Truth Behind the Smoke During the 1940’s marijuana was seen by the United States in a negative light and Americans believed it offered no positive impact to American society. Since this time America has slowly changed its view by legalizing marijuana for medicinal use in very few states. The full transition began, however, once the following states Washington, Colorado, California, and Oregon legalized the use of marijuana for medicinal and recreational use. The legalization of marijuana has caused the United States to see the positive effects through marijuana’s medical benefits, lower incarceration rate, and an influx of revenue for the government. The first positive effect brought by the legalization of marijuana is its medical benefits. …show more content…
Prisons are becoming a huge money pit to the American economy and are quickly becoming over populated. In fact in federal prisons “51% of all inmates are incarcerated for a drug offense and this is in comparison to only 1% of federal inmates incarcerated for homicide” (Klein 2013). The legalization of marijuana will drastically slow down the drug incarceration rate and will alleviate the problem of over populated prisons. By freeing up this space in the American prison system tax payer’s money can now be focused on fighting the war on terror, catching high profile criminals, and improving criminal justice resources. This has already been seen in New York, “According to the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, in the first year after the reforms, courts diverted 1000 drug offenders who would have served state prison sentences under the old laws” (Schoenfeld pg315). This decriminalization of marijuana has also had a positive impact to the violence associated with marijuana. Criminals selling, smuggling, or killing over marijuana in legal states has been reduced, due to the fact it is readily available to the public. Eradicating these criminals associated with marijuana will enhance public safety all across the United
Will making drugs like marijuana legal stop things like addiction and crime? Gore Vidal writes that addiction can stop in a short amount of time by simply making all drugs available and selling them at cost. He says that we as Americans have the right to do what we want with our life as long as it is not hurting our neighbor. Isn’t legalizing drugs hurting our neighbor? If we legalize marijuana or even worse more harsh drugs we will have people driving around high.
In the past decade, a number of movements to legalize the use of marijuana has been gaining momentum. According to the 2016 Gallup survey, a record high 60% of Americans say that marijuana should be legalized and this figure marks a 9% increase compared to 2014. Support for legalizing marijuana was 31% in 2000, 50% in 2016 before reaching 60% last year. This shows that despite government efforts to eliminate its use, marijuana is becoming more popular. It is clear that
A shift is happening in America. The pendulum is swinging from the ideals of get tough and mass incarceration. The swing has both positive and negative affects on the prison system. On the plus side, prison populations are decreasing. By shifting away from incarcerating any who break the law, there are fewer drug dealers and fewer violent offenders in the system.
Many people believe the legalization of medical cannabis will bring many jobs and economic opportunities. Although several job openings come with the legalization of this substance the hole that is punched in the economy counteracts the effect. As I explained before the legalization of medical cannabis increases state taxes by 30%. Counteracting the possible job openings that medical cannabis could bring. Some people may also say that medical cannabis is the only way to treat many terminal diseases such as cancer and epilepsy.
California decriminalized marijuana use for medical purposes in the mid-1990’s (Rabe, 2002, p. 293). There are several remarkable cases that have proven marijuana for be a medical aid for many people of all ages. Dr. Sanjay Gupta, a neurosurgeon and CNN 's chief medical correspondent, spent the last couple of years examining marijuana to combine all of his research into a documentary called “Weed”. He traveled around the world to interview medical leaders, experts, growers and patients.
Marijuana is a drug made of cannabis which provides a feeling of intense happiness and excitement or intoxication. Due to marijuana’s potential dangerousness, it has been strictly prohibited in most countries since the late 1930s (Guither, 2015). However, five jurisdictions in the United States legalized marijuana because of its incredible uses for medical purposes and low probability of harm, and it causes other countries to consider marijuana legalization (Owen Poindexter, 2014). Today, there is a trend in marijuana legalization like a domino in the states which could eventually affect all the state to legalize marijuana (Smith, 2015). There is a great diversity of opinions about marijuana legalization but the United States has shown its
Over the last 40 years, we have spent trillions of dollars on the failed and ineffective War on Drugs (Aclu). Drug use has not declined and drug markets are become more resilient to the mass incarceration of drug offenders. There is always another drug dealer standing by, ready to replace the one who has been sent to prison. Along with the War on Drugs, the changes in sentencing policies contributed to higher levels of incarceration at both the state and federal levels.
There are many issues going on with America today, the one issue that all states seem to face is the legalization of marijuana. This is a very controversial topic considering that it is an illegal narcotic being used all over the United States. There is also good uses in cannabis regards to health issues, people that suffer from major illnesses, marijuana could be beneficial. As of now Colorado and Washington have both legalized recreational marijuana usage. The states have acquired major increase in revenue since the legalization of marijuana.
Throughout its history, America has maintained the persistent problem of punishing perpetrators of victimless crimes. One of the most substantial and controversial subjects pertaining to this issue is the matter of illicit drugs and their legalization. In recent years, numerous reforms and revisions have been made to previous drug laws, most often in support of legalizing the possession and use of marijuana. Though these changes are necessary, they should be expanded to protect the users of all currently illegal drugs. Prohibition infringes upon the civil liberties of those who are citizens of the United States, and is a direct threat to the values and standards this nation was founded upon.
“To date, four states -- Colorado, Washington, Alaska and Oregon -- have legalized retail marijuana. Twenty-three states have legalized medical cannabis” (Huff Post Business). This shows that in the United States, more and more states do not see the drugs are illegal things. The government starts to see drugs are legal and many people think the legalization will keep processing. Smoking drugs will cause people addicted into it.
The Mind Altering Effect of Marijuana Bob Marley once said,”Herb is the healing of the nation, alcohol is the destruction!” The states are all over the place with marijuana some legalized it, some want to, and some oppose the debate is real and marijuana is a huge debate right now!The legalization isn’t the big deal i think its more about the way it helps people and makes the atmosphere better overall. On the flip side parents don’t want the youth involved in smoking marijuana for many reasons such as bad rep, failed drug test, and bad relationships with their parents! But, really when legalized they would make it 18 any ways which would still make it illegal as it is now. Legalizing marijuana would be a normal drug just like cigars and alcohol
Almost everyone knows that it gives uses a “high” but not everyone knows the medical benefits that could come from it. According to a survey done by WebMD in April 2014, A majority of doctors say that medical marijuana should be legalized nationally and that it can deliver real benefits to patients. For example, Marijuana can be used to treat Glaucoma, a disease that increases pressure in the eyeball, which could lead to vision loss.
Marijuana—also known as cannabis— was illegal to use in the 1900’s. However, the verge to become legal has risen. Marijuana has many benefits to its name. From a medical standpoint, a government benefit, and even a misunderstanding of its lethality. Marijuana is very useful, and not as treacherous as people think.
Last but not least, the legalization of cannabis will break the cycle of crime. Last but not least, the legalization of cannabis will break the cycle of crime. Surprisingly, capturing and imprisoning people actually lead to an increase in crime. Once someone is considered a criminal, it becomes much harder for them to find jobs, leases and loans. Μany of them believes that they have to turn to the crime to survive.
The legalization of marijuana has widespread benefits for the medical, law enforcement, and economic sectors. Marijuana has a variety of benefits in the medical field because it can control many side effects from different diseases. For instance, cancer is a deadly disease that kills over seven million people across the world every year. Patients diagnosed with cancer go through several painful treatments such as surgery and chemotherapy. Thankfully, marijuana helps to alleviate pain and suppress nausea from cancer treatments.