the uses of marijuana. Many people against legalizing marijuana argue that marijuana should stay illegal because it poses health risks. This claim is not logically sound because Marijuana’s health risks are too complex therefor can’t be specifically classified of being a detriment to an individual’s health or not. The health risks that are believed to occur from ingestions of marijuana are most likely to be known as exaggerated. When people against legalization begin to go over health risks with the public they use it as a strategy for providing controversy arguments to try convincing individuals to avoid excessive use of marijuana or use at all. No one realizes that alcohol and tobacco are a lot...
Words: 1094 - Pages: 5
...Legalizing Marijuana There are many reasons to use marijuana and there are just as many reasons to not use marijuana. The usage of marijuana can be both helpful and harmful. Now the general populace will go pro legalizing marijuana. However little does society know that as soon as marijuana is legalized it will be taxable and eventually will become like alcohol and similar products. Similar to alcohol it will eventually become legal and with many amenities in the sense it will come with conditions. So in terms of legalizing marijuana it will be beneficial to society due to the fact it will become taxable, it will come with conditions, and that the war on illegal drugs will be one drug less. There consist many conditions that come with formerly illegal inhibitors. For example alcohol was an illegal substance and the way it was abused when it was outlawed drastically changed from the way it is abused now. To elaborate now that alcohol is legal, there are conditions such as the drinking age and the tax that comes with purchasing it. As such many individuals in society drink themselves to poverty. The same predicament can occur with marijuana which will obviously lessen its usage. Another factor is that with it becoming a government regulated substance majority of society will be shackled to the government by more than a medical marijuana card, which addicts tend to use to abuse the marijuana supplied. “Already earning California about $14 billion a year, it has been estimated...
Words: 885 - Pages: 4
...Thesis: Legalizing marijuana simply digs a deeper hole in the fight against harmful intoxicants. Summary: The legalization of marijuana would have no benefits. To the contrary, doing so would simply add to the list of readily accessible and potentially addictive substances that can lead to irresponsible behavior and poor health. Given the widespread problems associated with addictive substances such as alcohol and tobacco, why should laws be altered to add another substance to this list? The fact that so many people break laws prohibiting marijuana use does not mean that these laws should be repealed. Introduction One function of government is to protect citizens from harm, whether it is from foreign enemies or from internal causes such as poisonous food or contaminated water. Similarly, the ban on marijuana protects citizens from the dangers of drug consumption, as well as potentially destructive behaviors associated with marijuana use. With the possible exception of limited benefits in treating some diseases under a physician's direction, there are no advantages to the use of intoxicants such as marijuana or more potent drugs, including cocaine and heroin. This is not to say that individuals do not experience some momentary pleasure in consuming drugs-often at tremendous social costs. However, drug use can also wreak havoc on an individual's ability to experience all of the facets of life-from facing and overcoming challenges to enjoying times of great joy to relishing...
Words: 1239 - Pages: 5
...history about medical marijuana has been found in the Chinese history, which was used in Taiwan for fiber starting more than 10,000 years ago. People of that time, used the seeds of marijuana in the food, and it was natural for them. Later on they found medical properties of the plant. The oldest Chinese surgeon Hua Tua was the first recorded person who used marijuana by mixing it with alcohol, for “anesthesia”. Nowadays in the US society, people have started to use marijuana for recreational purposes, and it is responding to obvious abuse damages of human health. Whether the use of marijuana for recreational use should be legalized or not is still a question that bothers many generations of human society. In my paper, I will be against...
Words: 1405 - Pages: 6
...The Legalization of Marijuana The legalization of marijuana has become one of the most controversial topics of our time and with legalization just around the corner, it is time for people to decide where they stand. If we legalize marijuana, we are only opening up the pathway for more overdose and reckless behavior. Marijuana is an addictive drug that is just as dangerous as alcohol and tobacco. Just because the efforts to banish the drug have failed, that by no means acts as a smart pathway for legalizing it. Marijuana has the ability to cloud and distort an individual’s actions and choices. “Marijuana is a substance that, when routinely consumed, can lead to addictive behaviors…” (Wright) Marijuana is labeled as a schedule 1 drug, stating that it is a dangerous, addictive drug with no medical benefits. The drug used once, may not be chemically addictive, but what hooks people is the feeling of euphoria that comes along with the consumption of the drug, and that is a feeling that becomes addictive quickly. With so many drugs and substances available that are addictive and dangerous, why should it be made easier to have access to another substance that will only cause harm? Some state that since marijuana is no more dangerous...
Words: 587 - Pages: 3
...The subject of my speech today will be the legalization of marijuana. Before you have a heart attack I should explain that I am not drug user. I have never tried marijuana…..had a drop of alcohol….or even smoked a cigarette. This is undoubtedly a bold topic for a seventeen year old to tackle. However, this is an issue that has been debated for many decades now, and with some states now legalizing marijuana I feel that this is something that directly affects the immediate future of my generation. But why? Why would anyone ever want to legalize a drug? Aren’t drugs bad? How would this benefit our society? And how is marijuana different from other drugs? Perhaps it would be useful to define marijuana. According to drugfreeworld.org, marijuana is the dried flowers, seeds, and leaves of the Indian hemp plant. It is normally smoked in rolled paper like a cigarette or in a pipe. In recent years people have found additional ways to consume the plant such as baking it into foods like cookies and brownies. The documentation of its use dates as far back as 2737 BC when Chinese Emperor Sheng Nung wrote about the use of marijuana as medication for rheumatism, gout, and malaria. And herein lies the root of the argument. On one side many people regard marijuana as a natural plant based drug with medicinal properties, while the other side considers it to be a dangerous illegal drug often viewed as a gateway drug that leads young people into experimenting with other more dangerous illegal...
Words: 873 - Pages: 4
