StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...

Make a Case to Legalize Marijuana - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
Name and Number of the Course Date THE BENEFITS OF LEGALIZING MARIJUANA Introduction Marijuana policy has been a contentious issue in the United States. In the course of time, “federal marijuana policy has become increasingly restrictive and punitive, while state policy more fluid and lax” (Khatapoush & Hallfors 751)…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER93.7% of users find it useful
Make a Case to Legalize Marijuana
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Make a Case to Legalize Marijuana"

Download file to see previous pages

In 1970, the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act placed marijuana in Schedule I with heroin, mescaline, and LSD, perceiving the drug as low medical utility while highly liable for abuse, consequently rendering it unavailable for medical use. Despite this classification, the federal government permitted its use for a few patients as part of a compassionate use program. By the early 1990s, increasing numbers of people with AIDs applied for the compassionate use program for relief from nausea and loss of appetite.

In 1992 the Department of Health and Human Services officially terminated the program. Opposing federal legislation, nearly half the states as initiated by California and Arizona legalized the medicinal use of the drug by the end of 1996. Although the “possession of cannabis , even for medical purposes, remains a federal offense” (Earleywine 169), its rates of use for medicine continues to be high. Thesis Statement: The purpose of this paper is to persuade the reader on the necessity for legalizing marijuana.

The exploitation of drug cartels, the medicinal and economic benefits, and the requirement for responsible usage will be examined. Legalizing Marijuana: Elimination of Drug Cartels and its Black Market If marijuana prohibition ended, the black market in the drug would disappear to a great extent. Better and safer marijuana would be available to buyers, who will not be required to come into contact with criminals or hard drug users. Thus, “legalization would save society billions of dollars now spent on pursuing users, and a legal marijuana industry could bring in billions more in revenue” (Ruschmann 87).

Further, the government would still be able to punish abusers of the drug, and educate the public about using marijuana responsibly. Moreover, businesses and schools could discourage the use of the drug and prohibit its use in their domains. Legalizing Marijuana does not Result in its Increased Use Other countries have not experienced serious problems as a result of relaxing marijuana laws. For example, in Australia with tough mariguana laws, decriminalizing the usage of the drug in three states resulted in its increased use in all regions including jurisdictions with a total prohibition approach to cannabis, with the largest increase in Tasmania, a prohibitionist state.

The Swiss government, as well as the Canadian Senate Committee have found that based on scientific studies there was no relationship between the harshness of marijuana laws and the percentage of people who use the drug. Similarly, in the United States itself, with the decriminalization of marijuana in some states for more than twenty years, the Connecticut Law Revision Commission found that “larger increases in marijuana use occurred in states that did not decriminalize than those that did” (Ruschmann 85).

Further, although in the United States and Canada there are very restrictive laws on the use of the drug, it is used more extensively than in Belgium, Germany and Spain with highly liberal laws. Additionally, there was no consequent increase in hard drug use caused by the liberal policies of Spain, Italy and Portugal or from over thirty years’ experience of relaxed marijuana laws in the Netherlands (Ruschmann 85). Moreover, in Canada despite the increasing numbers of cannabis users, there has not been a proportionate increase in the users of hard drugs. The

...Download file to see next pages Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Make a Case to Legalize Marijuana Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words”, n.d.)
Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/history/1426797-make-a-case-to-legalize-marijuana
(Make a Case to Legalize Marijuana Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 Words)
https://studentshare.org/history/1426797-make-a-case-to-legalize-marijuana.
“Make a Case to Legalize Marijuana Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/history/1426797-make-a-case-to-legalize-marijuana.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Make a Case to Legalize Marijuana

The Illegal Use of Drugs

Amongst these drugs, marijuana is one popular name that is subject to disputes and controversies in the current time of period in Unites States of America.... Some schools of thought believe that marijuana should come under legalization.... According to various research results and studies, the fact has come under evidence that the United States is one of the countries where the illegal use of drugs is rapidly escalating especially amongst the young generations and marijuana is undoubtedly and considerably the most universally used illegal drug....
8 Pages (2000 words) Case Study

Marijuana Is One of the Most Famous Drugs

marijuana comes third.... For instance, in United States alone, over 80 million people use marijuana According to the government, over 20 million Americans smoked marijuana in 2012 alone, and there are approximately 11 million Americans smoking marijuana habitually.... This is happening despite the fact that the government has outlawed the use of marijuana.... Cannabis, popularly known as marijuana is a drug that people use either for recreational or medicinal reasons....
6 Pages (1500 words) Case Study

The War on Drugs

The paper 'The War on Drugs' presents several countries throughout the world that are working to decriminalize or legalize less harmful drugs such as marijuana, currently classified as a Class C drug, as a means of addressing the growing problem of the war on drugs.... It has been suggested, and in some cases demonstrated, that legalizing or at least decriminalizing less harmful drugs, such as marijuana, can help to reduce the violence, significantly decrease the numbers of people incarcerated for drug use, allow more individuals to remain a contributing member of society and free up funds and manpower to combat against more harmful substances....
9 Pages (2250 words) Case Study

The Role of the Mass Media in Generation, Creation, and Manufacturing of Social Problems

This paper "The Role of the Mass Media in Generation, Creation, and Manufacturing of Social Problems" focuses on the fact that organizations that use electronic means or print to convey information to a large number of people are collectively referred to as mass media.... nbsp;… The media offers information on a number of issues including social relations, an organization of the world and assumptions regarding people, gender, and lifestyles....
12 Pages (3000 words) Case Study

Legalization of Marijuana in California

Based on the above and for several other reasons the only remaining rational course of action on this matter would be to legalize the production and consumption of marijuana and to tax it in order to generate revenue.... This paper "Legalization of marijuana in California" focuses on the fact that the statutory status of Cannabis Sativa is one of the most heated and polarizing debates of our time.... hellip; The continued criminalization of marijuana is not only a violation of civil liberties but it is also discriminatory and hypocritical....
6 Pages (1500 words) Case Study

American War on Drugs

The following paper 'American War on Drugs' presents drugs that are a problem within the United States since some of their prohibition effects.... President Richard Nixon had started a War on Drugs since June 18, 1971, and this has lead to a lot of debate.... hellip; The illegal drug trade has done much to increase the potency of drugs....
11 Pages (2750 words) Case Study

The Legalization of Marijuana for Recreational Uses

The paper 'The Legalization of marijuana for Recreational Uses' presents the National Institute on Drug Abuse which notes that marijuana is a common illicit drug that is used in the United States.... hellip; Two states have since passed the legalization of marijuana for recreational uses by adults with 21 states that have passed laws that legalized its use in certain medical conditions.... In Arizona, medical marijuana is already legalized....
8 Pages (2000 words) Case Study

The Legalization of Marijuana in California

This paper "The Legalization of marijuana in California" discusses the State of California that should hasten its steps in making this drug legal.... There is a progressive and deliberate effort to make the general use of marijuana legal, even for recreation, in California.... The first reason why marijuana should be legalized in California is that keeping it illegal is expensive.... Secondly, prohibiting the use of marijuana does not help control its use....
8 Pages (2000 words) Case Study
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us