Argumentative Essay: Should Recreational Marijuana Be Legalized?

906 Words4 Pages

Recreational marijuana users are looked down on by many people in society. People are called trashy, good for nothing, and “bums” because of their use of a plant. Marijuana has been proven to be less harmful than alcohol and cigarette use, so the underlying question is: why? Although cannabis has some effects to the usage of it, alcohol usage causes a greater effect; yet businesses allow it to be distributed without the blink of an eye. Marijuana should be legal because it is proven to be less harmful than various substances sold daily in society and was made illegal because of poorly researched information by the government in the late 1800’s to the mid 1900’s. Marijuana is a plant, in which, if smoked does not show to have much respiratory health effects. Cigarettes have shown to have a huge correlation to cancer and other respiratory related illnesses; but, companies distribute them as if the product will have no effect on the consumers’ health. In the American Journal of Public Health, it states that the choice, “...was never marijuana instead of alcohol and tobacco… but rather marijuana in addition to alcohol and cigarettes.” But, if you think about it, that does not seem to horrendous. …show more content…

Of course, just like alcohol; regulations are placed upon how much marijuana a citizen can purchase at one time (Colorado Pot Guide). In order to purchase cannabis you must be twenty one years old, you can only purchase one ounce of marijuana in total a day and seven grams per transaction and you can only purchase cannabis from eight in the morning to seven at night (Colorado Pot Guide). If you drive under the influence with alcohol in the U.S. you can receive a DUI and become arrested if you are over the limit prohibited of the substance. As for weed in Colorado, the legal limit is five nanograms per millimeter of blood (Colorado Pot