It is Unjust for Marijuana to be Illegal While Cigarettes and Alcohol are Both Legal - Essay Example

It is Unjust for Marijuana to be illegal while Cigarettes and Alcohol are both legal To kick off the discussion, marijuana in its truest sense is a drug and is quite addictive – just like cocaine and heroin. However, the worst part about it is that it has a huge role in causing accidents and eventually injuries to not only the people who take it in but also to those who become the victims in the form of their untimely and unfortunate deaths. Thus, it would not be wrong to state that it is a menace, but apart from that, its use is a source of benefits and remedies when used as medicines. Thus it cancels out the other negativity about it, if looked down from a totally different angle. The stance taken in this paper is that marijuana must not be regarded as illegal since cigarettes and alcohol are considered legal at the same time. This is a very wrong phenomenon that has taken center stage and must either be diverted in one direction or the other to make it look balanced. Crude marijuana, as researchers have been able to extract possesses more than 400 chemicals as a combination. This however occurs during smoking when all of these 400 chemicals split up into thousands of other chemicals themselves. Notwithstanding the nearly 12,000 studies done on the medical utility of marijuana, a staggering common consent does exist in the scientific community of late which suggests that the smoked form of marijuana cannot be termed as a medicine. One should thus make laws that go against putting the users or sellers of marijuana in jails as they have a right to exercise their lives in the best manner that they deem fit. (Hough, 2003) Then again, cigarettes and alcohol comprise of tobacco and a host of other items within them but no one raises voice against their use. Marijuana is singled out as the only item that receives all the criticism and this is a very depressing situation. According to a number of public opinion polls that were conducted in America recently, Americans do not support the idea of liberalizing marijuana, just for the sake of it. They are simply not in the harmony with it and thus they do not allow their government to do anything of such nature. Thus this gives the drug pressure groups some food for thought whereby they abstain themselves from using the word "legalization" in their trading with the government and hence the people in particular, in this matter. This term has been substituted with preferred ones like harm reduction, decriminalization and even ‘medicalization’. However the drug lobby groups are strictly bent upon achieving their goals, which are to approve the bill of medicinal marijuana as legal and free for everyone to research openly and extract benefits from. But what remains to be seen how cigarettes and alcohol take the importance within these studies and come out as being banned by the different authorities within the varied states. However what is significant is that marijuana sellers and users must be given the right to spend their lives as they like to have it since it is their lives that one is talking about here and no restriction must be placed on the very same. They do not deserve to be put within confinements as they are very much a part of this world as the normal human beings are. All this while, the public has taken a sensible and mature stance in remaining opposed to recreational use of marijuana. The drug ‘legalizers’, by hook or by crook are still endeavoring their best to get marijuana legalized. For this, they use dishonorable and disgracing tactics like mingling with the deceptive ballot referendums, which is not a good sign for the ill and sick people whose lives are at stake. (Sager, 1999) Ethics also plays a big role here and medical people should try their best not to cross this human boundary, at any cost whatsoever. Thus marijuana ‘legalizers’ are usually of the claim that Americas prisons have overflowed with young adolescents whose only crime was the simple possession of marijuana with them. This gives the authorities the right to arrest them without taking into consideration that is a minor or otherwise. Other issues like those of racism have recently sparked up a debate in America whereby crack-cocaine incongruities have emerged. People have different viewpoints on this issue and hence disclose their standpoints to one and all, thus flashing up criticisms from one and all. Criminal justice system also got involved in this matter because of its racist nature, which undoubtedly is a serious crux in the American society for years now. Meanwhile, the drug lobby is constantly ignoring the apparent facts that a war on drugs usually targets the inner-city merchandisers first and then assists doctrinal inhabitants of locales who possess the minutest of resources at their disposal. This is the only source with which they can fight back in the long run for their very survival. Notwithstanding the drug lobbies, totally cast off the legal use of THC in Marinol and continue to, in one way or the other, urge the use of crude marijuana cigarettes as a source of medicines. Doctors explain that marijuana is not a medicine and some go to the extent of giving solid analogies of eating moldy bread in an attempt to get penicillin. But this raises an interesting point – are all these factors even studied when one speaks of cigarettes and alcohol consumption? One should believe ‘no’ would be the correct answer here. Marijuana offenders, in modern times usually comprise of those people charged with simple possession of the same as well as the ones who actually trade in it. These people, once caught can be denied the right from entering any form of college as well as small business or farm loans, the subsidiaries on farmlands and different types of occupational licenses can also be canceled. Marijuana offenders have their government grants, contracts and fellowships terminated as a result. Those people who are on probation or some form of parole for an offense of a criminal nature can be returned to prison, only on the base of their urine test showing them as positive marijuana users. It is also distressing to note that during the last two decades or so, state and local police have arrested and taken into custody around 10 million people for offenses related in one way or the other with the possession of marijuana. This makes the supporters of this approach claim that criminal restrictions need to be changed as people usually keep the same. This information about the arrests and all does not link the number of these arrests for marijuana possession or the harshness of the sanctions which have been imposed from time to time and eventually the number of marijuana using people. However there are less arrests made for the people who smoke and use alcohol for their ‘needs’ which is surprising and very distressing to know at the same time. Thus, in the end it would be wise to suggest that if marijuana could be considered illegal then there should either be proper bans on the usage of cigarettes and alcohol or on the other hand, a complete ban on just about everything – marijuana, cigarettes and alcohol. This will make the whole debate meaningful and more balance would be apparent enough within the American society as a result of the same. Works Cited Hough, Mike. Penal Populism and Public Opinion: Lessons from Five Countries. Oxford University Press, 2003 Sager, Ryan H. Grass Roots: The Progress of Medical Marijuana. (Making Medical Marijuana Legal). National Review, 1999 Word Count: 1,250 Read More