...The Pro and Cons of Legalizing Marijuana Genaro Esparza SOC 120 Jenna Soard May 1, 2011 The Pros and Cons of Legalizing Marijuana In 2010 an estimated 443,000 people died prematurely from smoking tobacco or exposure to secondhand smoke, and another 8.6 million live with a serious illness caused by smoking. Despite these risks, approximately 46.6 million U.S. adults smoke cigarettes. Alcohol use last year led to 14,406 alcoholic liver disease deaths and 23,199 other alcohol related deaths excluding accidents and homicides. (Alcohol Use, 2009) Despite these alarming statistics, these substances remain legal and socially acceptable while marijuana, which has never killed anyone anywhere, is illegal, remains classified as a stage one controlled substance, which likens it to killer drugs such as LSD, and heroin, both so lethal you could die with a single use. Why is it socially acceptable to use substances, which kill thousands a year while a plant that is practically a miracle drug remains portrayed as one of the most dangerous substances, known to man? In this paper, we will look at the pros and cons of legalizing marijuana the financial impact as well as the effects it would have on industry. We will also look at social impact caused by legalizing marijuana can it be socially acceptable. Alcohol and tobacco continually kill people by the thousands and yet remain legal, why then is marijuana, a drug that has never killed a single person still illegal. The...
Words: 2860 - Pages: 12
...1)a. Summarize the pros and cons of legalizing marijuana. b. Opponents of the legalization of marijuana argue that marijuana is a gateway drug, because to leads to the use (and abuse) of other, more serious drugs. Research marijuana as a gateway drug. Based on your findings, do you believe marijuana leads to the use of other drugs? Why or why not? Explain your answer. c. Offer your position on this topic: Do you think marijuana should be legalized? Why or why not? Use facts (i.e., sound research) to support your answer. Do you think marijuana is a gateway drug? Levinthal (2014) expressed the pros and cons of legalizing marijuana. When it comes to cons, Levithal stated that the use of marijuana works as a gateway for the abuses of illicit drugs. Moreover, he also mentioned “marijuana users tend to undermine traditional values of school achievement and long-term aspirations” (p.187). In the other hand, Levithal also mentions that smoking marijuana and having small amounts of it has become more accepted in today’s society. Also, marijuana has been approved to be used as medicine, creating a more acceptable...
Words: 635 - Pages: 3
...Running head: LEGALIZING MARIJUANA 1 Legalizing marijuana and why Americans oppose and support idea Melvin S. Walls SS3150 8/19/15 ITT Technical Institute LEGALIZING MARIJUNA 2 Legalizing marijuana and why Americans oppose and support idea In my beginning research into this delicate and controversial topic I found out that Americans and our government are undecided about legalizing marijuana. Some people oppose the idea, while the rest approve the idea of legalization. I think we as a people need to stop, look, and listen and do what is best for our country, our states, and the people that reside within. There are many pros and many cons to making marijuana legal. Here are some breakdowns on both sides of this topic. One of the most important popular topics is the use of medical marijuana to treat patients for various medical conditions. There are over 7 uses for medical marijuana and that number can dramatically increase if marijuana is to become legalize, so that more medical research and studies can continue. Some uses...
Words: 795 - Pages: 4
...August 17,2014 PHI 105 Legalizing Marijuana In the last few year’s marijuana has been a major topic in the media. There is a huge debate on whether or not marijuana should be legalized and how it would all play out if it were to be legalized. Some think marijuana should be legal while other seem to disagree, however, when you look at the benefits behind legalizing it, there is no reason for it not to be. Marijuana should be legalized as it provides benefits for the critically ill, taxation on the legalization product can increase revenue, and the legalization of marijuana can allow it to then be regulated and/or its legalization can reduce criminal activity associated with marijuana (such as smuggling, dealing, using, etc.) For many years, marijuana has helped aid the pain of critically ill patients across America. Health and comfort should be what the government is concerned with. Marijuana can help people in their everyday life like simply relaxing. Marijuana is used for more than just recreational purposes such as treating pain, reducing nausea, and increasing one’s appetite. “Worldwide studies have shown it to be useful for treating pain, reducing nausea and increasing appetite, among a growing list of other things” (Vorenberg. S). When not abused, marijuana’s symptoms are mild and not often people are uncontrollable. While legalizing marijuana cannot only benefit the critically ill, it can help out our government and increase its revenue. Marijuana is tough on our justice...
