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Persuasive Essay On Legalizing Marijuana

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A 2003 Zogby poll stated two of every five Americans are in agreement that the government should “treat marijuana more or less the same way it treats alcohol.” This same poll reported marijuana has been tried by 100 million Americans at least once (cited in Nadelmann, 2004, p. 125). Political, business, religious and other leaders are among the Americans guilty of marijuana use. This drastic figure of Americans who continue to try and use marijuana illegally could remain high if marijuana regulations and guidelines persist, therefore, marijuana should be legalized. The first reason marijuana should be legalized is the criminalization of this drug is costly and destructive. The negative effect of criminalization is evidenced by Ethan A. Nadelmann …show more content…

One way is the evidence that proves marijuana is less harmful than substances that are legal, such as alcohol. Marijuana is less harmful than alcohol to not only the consumer, but to society as well (Berman, 2015, p. 2). The harm alcohol could cause to an individual is evidenced by Gina Berman (2015), an emergency room physician. She included a report published in Scientific Reports that reviewed the mortality risk related to marijuana and discovered that the risk is “114 times less than that of alcohol, while there has never been a single confirmed marijuana overdose death in history.” In addition, Berman (2015) added alcohol has been proven to have devastating effects to an individual’s health. She continues with a study established by the Centers for Disease Control that discovered alcohol consumption attributes to more than 30,000 deaths annually in the United States (p. 2). The second way is the evidence that proves the effectiveness marijuana has in treating chronic conditions. The positive effects marijuana has an individual’s health is evidence in an article found in Congressional Digest. While the federal government classifies marijuana as a Schedule I substance, 21 states have passed laws permitting its use as a treatment for specific illnesses (cited in ?, 2014, p. 9). The article explains there are current FDA approved and prescribed THC-based drugs to alleviate symptoms, such as nausea and

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Thomas Duhart ENC 1101 Professor Thibodeau essay 2 Why it should be legalized Marijuana has been known as one of the worst drugs out there or so that is what people have made it out to be, but it is not as bad as alcohol or any other drugs for that matter, in fact it is one of the safest drugs anyone can use or go for. Tax money is useful from the use of marijuana and cancer has had a little update from medical marijuana use as well. More than 60 percent of Americans polled think marijuana use should be legalized. This is the highest percentage ever recorded to support this opinion, and seems to be following an upward trend. According to Scott, E., CBS News Poll recorded that 71 percent of

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Which research shows is completely false. “Advocates of marijuana prohibition claim that even if marijuana itself causes minimal harm, it is a dangerous substance because it leads to the use of "harder drugs" such as heroin, LSD, and cocaine. The facts, most users of heroin, LSD and cocaine have used marijuana. However, most marijuana users never use another illegal drug” (Morgan and Zimmer). It is also said that “Other drugs that are currently legal, such as alcohol, tobacco, and prescription drugs, have significant negative public health effects: Approximately 80,000 people a year die related to excessive alcohol use.

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Legal and illegal drugs are used on a daily basis all over the world. Currently, drugs remain ranked high on the lists of concerns of Americans and are still considered one of the major problems facing our country today. We see stories almost everyday on the news about people being killed in the streets daily over drugs. To most people, drugs are only an inner-city problem, but in reality they affect all of us, people who use and people who don’t use. I believe that the negative effects we associate with drugs would be greatly reduced if the United States adopted a policy towards the total decriminalization of marijuana.

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The American Medical Association, or AMA, is a major advocate for making marijuana laws more strict (AMA 2016). They have long-standing, genuine care for the American public health. The AMA and other organizations have access to the best and most trusted research facilities on all things that concern the health of Americans. Since such well respected corporations, like the AMA, oppose the legalization, many Americans will stand with them and oppose it as well. One of the main reasons that the AMA stands with this position is because marijuana can be a gateway drug to harder, more dangerous

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As a nation we have come to point where we must take a unified stand on the issue of marijuana. Since 1937 the drug has been deemed illegal by the U.S. government but over the best decade, people have been pushing for the decriminalization of the cannabis plant. As a non drug user, i have researched the internet in search of unbiased information regarding the drugs health, economic, and crime influences on society. The fruits of my labor have brought me to the undisputable conclusion that our continued restriction on possession and use of the drug not only violates the liberties of U.S. citizens, but it also is costing Americans Billions of dollars, and something, our lives.

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