Change is not Always for the Best
Many states in the past several years have begun to legalize medicinal, and even recreational, marijuana. These events have caused a lot of controversy among the states, and the public in general. The debate on the drug’s legalization is becoming more and more popular in today’s conversations, news articles, and publications. One author, Ethan A. Nadelman, wrote an article for the National Review magazine on this topic. In his article, Nadelman is trying to convince the reader that it is time to legalize marijuana, both medicinal and recreational. Although much of his article is debatable, Nadelman does have a few points that are agreeable. For example, he believes that it would be beneficial to decriminalize …show more content…
12). Teenagers are typically known for being rebellious and troublesome. However, many teens are afraid of getting into trouble, and do not use, or even try marijuana, because they are afraid of being caught and getting into serious trouble. Legalizing marijuana would give those teens who want to try marijuana, but are too worried about the law, the green light to try it. Increasing adolescent use would, in turn, increase cases of addiction and abuse of marijuana and adverse health effects. Hefei Wen, Jason M. Hockenberry, and Janet R. Cummings did a study where they tested the effects of the legalization of medicinal marijuana in the United States between 2001 and 2004. In their study they found that in adults 21 and over, the probability of marijuana use increased by sixteen percent, and the probability for marijuana to be abused increased by fifteen to twenty-seven percent (Wen, Hockenberry, and Cummings). Therefore, according to Wen, Hockenberry, and Cummings, legalizing only medicinal marijuana would largely increase the use and abuse of the so called “harmless” …show more content…
While marijuana does have several helpful effects, such as treating Glaucoma, the bad outweighs the good in this case. Within many of these studies, the chronic use of marijuana resulted in the following symptoms: breathing problems, increased heart rate, lung cancer (when marijuana is smoked), problems with child development during and after pregnancy, depression, anxiety, paranoia, and impaired memory, learning, and impulse control (“Marijuana”). Nadelman makes it clear that he is aware of marijuana’s potential health effects, but he describes them as “pale compared with other from other drugs,” and that “lung cancers involving only marijuana are rare” (Nadelman, par. 10). Throughout his article, Nadelman continually suggests how minimal the effects of marijuana are compared to the harsher drugs used. It is as if he is trying to convince readers to overlook the listed negative effects just because they are not as severe as the symptoms of other illegal drugs, such as heroin. Drugs of any kind that result in such symptoms, large or small, should not be legally available to the public. Cancer is the one of the leading causes of death in the United States, with over half a million deaths per year, lung cancer puts it second on the list of the nation’s leading causes of
Many states in the past several years have begun to legalize medicinal, and even recreational, marijuana. These events have caused a lot of controversy among the states, and the public in general. The debate on the drug’s legalization is becoming more and more popular in today’s conversations, news articles, and publications. One author, Ethan A. Nadelman, wrote an article for the National Review magazine on this topic. In his article, Nadelman is trying to convince the reader that it is time to legalize marijuana, both medicinal and recreational. Although much of his article is debatable, Nadelman does have a few points that are agreeable. For example, he believes that it would be beneficial to decriminalize …show more content…
12). Teenagers are typically known for being rebellious and troublesome. However, many teens are afraid of getting into trouble, and do not use, or even try marijuana, because they are afraid of being caught and getting into serious trouble. Legalizing marijuana would give those teens who want to try marijuana, but are too worried about the law, the green light to try it. Increasing adolescent use would, in turn, increase cases of addiction and abuse of marijuana and adverse health effects. Hefei Wen, Jason M. Hockenberry, and Janet R. Cummings did a study where they tested the effects of the legalization of medicinal marijuana in the United States between 2001 and 2004. In their study they found that in adults 21 and over, the probability of marijuana use increased by sixteen percent, and the probability for marijuana to be abused increased by fifteen to twenty-seven percent (Wen, Hockenberry, and Cummings). Therefore, according to Wen, Hockenberry, and Cummings, legalizing only medicinal marijuana would largely increase the use and abuse of the so called “harmless” …show more content…
While marijuana does have several helpful effects, such as treating Glaucoma, the bad outweighs the good in this case. Within many of these studies, the chronic use of marijuana resulted in the following symptoms: breathing problems, increased heart rate, lung cancer (when marijuana is smoked), problems with child development during and after pregnancy, depression, anxiety, paranoia, and impaired memory, learning, and impulse control (“Marijuana”). Nadelman makes it clear that he is aware of marijuana’s potential health effects, but he describes them as “pale compared with other from other drugs,” and that “lung cancers involving only marijuana are rare” (Nadelman, par. 10). Throughout his article, Nadelman continually suggests how minimal the effects of marijuana are compared to the harsher drugs used. It is as if he is trying to convince readers to overlook the listed negative effects just because they are not as severe as the symptoms of other illegal drugs, such as heroin. Drugs of any kind that result in such symptoms, large or small, should not be legally available to the public. Cancer is the one of the leading causes of death in the United States, with over half a million deaths per year, lung cancer puts it second on the list of the nation’s leading causes of