Legalization Of Marijuana

Ever since the United States has declared a war on drugs, Marijuana has been considered an illegal drug. There has been constant debate on whether the drug should be legalized or kept illegal next to drugs that are far more dangerous then marijuana is. Science has proven that marijuana can treat or improve the health of those who suffer from diseases. California was the first state to allow the use of marijuana for medical purposes in 1996 and after that there were several states that followed California’s example and allowed the use of marijuana for only medical purposes. Since then marijuana has been a topic that many people have argued about either to use it as a medicine or legalize it for recreational use. Colorado and Washington were
One of the biggest concerns is that those who use the marijuana will drive and it is the same as driving under the influence of alcohol. “Cannabis use impairs cognitive, memory and psycho-motor performance in ways that may impair driving” (drug war facts). This would put all of those who are driving in risk from motor vehicle accidents. Because marijuana will be more easily accessible and available than ever before the use of marijuana will increase as well. Marijuana is considered to be a gateway drug to other dangerous and far more dangerous drugs. As marijuana become legal it will become the new version of big tobacco meaning that many people will profit from the legalization. There is many kinds of food and candy that are being marketed that contain cannabis in them they are called Edibles. “Edibles with names such as Ring Pots and Pot Tarts are inspired by real product” (SAM). This type of marketing of a product will cause the number of marijuana related ER visits due to people consuming the “Edibles” by accident. There is many reason on why not to legalize marijuana but the states that have already legalized have had some positive and negative
Colorado was conducted in a social experiment where they have seen the positives and the negatives that Colorado has been through since the recreational use of cannabis. Colorado is paving the way for the legalization of the country because it has put the current policies on cannabis in effect. Starting with the positives the revenue from the sales from retail cannabis have increased to at least $40.9 million dollars. Schools have also benefited from the legalization of cannabis as much as $2.5 million dollars were directed to funding and opening of new schools. And the state of Colorado has generated so much money that they do not know what to do with the remaining money. What they are going to do with the remaining money which is $30.5 million dollars is that it is going back to the pockets of the tax payers of Colorado. Since the legalization of cannabis has gone in effect the number of arrests and crimes have gone down. “Violent crimes in the state has decreased by 2.2%, burglaries are down by 9.5% and overall property crimes have decreased by 8.9 %”( One Year Later). The number of marijuana related arrests have also dropped with legalization further deemphasizing of low level arrests for charges of simple possession of marijuana. “Each arrest cost the justice system approximately $300 dollars to enforce and adjudicate, saving law