Should Marijuana be legalized?

Abstract

Currently, drugs remain high on the lists of concerns of Americans and are considered one of the major problems facing our country today. We see stories on the news about people being killed on the street every day over drugs. To many people drugs are only an inner-city problem, but in reality they affect all of us - users and non-users. I believe that the negative affects we associate with drugs would be greatly reduced if the United States adopted a policy towards the total decriminalization of marijuana. The current drug policy of our government is obviously failing. Drug laws have created corruption, violence, increased street crime, and disrespect for the criminal justice system. Current drug legislation has failed to reduce demand. It's just too hard to monitor illegal substances when a significant portion of the population is committed to using drugs.

Introduction

The purpose of this paper is to discuss marijuana and compare both sides of the issue of legalizing marijuana. We have two factions fighting each other ; one those who are pro marijuana and those who are anti marijuana. These two factions have been fighting on this issue on the halls of justice for years. Pro marijuana legalization groups such as the Physician's Association for AIDS Care, National Lymphoma Foundation argue that marijuana should be legalized in order to treat terminally ill patients. Among them are AIDS victims who find that marijuana stimulates their appetites so they can fight off dangerous emaciation; glaucoma sufferers who have used marijuana said it has prevented them from going blind, and cancer patients for whom it alleviates the severe nausea that is often accompanies chemotherapy and sometimes makes lifesaving treatment impossible. Due to all these lobbying groups which show substantial evidence that marijuana can be used as a prescribed drug. Also many advocates who are pro marijuana complain that morphine and cocaine are legal and are very dangerous drugs, that brings up the question why not legalize marijuana as medical drug which is proven to be less dangerous than cocaine and morphine. Lobbying groups in a San Diego, California , council committee unanimously voted to urge president Bill Clinton and congress to end federal restrictions against the use of marijuana for " legitiment medical use." City council women Christine kehoe said she wanted the city of San Diego "to go on the record we support the medical use marijuana.; marijuana can be a drug of necessity in the treatment of AIDS, glaucoma, cancer and multiple sclerosis.''

Marijuana use was restricted in 1937 by the Marijuana Tax Act. (Brecher, 2003). The bill, modeled after the Harrison Narcotic Act of 1914 that did not ban marijuana, but rather recognized its medical uses. During the Vietnam War, drug use among teens and soldiers increased tremendously, prompting President Nixon to declare a war on drugs in June of 1971. After two years, the commission suggesting to President Nixon that marijuana should be decriminalized. In an act of defiance to a commission established as part of his ...