The History and Role of Marijuana in Our Society - Research Paper Example

Change is an inevitable process that all societies go through. Currently in the United s marijuana is an illegal drug. It has been proven by the medical field that marijuana has many medical applications that can help a wide variety of patients including cancer patients. The reason behind the prohibition of marijuana has to do more with economics and politics than the actual adverse effects of the drug. Medical marijuana is currently legalized in 13 states, but the federal government continues to spend money to criminalize its use. Our society would be a better place with the legalization of marijuana. The history and role of marijuana in our society, cultivation, medical benefits and its eventual prohibition by the federal government has been a subject of controversy, mystery and propaganda. Despite being legal for medical use in 13 states the federal government still classifies marijuana as a Schedule I Controlled Substance under the 1970 Controlled Substance Act. By their own definition a Schedule I substance is classified as; being highly addictive in nature, possesses no medical accepted medical use, and there is a lack of accepted safety for medical use of the drug or substance even under medical supervision, yet research has proven that none of this assumptions are true. As a matter of fact despite the mounting body of scientific and anecdotal evidence suggesting the medical and therapeutic benefits of medical cannabis the federal government refuses to recognize the medicinal value of cannabis. Regardless of the fact that cannabis has been proven to be safer and more effective than a variety of drugs the federal government continues to maintain its unreasonable stance on marijuana prohibition. The financial personal and social costs of prohibition have been great for the public in general that are unfortunate enough to get arrested in a marijuana related incident. Furthermore the goals of prohibition have not being achieved since prohibition has created a black that market increases crime rate drugs availability. As matter of fact it is easier for a minor to buy marihuana than legal drugs such as tobacco or alcohol since distribution is not regulated like for alcohol and tobacco and which directly has caused marihuana to be easier to obtain for has not fallen and has been utterly ineffective at reducing crime rates or hard drug use. The real reasons for marijuana prohibition have nothing to do with the inherent safety of the drug itself, but are directly influenced by the economic impact that marijuana legalization would have if cannabis were to be legalized. Specifically the pharmaceutical, textile, paper and the oil& energy industries would all be negatively affected if and when marijuana were to be legalized. Thousands of studies have been performed proving the safety and benefits of marijuana consumption, yet the government refuses to acknowledge this fact. Numerous myths abound that attempt to portray cannabis as highly addictive, a“gateway drug”, or that legalization would increase consumption, but numerous studies have proven otherwise. The intrinsic medical value of cannabis has been proven beyond a reasonable doubt; medical cannabis should be legalized in the United States. Marihuana cultivation in the US can be traced back over 400 years (Norml, 2010). For most of our nation’s history hemp as it used to be known was planted for its medicinal value and fiber content. The plant was used to make 1000s of patented medicines to cure a variety of ailments and conditions. The hemp fiber was mainly used to make sails, rope, fiber, textiles and thousands other products. Before the advent of oil, plastic and synthetic textiles, hemp provided most of the fuel, building materials, and fabric for our nation. Planting hemp used to be a mandatory crop to be used in the war effort. In 1930 the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, headed by Harry Anslinger, used Hollywood and the news media to launch a misinformation campaign aimed at getting the publics approval for making a natural weed illegal. By using sensationalized accounts of violent crimes, insanity and violence induced by smoking reefer marihuana was made illegal by Congress under the “Marihuana Tax Act” of 1937. Cannabis has been used an effective and safe treatment for an endless variety of ailments for thousands of years. Ever since the advent of marijuana prohibition, the public have been fed a steady stream negative propaganda and outright lies in order to maintain the status quo. Of all the consequences of marijuana prohibition none are sadder than the denial of medicinal marihuana for tens of thousands of sick individuals that could benefit from its therapeutic benefits. For example Queen Victoria used cannabis to relieve her PMS menstrual cramps and morning sickness. Cannabis has been proven to be one of the least toxic substances known to man. There has never been a death directly attributed to the use of marijuana in the history of mankind. Although most of the research has been performed outside the U.S. since the federal government continues to stonewall legitimate marihuana research studies. According to the New England Journal of Medicine “States have led the medical