...Legalizing and Decriminalizing Marijuana When people hear the world marijuana they often associate it with other negative things such as, addiction, gangs, law violations, hallucinations, disorientation, and criminal activity. However marijuana has been used and shown to have positive effects in multiple medical conditions. Marijuana has been found to relieve symptoms of diseases of serious magnitude such as asthma, glaucoma, and muscle spasms are just a few. Marijuana has also been found to relieve a loss of appetite and nausea due to Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) wasting syndrome and chemotherapy treatment (AIDS 1). Marijuana has become a major source of relief for many terminally ill patients, as well as people with mental disorders such as depression, and bipolar disorder. Why then if marijuana has multiple positive effects and uses is it illegal? One common answer is that it is a mind altering drug and can be a life treating and can affect health in long term use. This is a weak answer because while marijuana is illegal other substances such as alcohol which is well known to be a mind altering substance and tobacco which is a substance proven to cause health issues including death, are both very legal. Legalizing marijuana and decriminalizing marijuana could have multiple positive outcomes. Legalizing marijuana for medical use would not only give ill patients different treatment options for their illnesses, but the handling and issuing of medical marijuana would generate...
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...Should the U.S. Decriminalize Marijuana? Every year our government spends about nineteen billion dollars to control the usage of marijuana. About seventeen thousand people were arrested last year because of it. The U.S. spends about twenty thousand per year house keep these inmates. (Miles) Who are these dangerous people that we are talking about? These people are considered pot heads. There is a marijuana arrest every forty two seconds in the U.S. In most cases most people who are pulled over don’t have a lot. Yet the government is letting jails get over crowded and using money the government needs. The economy in the U.S. is horrible, but the U.S. could save billions of dollars by decriminalizing marijuana. Marijuana should be decriminalized because it helps people with health issues, it saves the U.S. tons of money, keep jails safer and less congested, and benefit other people that need it. Marijuana should be decriminalized because it acts as a natural pain killer. Studies have shown that marijuana sometimes is the only painkiller that can help a person. For example, it helps people with chronic nerve pain due to injury or surgery feel less pain, relax, and sleep better. (Doheny) This is only one of the pains that marijuana can help, but there are many more. Today, more than 60 U.S. and international organizations support providing marijuana to people that need it. (NORML) Since marijuana is priceless and can assist so many people with medical care for many...
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...Damien Thomas 08/08/2013 EN1320 Composition 1 Unit 10 Research Paper Part 6: Final Draft of Research Paper The war on drugs isn’t necessary; the amount of money tax payers are wasting is reason alone to consider other options. There is talk that decriminalizing drugs will not help, and that legalizing them will cause more trouble than what is already around, while legalizing marijuana and educating the teens about drugs may guide them to make better choices as they grow older. Not only does the war on drugs take money out of the hard-working hands of Americans, but it also forces drug users to look for alternative ways to get high. Because of unfair laws on drugs such as marijuana, users move toward the legal “spices” that cause more death than marijuana itself. There are a few states that have legalized marijuana for medical purposes, although it’s still difficult to grow and use in those states because of federal laws. The legalization of medical marijuana; brings money to that state, helps the sick, opens jobs and rises the tax revenue; a few of the things to look forward to when Uncle Sam starts treating us like adults. “In the 1980s and ‘90s the U.S. beat back the cocaine and heroin epidemics, but not by legalization or decriminalization, but by tough law enforcement, strong prevention and education programs and public outcry.” (Bennett, 2013) The truth is the War on Drugs is something like the War on Terrorism. To end terrorism is to end hate; a great idea, but is it...
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...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...
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...Legalization of Marijuana Tina Washington Everest University March 3, 2015 Abstract The prohibition of marijuana has brought forth multiple passionate debates for many years in reference to its effects on the human body, its medicinal properties, and its effect on society. Even though there are many people who are opposed to the legalization of marijuana, this paper will dispute that the legalization of marijuana is justified. This paper will provide proof by measuring marijuana’s effects on the human body when ingested by inhalation against the effects on the body when consuming alcoholic beverages and smoking tobacco, by submitting research facts on its medicinal qualities, and providing you with information on how the use of marijuana can benefit a lot of people as well as our nation as a whole. Legalization of Marijuana Legalization of marijuana is wide spread. There are so many benefits to it such as helping those with medicinal issues like anxiety, AIDS, Cancer, glaucoma, etc. Being able to assist someone without throwing pills down their throat is certainly a better approach. Most people don’t know this, but there are 18 states that have already gotten on the band wagon of legalizing marijuana. Colorado and Washington are the two most recent states that adopted this law. Not only is it a great way to aid in certain medical issues, but it is also a way for the states and our government to generate revenue...
