Legalization of Marijuana
Great strides have been made in marijuana research since the 1970’s movie Up in Smoke was made; however, the lazy, stoner stigma played by hippies Cheech and Chong still exists in society today. Marijuana doesn’t just come with a buzz though; it comes with many other uses and benefits. It should be legalized not only for its health benefits, but for the money it would generate to our economy and for its benefits that cut down on crime rates related to policing it from recreational use. Twenty states across America have now legalized marijuana, and the polls are showing that more than half of the United States is also in favor.
Less than 10% of research has been done on medicinal uses of marijuana, but even with that …show more content…
Due to policing the illegal activity, “tax payers are paying more than $10 billion dollars each year to enforce marijuana” (Newman). Over half of all the arrests made are marijuana possession related, and every thirty seconds someone is being arrested again. According to Business Insider, there are more possession of marijuana arrests than all the violent crimes combined. Because legalization is fairly new, there isn’t much data available, but so far Colorado has benefitted from the legalization and is showing positive declines in their crime rates. The state saw a drop in its overall crime rate by 10% and violent crimes down by over 2%. It also saw no increase at all in crime from the medicinal use of marijuana. Legalizing marijuana would not only cut down on the expense of policing it, but it would generate more money back into the economy which also has a positive effect on the crime rate and would be one of the largest cash crops under the rule of law. In addition to the benefits of marijuana legalization, critics do pose some valid …show more content…
Others feel that using marijuana is a sin or goes against their religion all together. Of all their concerns, one of the biggest concerns is how marijuana effects the body long term. Studies report more driver fatalities on the roadways, other studies report increased workplace accidents, and declining grades for those smokers in school. It seems the verdict is still out on the effects of driving while using marijuana, but the majority of research on marijuana has been on the negative effects not the positives. Many concerns are opinion based or personal viewpoints and based on beliefs, not on large scale evidence. To be fair to both sides involved, even though there is more research on the risks, they are small scale rat studies, and research on the benefits is limited because it is a Class I controlled drug and hasn’t been allowed. For these reasons, arguments for or against are
Great strides have been made in marijuana research since the 1970’s movie Up in Smoke was made; however, the lazy, stoner stigma played by hippies Cheech and Chong still exists in society today. Marijuana doesn’t just come with a buzz though; it comes with many other uses and benefits. It should be legalized not only for its health benefits, but for the money it would generate to our economy and for its benefits that cut down on crime rates related to policing it from recreational use. Twenty states across America have now legalized marijuana, and the polls are showing that more than half of the United States is also in favor.
Less than 10% of research has been done on medicinal uses of marijuana, but even with that …show more content…
Due to policing the illegal activity, “tax payers are paying more than $10 billion dollars each year to enforce marijuana” (Newman). Over half of all the arrests made are marijuana possession related, and every thirty seconds someone is being arrested again. According to Business Insider, there are more possession of marijuana arrests than all the violent crimes combined. Because legalization is fairly new, there isn’t much data available, but so far Colorado has benefitted from the legalization and is showing positive declines in their crime rates. The state saw a drop in its overall crime rate by 10% and violent crimes down by over 2%. It also saw no increase at all in crime from the medicinal use of marijuana. Legalizing marijuana would not only cut down on the expense of policing it, but it would generate more money back into the economy which also has a positive effect on the crime rate and would be one of the largest cash crops under the rule of law. In addition to the benefits of marijuana legalization, critics do pose some valid …show more content…
Others feel that using marijuana is a sin or goes against their religion all together. Of all their concerns, one of the biggest concerns is how marijuana effects the body long term. Studies report more driver fatalities on the roadways, other studies report increased workplace accidents, and declining grades for those smokers in school. It seems the verdict is still out on the effects of driving while using marijuana, but the majority of research on marijuana has been on the negative effects not the positives. Many concerns are opinion based or personal viewpoints and based on beliefs, not on large scale evidence. To be fair to both sides involved, even though there is more research on the risks, they are small scale rat studies, and research on the benefits is limited because it is a Class I controlled drug and hasn’t been allowed. For these reasons, arguments for or against are