marijuana movement largely because federal policymakers have consistently rejected petitions to authorize the prescription of marijuana as a Schedule II controlled substance that has both a risk of abuse and accepted medical uses. Restrictive federal law and, until recently, aggressive federal law enforcement have hamstrung research and medical practice involving marijuana” (Drugwarfacts, 2008). There are 13 states that have legalized marihuana for medical reasons yet under federal law marijuana continues to be illegal. The federal government still classifies marijuana as a schedule I substance despite overwhelming proof of the contrary. Simply stated, the federal government refuses to change its legal stance despite overwhelming public and medical support for the legalization of medical marijuana. Furthermore sadly enough the federal authorities continue to unfairly prosecute medical cannabis patients and dispensaries. Regardless, even the pharmaceutical companies have taken notice and are actively investing millions in researching the medical properties of the cannabis plant and its constituents. Since a plant cannot be patented in its natural state, hence no profit motive, pharmaceutical companies are creating drugs derived from cannabis further proving the fact that marijuana has medicinal value and therefore should be not be classified as a schedule I substance. The real reasons behind cannabis prohibition lie in the economic impact the marihuana legalization would have in the oil, pharmaceutical, paper and textile industries and not in its inherent safety or lack thereof. The legitimization of medical cannabis would open the doors for the eventual legalization of marihuana in general since the government’s reasons for the prohibition of cannabis would become invalid and surely legalization would soon follow. The government states that marihuana is a dangerous addictive substance that threatens public health and safety has no proven medical benefits and serves as a “gateway drug”. The research proves that the governments arguments for keeping marijuana illegal have all been proved false. The result of this research proves beyond a reasonable doubt the safety and effectiveness of medical cannabis. The so called “gateway effect” of marijuana use is not true, in fact a study published by the U.K. Journal of Addiction concluded that “Weve shown that the marijuana gateway effect is not the best explanation for the link between marijuana use and the use of harder drugs...The people who are predisposed to use drugs and have the opportunity to use drugs are more likely than others to use both marijuana and harder drugs. Marijuana typically comes first because it is more available” (Legalizationofmarijuana). Numerous scholarly studies have concluded that marihuana is not physically addictive and does not serve as a gateway drug. Marijuana has been proven to be is one of the safest substances known to man. There has never been a death direct attributed to marihuana consumption. Clinical research into the therapeutic value of medical cannabis has been on a steady increase, there are over 17,000 scholarly articles analyzing the medicinal value of cannabis and its constituents (Norml, 2010). In a public opinion poll about 75% of Americans support medical cannabis legalization. Additionally marijuana has been proven to not be physically addictive, in fact medical studies rank marijuana as less habit forming than caffeine. Legal substances such as tobacco and alcohol can be as addicting as heroin or cocaine and just as dangerous to public safety and health. The number of deaths related to alcohol and tobacco are astronomical. Alcohol accounts for over 100,000 deaths in the US each year and tobacco is the second major cause of death in the world, roughly accounting to over 5,000,000 deaths a year. Therefore we can conclude that the real reasons behind marijuana legalization have more to do with private economic interests and not with the inherent properties cannabis plant itself. In conclusion the subject of medical marihuana legalization is full of controversy and propaganda. As individuals we need to take a firm stance against the injustice of marihuana prohibition. The financial, social and personal costs associated with prohibition are completely unfair and unjustified, and account for far more personal and social harm than the drug itself could ever directly cause. Marihuana prohibition, just like alcohol prohibition does not work. Regardless of the truth, marijuana prohibition has become a societal malady that must be addressed. Marihuana prohibition itself has created more crime, financial costs, public safety issues and personal suffering instead of helping our society. We must take a stand with lawmakers and work towards reforming the laws and eliminating the senseless injustice that of marijuana prohibition. References Drugwarfacts.org (2008). Medical Marijuana. Retrieved October 13, 2010 from http://www.drugwarfacts.org/cms/Medicinal_Cannabis#Data Legalizationofmarijuana.com. Marijuana Facts. Retrieved October 13, 2010 from http://legalizationofmarijuana.com/marijuana-facts.html Norml.org (2010). Marijuana prohibition 1937-1997. Retrieved October 13, 2010 from http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=4428 Read More