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...Compromise For The Green The legalization of cannabis, or marijuana, for medical usage is a controversial topic among a substantial number of individuals. Many people argue that cannabis is an effective way to treat a wide range of diseases/disorders. As also, a numerous number of others contend that cannabis is not an effective way to help treat these diseases/disorders. Personally, I believe that cannabis for medicinal usage should be legalized because it has more benefits than risks. The smoking of cannabis can help alleviate the symptoms of the terminally ill. The Institute of Medicine published in its Mar. 1999 report titled “Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base”: “For terminal patients suffering debilitating pain or nausea and for whom all indicated medications have failed to provide relief, the medical benefits of smoked marijuana might outweigh the harm.” Nausea these patients experience from chemotherapy can be alleviated with marijuana by blocking pain receptors to mask the feeling. The risks of smoking cannabis are significantly lower for terminally ill patients because they have a limited amount of time left to live. The time it would take for a new condition to possibly occur, the likelihood of the patient still being alive would be slim. By smoking cannabis, these patients can make the remaining time left in their lives more enjoyable and bearable due to the relaxing effects cannabis has on the body without the side-effects of other mainstream...
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...Legalization of Marijuana Medical and Recreational Uses Cullen Fitzsimmons ITT Technical Institute Authors Note This research is being submitted on August 17, 2015 to Hugo McPhee’s GS1145 course at ITT Technical Institute by Cullen Fitzsimmons. Abstract I decided that a very controversial subject was that of the legalization of Marijuana, both for medical and recreational use. I found that there are many health benefits to medical marijuana. There also can be many benefits to the recreational use/sale of marijuana. Like all controversial topics there cannot be positives without the negatives. Some of the negatives are accessibility to children, gateway drug and impaired driving. The legalization of marijuana has been a long debated and often heated subject. The federal government has not legalized the recreational use of Marijuana, but that did not stop four states from legalizing it with in their own borders. Through the course of this paper I tend to discuss the many pros and cons of the legalization of Marijuana. There are two main ways of legalizing marijuana; medical use and recreational use. Positives Currently there are four states and Washington D.C. that have passed the legal right to recreational marijuana, Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington. Besides the medical benefits from marijuana there are also multiple reason why making it legal is a good thing. Colorado has seen a recent drop in crime rate. According to Rough (2015) “violent crime...
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...Legalizing Marijuana: An Ethical Perspective In today’s society, many ethical concerns arise on a daily basis, especially when it comes to the topic of legalizing marijuana. Many individuals have relied on the fact that marijuana was illegal, when determining whether smoking it should be considered unethical. However, many studies have shown that the effects of marijuana are not as detrimental as they were once made out to be. Legalizing marijuana can be an extremely controversial topic because several people have strong beliefs concerning why it should not be legalized, while a significant amount of people have stronger arguments, as to why it should be legalized. When it comes to looking at the ethical standpoint of legalizing marijuana, everyone has a different interpretation as to why marijuana should or should not be legalized. This is because everyone’s sense of morals and values differ. Legalizing marijuana for medicinal and recreational use would be beneficial for large amounts of people for many reasons. The theory of utilitarianism implies that the proper course of action should be the one, which benefits the greatest number of people. Many aspects of legalizing marijuana should be considered when determining if the benefits outweigh the risks. Several states have passed laws, which govern the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. In fact, over twenty states, as well as the District of Columbia have enacted laws that govern the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes...
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...Dealers carrying large quantities or quantities high enough for it to count as drug trafficking should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. But when we look at recreational users and addicts, we should deal with them differently and not treat them the same as drug traffickers. The reason for this is because drugs addicts will still be able to find drugs in prison and when they are out, they are going to be a lot worse off than they were when they first got in. Chemical drugs to me and to many others is a completely different story when compared to marijuana, and because of the extensive number of laws and different illegal drugs out there, for the sake of time in my report we will be focusing on the legalization and decriminalization of marijuana in Canada. We will see the many political, legal, economic and social issues revolving around legalizing marijuana in Canada along with the beneficial and harmful impacts of legalizing illegal narcotics in other countries. Furthermore I will be breaking down the supply and demand sides of the issue and their impact on the drug trade and politics along with comparing and contrasting the meaning of decriminalization vs legalization of...
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...Decriminalization of Marijuana. Marijuana is a drug that comes in many forms and strains. The decriminalization of marijuana could have outstanding effects on our country. Decriminalization is to make something no longer a criminal act but was marijuana always illegal. The benefits of decriminalization are double to triple the negatives of decriminalization. Four groups of people would be hurt by this. You may be wondering can this be regulated by government. The answer may shock you but California already has it well regulated. I believe it best we decriminalize it when the time is right and some states are already seeing that the time is right. We can’t talk about why something needs to be decriminalized without first discussing why it was criminalized in the first...
