Pro Legalization Of Marijuana

The argument over legalizing marijuana is one of our times most controversial topics. It is a complex issue with multiple viewpoints on both sides of the argument. Some people are pro legalization for recreational use while others only support medical use and some people totally oppose any form of legalization. It is also a subject that is hard to change people’s minds about. Much of what people believe about marijuana is influenced by cultural tradition and until recently there hasn’t been much hard data available for people to use to form their own ideas. This makes forming a logical argument based on premises that are generally accepted a challenge. Two ideas that come together to form a strong argument for the legalization of marijuana …show more content…
The freedom of choice is valued in our culture and defining freedom of choice is important to getting people to understand why marijuana should be legal. Freedom of choice is defined as the, “Right to exercise one's freedoms in any manner one may choose except where such act may obstruct or prevent others from exercising their freedoms, put oneself or others in danger, or exceeds a statutory limit” (Dictionary pg. 1). The use of marijuana is a personal choice that doesn’t affect others ability to exercise their own freedoms and it doesn’t harm the user or others around them. In the past the argument has been that marijuana is a deadly drug and poses negative health affects to the user, but in recent history there hasn’t been evidence to support that. In fact studies show that marijuana is actually safer than alcohol and tobacco, which it is commonly compared to. People are and have been free to choose whether or not they want to use alcohol and tobacco. If society has decided that marijuana falls in with alcohol and tobacco (which it has by continuously comparing the three substances to each other) then the choice to use marijuana must be left to the individual just like it is with alcohol and …show more content…
These are two premises that are generally accepted by everyone in our culture. Everyone understands the concept of money and is able to recognize that legalizing marijuana would have an undeniably positive impact financially. In our society we believe in the idea that everyone has the choice to decide what is best for his or her self. Every one can understand that it is illogical to exclude some choices from others when all of the choices meet the criteria for a choice that can be left up to the