Words: 601 - Pages: 3
...Legalizing Marijuana: The ethical issue and problem Dorcas Rivera SOC 120 Introduction to Ethics & Social Responsibility Instructor: Robert Gala September 23, 2013 Legalizing Marijuana: The ethical issue and problem Marijuana is the most commonly abused drug. Therefore, legalizing marijuana, not only now, but for many years, has been the topic on rather or not it should be legalized. Even though marijuana has been legalized for medical use in 18 U.S. states, this has caused big controversy in our country and the ethical issue and problems it presents. In this article I will explain; what is marijuana, the risk of marijuana use, the effects of marijuana (in the brain and body), and the pros and cons of legalizing it. I will also explain how one of the classical theories, utilitarianism, would resolve the problem. On the other hand, I will contrast the response with the perspective brought to the issue by, ethical egoism. Lastly, will ended off choosing which of the two are closer to my view. Marijuana is a green, brown, or gray mixture of dried, shredded leaves, stems, seeds, and flowers of the hemp plant. You may hear marijuana called by street names such as pot, herb, weed, grass, boom, Mary Jane, gangster, or chronic. All forms of marijuana are mind-altering. In other words, they change how the brain works. They all contain THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol), the main active chemical in marijuana. They also contain more than 400 other chemicals. Marijuana's...
Words: 1992 - Pages: 8
...Running Head:Legalizing Marijuana Bradford 1 Legalizing Marijuana Ira Bradford Soc120: Introduction to Ethics & Social Responsibility Marnie Carroll July 11, 2012 RunningHead: Legalizing Marijuana Bradford 2 Legalizing Marijuana I really don’t see nothing wrong with marijuana. They are some pros and cons on legalizing marijuana in this world. I will get to that later on this paper. I feel like for you to talk about this type of situation you have to go through it. I first smoke marijuana when I was twenty-six or twenty-seven. But I started drinking when I was fifteen or sixteen. I tried smoking cigarettes but my body didn’t agree with that. I even tried cocaine two or three times in my life time. I definitely didn’t like that. I even tried ectasy for a while until I find out what it do to the brain cells. Out of all these drugs ectasy is the most deadliest drug that kill the most brain cell. They put all kinds of stuff in that pill, which is very scary. Out of all those that I tried, the only thing that I agree with is marijuana. Yes, I did started drinking before I did any of these things. But who didn’t, alcohol is the gateway drug. I don’t even like taking pills for headaches or colds, when my body aches. The only pills I take is for my high blood pressure. When I smoke I feel so relax and for some reason I can feel everybody vibe. It sounds weird but I do. It lets me know on what I need to do and things...
Words: 1563 - Pages: 7
...As people agree with legalizing marijuana in the United States. Many people strongly believe that marijuana should not be legalized due to many reasons. During the Mexican revolution, Mexican immigrants brought with them their culture and some of their customs. One of the top customs was marijuana which the scientific name for the plant is cannabis; however, years pass by and some states legalized marijuana in America. Two of the first states that legalized it was California and Colorado; however, California only legalized medical marijuana while on the other hand Colorado legalized it to the public. Firstly, marijuana first originated in Central Asia in 1900’s right after the Mexican revolutions. Secondly, in 1937 the United States came up...
Words: 1153 - Pages: 5
...Legalizing Marijuana Marijuana is one of the most common “soft drugs” used in the United States. It is usually smoked but it can be cooked and eaten. 32% of high school seniors and 11% of eighth graders have admitted to using marijuana. Some of the “pros” for legalizing marijuana are: It can be a good source of additional tax revenue since an enormous amount of money is raised through government taxation of cigarettes and alcohol, so marijuana would create another item that can be taxed. Police and the courts would be freed up for more serious crimes such as terrorism, harder drugs, rape, murder, and so on. In addition, an already overloaded civil court docket would be improved; thus, the wait time for other cases would be reduced and the cost for public defenders, prosecutors, judges, juries, and court reporters would go down and there would be more room in prisons for more violent or harder crime defendants and there would be less of a chance of them getting out early due to overpopulation in the prisons. Drug dealers would lose most, if not all, of their business because legalization would lower prices and open up for competition; thus, drug cartels (which could include terrorists) would lose all or some of their customers. Legalizing marijuana would create proper means to settle disputes in purchasing marijuana. You can contact your lawyer or the police if a purchase goes wrong instead of dealers and buyers taking it into their own hands if...
