Marijuana is the well-known name for the flowering plant Cannabis. It is grown all over the world today. It can be found in large parts of Western Asia and even North America. In the colonial times, marijuana was used to make things like rope, cloth, paper, and seed oil. Today, marijuana is labeled as a Schedule I drug. According to the Controlled Substances Act, marijuana is abusive and medically useless. Drugs that are proven to cause deaths such as cocaine, morphine, and crystal meth are labeled as Schedule II drugs, therefore suggests that marijuana is much more ‘dangerous’. However, evidence shows that it is no more harmful than alcohol. The active ingredient, THC, is responsible for its mood-altering qualities. Many people claim it …show more content…
All three of these drugs have shown to have deadly risks. Cocaine for example, was ranked as number 1 on the list of emergency room mentions in autopsy reports in 1988. (Hermes and Galperin 1992) Alcohol is another death-causing substance that is legalized in the U.S... Research has proven that, “automobile accidents caused by drunken drivers claim the lives of more than 20,000 people each year, and injure 25 times that number.” (Hermes and Galperin 1992) Legal drugs of today play a major role in violence. For example, crack addicts “apparently seek to support their habit through theft and robbery.” (Hermes and Galperin 1992) Drugs, unlike marijuana, have a high dependency level. For example, tobacco smokers, “have great difficulty in giving up cigarettes, and need to seek pharmaceutical help in the form of nicotine substitution therapy…Some may need further help in the form of counseling.” (Emmett and Nice 2009) Marijuana, on the other hand, “does not cause physical dependence…If people experience withdrawal symptoms at all, they are remarkably mild.” (Emmett and Nice 2009) Also, marijuana does not directly cause any deaths or crime. The deaths caused by marijuana are only because of illegalization. There is a lot of competition in the illegal drug trade and, “battles for control of lucrative sales districts between heavily armed gangs have resulted in numerous deaths”. (Hermes and Galperin 1992) Also, the only crimes reported from marijuana are the distributions of it. Since it is illegal, “it results in criminal activity and the creation of a black market.” (Hermes and Galperin 1992) Once again, the benefits of legal drugs today are far less than those of