Legalizing Marijuana
Any drug that alters the brain chemistry, impairs cognitive functions, and creates an addictive personality cannot be recommended as safe. While there is no suppressing the fact that controlling illegal marijuana use continues to be a financial and administrative bottleneck, they are overridden by the potential harmful health consequences of legalizing marijuana.
Marijuana has been in use for thousands of years for its medicinal properties. With the development of new synthetic drugs there was a gradual decline in its use from the early part of the 20th century. Today however, though illegal, it continues to be a widely used drug in the United States for both recreational and medicinal purposes. In the year 2000 alone there were more than 2.4 million new users of marijuana and the drug is supposedly consumed by more than 76% of all drug users. [NCADI] The comparatively safer and proven remedial properties of modern synthetic drugs have now sidelined the medical use of marijuana. Yet, we are still faced with the boiling controversy of legalizing marijuana for its medicinal values. While advocates for legalizing marijuana staunchly endorse its medicinal value and point out the high policing costs involved in controlling illegal trafficking of the drug, anti-marijuana group continue to express their concerns about the addictive and debilitating nature of the drug. The existing disparity of opinions on this issue requires a detailed introspection to arrive at a rightful stand.
Medicinal Value (Pro's and Cons)
There is no denying the fact that marijuana is useful as a good appetizer, as an anti-emetic for post chemotherapy patients, and for patients suffering from glaucoma due to its intra-ocular pressure reducing properties. However, we have many pharmacological products that are effective for the above conditions without the inherent risk for addiction and without having to expose patients to potential health hazards. The
[DEA]
Smoked Marijuana contains more than 400 chemical substances of which around 60 are clearly identified to be carcinogenic. The THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) is the main psychoactive ingredient in the drug that gives the sense of relaxation and the euphoric feeling. Since smoking tobacco is a known and accepted causative agent for lung and throat cancers, it automatically follows that marijuana which shares most of the carcinogens present in tobacco is also carcinogenic. [David Evans]. Pro-marijuana group point out the lack of conclusive evidence linking marijuana to lung and throat cancer, which however is a flawed approach. The lack of conclusive evidence is to be attributed to the illegal nature of the drug and the consequent difficulties in obtaining research subjects and not due to harmless nature of the drug. Further the lessons from the past should serve to caution our lenient attitude with marijuana. As Dr. Richard Russell, a respiratory specialist from the British Lung foundation says, "What we really want to avoid is the situation we had in the 1930s, '40s and '50s with cigarettes, where doctors were recommending tobacco as being good for you" [Alan Freeman]
Studies conducted in Netherlands have claimed a positive relation between smoking cannabis and early onset of psychotic symptoms among schizophrenics. The results from the study that observed 133 patients has indicated that those who had the habit of smoking cannabis were an average of 6.9 years younger in terms of the onset of first psychotic symptoms. [Natalie et.al] This result confirms an old research study, which also showed a worsening of psychotic symptoms in schizophrenic patients with the intake of marijuana. [DA Treffert]
Effects on the Immune System
The immune system is our main line defense against opportunistic infections. Though direct human studies are yet to provide clear-cut evidence for any serious compromise of the immune system, animal and laboratory tests do suggest strong immunosuppressive properties for marijuana. Studies in…
1). Secondly, because the law does not differentiate between hemp and marijuana, I believe that the legalization of marijuana would provide a major industrial and agricultural opportunity for hemp farmers and manufacturers. Hemp can be used in a variety of applications from specialty pulp, composites for autos, construction and thermal insulation, and geotextiles (Small & Marcus, 2002). If marijuana is legalized, money can be saved as the product no longer needs
legalization marijuana. Your written proposal include elements listed address considerations: •An analysis public policy criminal justice interrelate. •Why feel social change relevant criminal justice system important policy initiate foster change improvement. There has been much controversy regarding the legalization of marijuana in recent years, as its number of supporters has increased directly proportional to the number of individuals opposing it. When considering matters from a perspective involving public policy, the
Marijuana Legalization Marijuana, also known as marihuana, is a drug that is taken from Cannabis sativa, a hemp plant. It is one of the most frequently used and popular drugs in the world along with caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol. The United States of America is one of the world's leading producers of marijuana where it is generally smoked and is also referred to as weed or reefer by the citizens ("marijuana"). Marijuana
However, someone sitting inside their own home smoking marijuana for pleasure is an important use in itself and one which should not be ignored. "Like sex, alcohol, or cigarettes, marijuana is one of life's little pleasures for some people," and although it can be a vice, the recreational uses are a definite reason for legalization (Messerli 2006). People should not be told what they should and should not enjoy;
Marijuana Recently, Uruguay became the first country to legalize in its entirety and without qualification the marijuana trade. Uruguayan senators spent a total of twelve hours debating the issue, which was proposed by the country's President. The bill was described by its proponents as "an unavoidable response to reality, given that the 'war' on drugs had failed" (BBC, 2013, 1). The law allows registered citizens to buy up to 40g per
Marijuana Medical Marijuana: The Interplay between State and Federal Law History of Criminalization The Current War on Drugs Political Issues The legal status of medical marijuana in the United States is something of a paradox. On one hand, federal government has placed a ban on the drug with no exceptions. On the other hand, over one-third of the states have that legalizes the cultivation, distribution, and consumption of the drug for medical purposes. As such, the
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now