Legalization Marijuana - Essay Example

Should "soft drugs" like Marijuana be legalized? Introduction Marijuana is produced from the dried shredded leaves, stems, seeds and flowers of a plant called Cannabis. The leafy green plant appears quite harmless when we observe it in its natural environment. But, at times this very plant becomes of crucial importance for a drug addict as well as for a medical specialist. On the one hand the marijuana produced is inhaled by the drug addict to gaining a sense of relaxation, and heightening the senses. But for medical specialists this drug can do wonders for the health of patients with psychological disorders, for relieving pain for cancer patients or for stimulating appetite in the sick (BBC, 2008). Marijuana contains delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (or THC) as the main active chemical. It is considered as one of the most commonly abused drug in US with people smoking it as a cigarette or a pipe (NIDA, 2009). Arguments in favor of Legalizing Marijuana i. If we can legalize Alcohol, then there’s no harm in legalizing marijuana: The fact that it is considered a soft drug tends to place this drug in the category of Alcohol. Therefore the general perception is if we can use Alcohol as a formal drink, smoke cigarette openly, then why we can’t use marijuana without inhibitions. The issue is certainly being discussed at different forums and after legalizing the use of Cannabis for medicinal purposes in 1996 the Californian government is seriously considering lifting the blanket ban on marijuana and instead regulating its use in the civil society (Pedro, 2009) ii. It will help the economy by way of additional tax revenue: These days, besides the smaller quantities of marijuana being regulated by the governments and hospitals, most of it is being traded through non-government illegal channels. This is resulting in a net loss to the governments around the world. On the other hand the prices of this drug are very high in the underworld and there are obviously no controls of government in regulating the supply and prices of the commodity. Once the drug trade and use is legalized, like the alcohol trade, it will also result in huge revenue generation for the respective governments. With the additional money more welfare schemes can be undertaken for the citizens. Parloff (2009) contends that with countries like US mired in worst ever economic crisis, lifting a ban on marijuana will help in lifting the economic prospect of the country. Parloff (2009) has compared the situation to 1993 when a similar ban on beer, wine and liquor was lifted by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, which in turn resulted in huge gains. In fact, the government stands to gain by way of lesser burden on security forces and other law enforcing agencies, as a large part of the erstwhile illegal trade gets converted into legal one. The security forces would then be free to handle more serious crimes prevailing in the society. iii. This will help in minimizing the influence of drug lords over young minds: The youth of today takes pleasure in experimenting and being innovative in different fields. This tendency is being exploited by the drug lords to lure away the young people toward drug addiction. The first step starts with softer drugs like marijuana. In the absence of any regulation the young minds get addicted to this drug which slowly results in ailments like mental sickness, addiction, stress or violence prone behavior (NIDA, 2009). In fact like other pleasure giving elements e.g. sex, alcohol, cigarette etc. marijuana too would help in making the life simpler for the youth. This will help in loosening the control of drug lords over these youth and thus they would be saved from going in the wrong direction, working with anti-social elements, indulging in unlawful activities etc. In fact some terrorist organization have also been misleading the youth to work their way towards recruiting youth in their organization by offering them pleasure at all levels. As of now the drug dealers make enormous amount of money by trading the drugs at high prices. This money often finds their way in sale-purchase of illegal weapons, thus distorting the social fabric. If the drug itself is legalized, it will take away a big source of funding for arms into the hands of antisocial elements and terror links. Arguments against legalizing Marijuana i. It will lead to widespread use of other drugs: Marijuana is basically used as a stepping stone for other drugs like heroin, cocaine, or other harder drugs. Once its use is legalized, the people are bound to go for the next higher step, which in turn would mean more the more dangerous drugs become more easily available for the people. There might be demand from influential quarters to liberalize the drug policy still further and if this trend continues, it may lead to anarchy like situation in our society. Easily available marijuana might embolden the affected people to further experiment with still ‘higher’ drugs. While comparing the use of marijuana with alcohol, it needs to be emphasized that excessive use of alcohol too has led to many types of problems like marital discords, rapes, snatching, motor accidents etc. If we have another drug handy for use, then nobody knows where exactly we are headed to. Often during the night patrolling Traffic cops are busy sniffing the alcohol overdose, so that accidents can be avoided. If another floodgate is opened, the existing number of traffic cops will fall too short to contain the damage. ii. Excessive use of marijuana will lead to an unhealthy society: When smoked, marijuana starts having an impact almost immediately and the effect might last for couple of hours. Repeated use of this drug is said to have ill effects like (Buddy, 2009); distorted perception i.e. the person is not able to have truthful judgment about what he/ she feels, watches, hears or perceives Loss of coordination Loss of reasoning, thus resulting in distorted thinking and trouble with problem solving Brain, heart and blood pressure related problems Psychological disorders like anxiety, fear, distrust, or panic Therefore, it is certainly unwise to think about filling the coffers at the cost of the health conditions of citizens. A society full of sick people cannot work towards the development and progress of the country. iii. Moral Values will go down: Though from a consumerist point of view, this argument may not hold much water, but to have a strong and well-knit society we certainly require certain minimum moral standards and behavior from people around us. Today we are a society full of diverse race and religious faiths. There are many religions which prohibit use of such drugs (Messerli, 2009). If using marijuana is legalized, it may lead to discontentment amongst the believers of these religions, which in turn will affect the harmony amongst people. Conclusion After carefully considering the pros and cons of lifting a ban on the use of marijuana, it appears very clear that while on the one hand there are obvious advantages in lifting the ban, but the disadvantages are far more serious in nature. It is quite clear that if the ban is lifted on marijuana for short term gain, it will translate into long terms losses for the country and the society and the result could initiate a chain reaction for legalizing other drugs as well. Therefore, ban on marijuana is required to be in place for now. References: 1. BBC (2008). ‘Marijuana vending machines in US’. Available online at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7212778.stm (Nov 15, 2009) 2. Buddy, T (2009). ‘The Health Effects of Marijuana- Negative Health Effects Are Numerous’. Available online at http://alcoholism.about.com/od/pot/a/effects.-Lya.htm (Nov 15, 2009) 3. Messerli, Joe (2009). Should Marijuana be Legalized under any Circumstances? Available online at http://www.balancedpolitics.org/marijuana_legalization.htm (Nov 15, 2009) 4. NIDA (2009). ‘NIDA InfoFacts: Marijuana’. National Institute on Drug Abuse. Available online at http://www.nida.nih.gov/infofacts/marijuana.html (Nov 15, 2009) 5. Parloff, Roger (2009). ‘How marijuana became legal’. Available online at http://money.cnn.com/2009/09/11/magazines/fortune/medical_marijuana_legalizing.fortune/?postversion=2009091116 (Nov 15, 2009) 6. Pedro, Emilio San (2009). California mulls legalising marijuana. Available online at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8275794.stm (Nov 15, 2009) Read More