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...Marijuana: also known as Mary Jane, reefer, pot, weed, and myriad ever-changing names. Whatever the term, the name is on everyone’s lips as the last five years saw scattered medicinal marijuana clinics located primarily in liberal states gave way to a wildfire movement of decriminalizing marijuana state-by-state. As of this writing, twenty-four states and the District of Columbia have instituted forms of marijuana legalization: twenty allow patients with certain incurable or degenerative and painful conditions to access marijuana for medical purposes, while Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Alaska, and DC have decriminalized marijuana for both medical and recreational purposes (State Marijuana Laws Map, 2016), with possibly as many as fourteen with potential legalization measures on the ballots this November (Rough, 2016). With public opinion shifting so quickly and marijuana becoming increasingly commonplace in American culture (pop and otherwise), it’s hard to imagine that this drug has been largely illegal and controlled in the United States for a century. Proponents of marijuana legalization argue that the initial criminalization of the plant has its roots in racism and capitalism, and that marijuana became the political sacrifice to the looming economic giant that was timber production in the early 1900s in the face of cheaper and more sustainable hemp competition. Criminalization of marijuana simultaneously created another reason to demonize people of color, especially Mexicans;...
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...What are the benefits of decriminalizing any drug? “A drug is not bad. A drug is a chemical compound. The problem comes in when people who take drugs treat them like a license to behave like an asshole,” – said Frank Zappa, the American composer and rock musician and I absolutely agree with him. The dawn of the twenty first century has ushered in a new age of optimism and wonder. Despite the proclamations of television, all is not in well in our part of the world. Our societies have waged a war on drugs, but this war is far from being won. Being fought against our own citizens and citizens abroad, an international effort to eradicate drug production and use has undoubtedly failed leaving in its wake social unrest and political chaos. Assault, property crime, homicidal tendencies, racial and economic marginalization, murder, corruption and many other undesirable things are burning through society fanned by the drug war's cold and inhuman policies. In addition to these problems there are the initial problems that drug users incur on themselves and society; the same ones the drug war was supposed to eliminate. Prohibition is an old idea that is not practically attainable in a democratic society that values individual rights. – short generalization+quotation For one, experiments with the prohibition of alcohol failed miserably and cost many people their lives. If the justification behind the drug war is human health and wellbeing, as governments would have us believe, then refraining...
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...Marin November 13, 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...
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...regarding the legalization or decriminalization of the drug marijuana and the possible impact legalizing drugs like marijuana could have on the federal, state, and local law enforcement, corrections, and society. In 1875, San Francisco was the first state to enact a ban that prohibited individuals from smoking opium. Unfortunately, the Act targeted mainly Chinese immigrants but was a leading factor to the creation of future antidrug laws. In 1914 the Harrison Act came into effect which required all medical professionals dealing in morphine, opium, and other substances to register with the federal government and pay an annual tax of one dollar. Any individual not registered and who were caught trafficking drugs could be punished with a fine of not more than two thousand dollars and serve up to five years in prison. Before the Heroin Maintenance Act was put into effect in 1920, individuals addicted to drugs could be treated at a clinic with medially prescribed Heroin. Studies conducted over time proved that the use of heroin to treat substance abuse was only causing further damage by prolonging one's addiction and delaying other more positive medical treatments. This in return, was the end of legally obtainable heroin in medical facilities across the United States. In 1937 Congress decided to implement another drug tax but this time on marijuana. The Marijuana tax Act placed a one dollar tax on every ounce of marijuana distributed and individuals who avoided paying this tax could...
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...Go Green Marijuana is a harmful plant; at least, that’s what we are told, right? That this is a horrible substance that is never to be found in society, but what if it is not as harmful as other substances used my millions daily without question? Many people conclude that marijuana is harmful in many ways, including brain damage, damage to the reproductive system, and weakening of the immune system. People against marijuana attempt to convince others that marijuana is a "gateway drug" that leads the users to venture into much harder drugs. I believe that research to support anything can be found if one is looking hard enough, but that the fallacy of this conclusion is due to research seeking facts to support an already-assumed conclusion. Marijuana has been part of human society since the beginning of civilization. Indian priests wrote about its use in religious ceremonies, and Chinese emperors wrote about its medicinal use (UXL). However, since the beginning of the 20th century, most countries have enacted laws against the cultivation, possession or transfer of cannabis. These laws have impacted adversely on the cannabis plant's cultivation for non-recreational purposes, but there are many regions where, under certain circumstances, handling of cannabis is legal or licensed. Many jurisdictions have lessened the penalties for possession of small quantities of cannabis, so that it is punished by confiscation and sometimes a fine, rather than imprisonment, focusing more on...
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