Words: 532 - Pages: 3
...body when it is consumed. It interferes the brains and affect the way of how a body works. People believe that legal drugs are medicine that they consume when they are sick. These drugs are allowed by the doctors to prescribe to the patients to buy and consume them. Illicit drugs are known as the drugs that are illegal to make, use or sell as they are addictive. Speaking of drugs, people usually relate them to drug abuse, drug addiction and drug-related issues. People do not realize that a number of illicit drugs are actually scientifically proven to be medically useful to treat diseases. There has been numerous of arguments about the legalization of drugs and there is not a solution to this issue yet. There are actually a lot of pros and cons of legalizing drugs which most of the people did not notice of. Drugs may be advantageous in economic perspective by decreasing the...
Words: 1538 - Pages: 7
...Juan T. Alborta 1401LOGIC321335A-class Heather Wilburn 10 September 2013 Pros and Cons of Legalization of Marijuana Marijuana has been debated for decades all over the world, and it still unsure what is the best option for the people, either make it legal or keep it illegal like in almost all the countries. But here I am going to explain and show you some facts of each side of the coin. For the pro side there are many aspects that show how legalizing the marijuana can bring more benefits than keep it illegal; for example, there is evidence that show how marijuana helps some illness which means is good for medical use, there is also a fact that combating the Marijuana the governments spend tons of money, and also comparing the effects and causes of marijuana to the effects and causes of alcohol and tobacco makes thoughts easier to see legalization of marijuana makes the things better; On the other hand, looking to the other side of the coin, we got this drug which causes bad things in our bodies, it has immediate bad effects right after using it, it has also long-term effects, it seems also as a gateway drug in our society. The positive side of legalize the Marijuana. It has proved that Marijuana can be used as a treatment for many illness and bad symptoms of illness; for example, for those people who has Cancer Chemotherapy treatment and causes extreme nauseas and vomiting to them, Marijuana reduces those extreme symptoms, and it also alleviates pretreatment anxiety. For...
Words: 1155 - Pages: 5
...Salem Goodrum English 1002 Bovey 19 March 2015 The subject of legalizing marijuana has been a very popular and debatable topic recently. It has been such a popular topic because, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, “Marijuana is the most common illicit drug used in the United States” (par. 2). You often hear or see people talking about the pros of legalizing marijuana, and not so many cons. I have done extensive research and came up with some powerful cons as to why we should not legalize this drug. The negative issues associated with legalizing marijuana are the physical and mental effects to the body, it typically leads to the further use of drugs that are more harmful, and it has multiple implications on society. This drug is a plant known as a herb. According to Dictionary.com a herb is such a plant when valued for its medicinal properties, flavor, scent, or the like. Marijuana has a never-ending list of names such as “weed”,” pot”,” Mary Jane”, “cannabis”, and many more labels people come up with. “The main hallucinatory chemical in marijuana is THC, which stands for tetrahydrocannabinol; this chemical is responsible for majority of the intoxicating effects. The plant contains more than 500 other chemicals, including over 100 compounds that are chemically related to THC.” (NIDA. Par. 2). Marijuana can be smoked in almost any way involving a lighter. The topic of legalizing cannabis has been a controversy that just will not go away. I am not...
Words: 476 - Pages: 2
...is to legalize medical marijuana or to keep it illegal because of the high risks it poses. US Congress placed marijuana in schedule I of the Controlled Substance Act in 1972 because it was considered to have no use for medical purposes. Since then, 16 of the 50 states have legalized marijuana for medical use. Many studies state that marijuana can treat symptoms of cancer, pain, and many more serious illnesses. Opponents of medical marijuana argue that it lacks FDA approval. Researchers believe medical marijuana treats different serious illnesses. In 2002, Franjo Grotenhermen stated that “medical cannabis has treated effectively symptoms of nausea, vomiting, insomnia, anorexia, weight loss, and a lack of appetite.” “Medical marijuana has been known to stimulate eating habits to help cure anorexia, the lack of appetite and weight loss to help those people gain their weight back that could do them serious harm from the rapid weight loss (Grotenhermen, 2002).” Medical marijuana has also been known to treat more serious illnesses such as Sickle-Cell Disease, Fibromyalgia, Alzheimer's disease, and Tourette syndrome. Many of the case reports have shown that cannabis has helped to reduce tics caused by Tourette syndrome. A Research Institute in California called Scripps, did a study showing that THC an active ingredient in marijuana, prevents deposits from forming in the brain this is typically associated with Alzheimer's disease. Medical marijuana has been known to stimulate...
