Decriminalizing Marijuana By Charles Stimson Analysis

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Charles Stimson’s essay "Legalizing Marijuana: Why Citizens Should Just Say No” presents the negative effects of marijuana legalization while Maria Navarro’s essay “Decriminalizing Marijuana Usage" provides evidence in support of decriminalizing marijuana. Both essays contain many types of evidence to support each of the author 's opinions on the subject of legalizing marijuana but Navarro not addressing the effects of marijuana usage on the health or intellectual performance of marijuana users weakens the impact of her essay. Stimson successfully develops his essay to convince the reader that legalizing marijuana wouldn 't be beneficial while Navarro falls short in conveying the reader that her argument on decriminalizing marijuana is valid. …show more content…
Stimson includes a variety of arguments to counter the claims made by the supporters of marijuana legalization. For instance, he describes how marijuana significantly differs from alcohol because marijuana advocates argue that marijuana is a soft drug like alcohol and it 's very different from hard drugs like cocaine or heroin. Stimson opposes the statement by saying that marijuana is more similar to the hard drugs than to alcohol. In the essay he states that “According to the British Lung Foundation, “smoking three or four marijuana joints is as bad for your lungs as smoking twenty tobacco cigarettes.” One of the ways Stimson contrasts alcohol and marijuana in his essay is by comparing their effects on the body. He states that consuming reasonable amounts of alcohol has few health risks and it can even have some benefits. In the contrary, marijuana has a wide range of negative effects on the body. “Marijuana has toxic properties that can result in birth defects, pain, respiratory system damage, brain damage, and stroke.” So if marijuana becomes legal than more people would have to face the negative effects that come from using marijuana. Stimson 's essay is full of evidence like this that support each of her points that she makes to counteract each of the claims made by the people who support the legalization of …show more content…
Stimson’s essay opposes the legalization of marijuana by providing a variety of evidence to prove that the claims made by the supporters of marijuana legalization are not accurate. On the other hand, Navarro’s essay backs up her argument on legalizing marijuana by comparing U.S. with the other countries where the use of marijuana is not considered a felony. Both essays provide support for their point of view by including many types of evidence such as quotes, statistics, and facts but Stimson is more successful in convincing the reader that legalizing marijuana would only worsen the nation’s drug

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