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Legalize Weed

In: Social Issues

Submitted By gstrohm3
Words 1086
Pages 5
Justin Tonter
Professor Smith
English 1A
8 July 2014

Why We Should Legalize Cannabis

While more and more people are supporting the legalization of cannabis, there are still many who are on the fence about the issue. Even though I do not smoke marijuana, I am all for legalization as I believe the positives that come from it outweigh the negatives by a great deal. So far we have seen two states legalize marijuana for recreational use, the two being Colorado and Washington, and the positive effects it’s having on these states are outstanding. The people who are still not all the way on board with it believe that weed is just for lazy people who eat Doritos and watch Family Guy all day long and they can’t see any of the great benefits cannabis can actually have. Seeing what has happened in Colorado and Washington more people are seeing the benefits legalization can have, not only on people for health benefits but for the states economy as well, not to mention a decline in crime. Between January 1 and
2
April 30, violent crime and property crime in Denver dropped 10.6 percent compared to that same span one year earlier. Homicides have dropped to less than half of last year’s levels, and motor vehicle theft has shrunk by over one-third (“Crime down and revenue up in Colorado since start of marijuana legalization”). A long with lower crime rates the state is gaining a bunch of money from taxes on marijuana as well. Kelly Phillips Erb who is a writer for Forbes said this, “Colorado pulled in $2 million in taxes related to the sale of recreational marijuana…in January 2014 alone. Combined with taxes on sales from medicinal marijuana, the state pulled in nearly $3.5 million in pot-related tax revenue. If that trend continues, the state will see more than $40 million in additional tax dollars in 2014.” The first $40 million has already been assigned to go

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