Words: 1414 - Pages: 6
...about legalizing marijuana. Though both sides to this discussion have valid arguments, the pros outweigh the cons by a substantial amount. According to norml.org marijuana is the third most popular recreational drug in America. Federal law prohibits marijuana; anyone found with possession by federal law is punishable by up to one year in jail and a minimum fine of $1,000 for a first conviction. With making this “troubling substance” legal, the government would be able to reduce the national debt and easily reduce the overcrowding of prisons. I am proposing that people take a second to look past the negatives of drugs and focus on a plant that could better the nation. Purpose Marijuana has a negative shame involved by the government and public, but is actually a natural and successful medicine. Recently marijuana arrests have been exceeding the amount of violent crime arrests and punishments. The Marijuana Policy Project counted 872,720 pot-related arrests in the United States in 2007 alone, according to Cato. Enforcing this prohibition has put taxpayers in almost 10 billion dollars of debt annually. I believe that there are definitely more important issues that the government should be focusing on rather than throwing harmless marijuana smokers in jail. Problem or Need According to norml.org marijuana is the third most popular recreational drug in America. Nearly one in eight drug prisoners in America are behind bars for marijuana-related offenses. With marijuana being...
Words: 891 - Pages: 4
...Legalizing Medical Marijuana Should Medical Marijuana be legal? Marijuana is medicine. It has been used for thousands of years to treat a wide variety of ailments. However the United States government says the marijuana use is addictive and it is harmful. So the government makes it illegal even though alcohol and drugs of nicotine which used in cigarettes are legal. Why is it ok that medical marijuana may be legal in some states but not in others? The legalization of medical marijuana in United States would drastically reduce pain sufferers in our society. Legalizing medical marijuana benefits society by helping decrease government spending, and reduce health care costs. Marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known. Just think to ourselves, is it ethical to deny a person who is having chemotherapy or radiation for cancer, a way to relieve nauseaness and pain caused from treatments? Is it ethical to deny a dying person in pain, get the relief from pain and get comfort? Is it ethical to deny someone who has chronic pain or debilitating pain a medicine that can relieve pain? Who has the right to do this? Even though the government does, it is unethical. Marijuana is a natural alternative medicine to help all these issues. The medicines the doctors have to prescribe, for pain like narcotics, have acetaminophen in them which can cause liver damage or even failures are more susceptible to be abused and addicting. There...
Words: 1649 - Pages: 7
...Should medical marijuana be legalized nationwide? Team A BCOM/275 October 9, 2011 UoP Instructor Should medical marijuana be legalized nationwide? The use of marijuana for the treatment of patients with serious health conditions is currently one of the top contentious debate topics in the United States. Until its prohibition in 1937, marijuana was one the top three most prescribed medicines in the United States. To date, 13 states have statutory laws legalizing medical marijuana; however, it is not legal at the federal level. Several pros and cons exist to support whether medical marijuana should be or not be legalized nationwide. The primary arguments in debating the pros and cons of legalizing medical marijuana nationwide focus primarily on medical benefits, disease prevention, medical risk, substance abuse, and legal issues. Many scientific professionals and patients claim medical marijuana provides some sort of medical benefits. Although it has been a contentious battle between the states and federal governments to legalize or not medical marijuana nationwide, there are three important points to take under consideration; first, marijuana is a potent analgesic in patients with chronic pain. Second, it is a strong anti-emetic for patients receiving cancer chemotherapy treatment. Third and most important, medical marijuana should be legal, so patients do not have to break the law to receive treatment. Across the nation state organizations...
Words: 2050 - Pages: 9
