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Legalization of Marijuana Research Paper

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Legalization of Marijuana Research Paper
Marijuana is a very popular drug that many people have used. Over 98 million people over the age of 12 in the United States have smoked marijuana. It is known under many different names such as: weed, bud, ganja, hashish, doobie, reefer, mary-jane and grass. It plays quite a substantial role in modern day pop culture and almost everyone over the age of 16 knows what it is. Despite all this, marijuana is illegal and in most states a person can be sent to jail for the possession of less than a gram of this substance. Even if the person is doing nothing wrong and is subjected to a random search, if that person has marijuana on them, they will be charged with a criminal offense and sent to jail. Marijuana should be legalized because it can have many positive effects in the United States. Marijuana is not a very harmful drug and other legal drugs such as alcohol are more harmful. A lot of money is spent on the “War on Drugs” which is not even working according to the UN. Marijuana could be taxed and regulated in the U.S to make a lot of profit. Legalizing marijuana would also give people more freedom of choice, they can choose whether they want to use the drug or not. There would also be laws and policies that would prevent the abuse of this drug. Marijuana should be legalized in the United States of America.
The reason why a lot of people are against marijuana is because not a lot was known about it in the 20th century and people tend to be afraid of things that are unknown to them. However, in recent years a lot of research has been done on how marijuana does not negatively affect the human body. It turns out that marijuana is actually less harmful than some other legal drugs. There are many things in this world that can kill a person. Someone can die from alcohol poisoning, as well as lung cancer from smoking cigarettes. It is even possible to overdose on Advil. A person can also die from drinking too much water, a basic essential for life. However no matter how


Bibliography: 1. News, Adam Mynott BBC. "BBC News - Global War on Drugs 'has Failed ' Say Former Leaders." BBC - Homepage. 2 June 2011. Web. 10 June 2011. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-13624303>. 2. Staff. "Marijuana Can Prevent Cancer, Not Cause It." Cannabis News. Google News. Web. 10 June 2011. <http://cannazine.co.uk/cannabis-news/united-states/marijuana-can-prevent-cancer-not-cause-it.html>. 3. Chung, Jen. "Man Jumps to Death from Roosevelt Island Building: Gothamist." Gothamist: New York City News, Food, Arts & Events. Gothamist, 7 Mar. 2011. Web. 10 June 2011. <http://gothamist.com/2011/03/07/man_falls_to_death_from_roosevelt_i.php>. 4. Miron, Jeffery A. "The Budgetary Implications of Marijuana Prohibition." Costs of Marijuana Prohibition: Economic Analysis. Marijuana Policy Project, June 2005. Web. 10 June 2011. <http://www.prohibitioncosts.org/mironreport.html>. 5. "Crime in the United States 2009," FBI Uniform Crime Report (Washington, DC: US Dept. of Justice, September 2010), Table 29, http://www2.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2009/data/table_29.html and Arrest Table: Arrests for Drug Abuse Violations, http://www2.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2009/arrests/index.html. 6. "2008 Crime in the United States," FBI Uniform Crime Reports (Washington, DC: US Dept. of Justice, September 2009), Table 29, http://www2.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2008/data/table_29.html and Arrest Table: Arrests for Drug Abuse Violations, http://www2.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2008/arrests/index.html. 7. Dolin, Benjamin. "National Drug Policy:  The Netherlands." Parliament of Canada Web Site - Site Web Du Parlement Du Canada. 15 Aug. 2001. Web. 10 June 2011. <http://www.parl.gc.ca/Content/SEN/Committee/371/ille/library/dolin1-e.htm>. LEGALIZATION OF MARIJUANA By: Nicholas Galatis
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