Daugherty 1

Lindsay Daugherty

Aughenbaugh

English 12

February 9, 2017

Rough Draft (Federally Legalizing Marijuana)

Federally legalizing marijuana would bring many positive attributes to American citizens.

Marijuana is ranked a schedule 1 drug similarly to heroin, LSD, and ecstasy. Schedule 1 drugs

do not have any medical benefit. So whoever placed marijuana in this category should rethink

their decision because there is proof that marijuana has plenty of medical benefits. Federally

legalizing this particularly harmless drug will be one of the best things we can do for the people

of the United States of America.

If marijuana was legalized, our jails would not be so full of people who are actually

harmless. For some people, their only source of income is profit from marijuana sales. Having

marijuana on your possession even if youre medically prescribed it can even be illegal if you

travel to different states. Revenue from taxation of marijuana sales could reach up to $8.7 billion

per year if taxed like alcohol or tobacco. Government has asserted that marijuana distribution in

the United States is the single largest source of revenue for the Mexican cartels. If marijuana

was fully legalized, that money would go to America instead. In 2015, we saw over a billion

dollars in sales and about 132 million dollars just coming into Colorado via pot taxes. State

funds are primarily going toward education.

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Marijuana should also be medically legalized everywhere around the world because it has

shown to help numerous types of diseases. Most doctors would prescribe their patients

marijuana for their symptoms of pain, anxiety, insomnia, appetite loss, etc. For glaucoma,

marijuana reduces the fluid pressure in the eyes that causes irreversible damage to vision. For

AIDS patients, marijuana addresses their immunosuppression and the danger posed by

aspergillosis. Cannabinoids relieve several kinds of pain including inflammation of arthritis and

migraine headaches. Unlike painkillers prescribed by Physicians, pots painkillers are not

addictive at all. Harvard Universitys Lester Grinspoon has shown that marijuana can relieve

nausea associated with chemotherapy. THC, which is the ingredient in marijuana responsible for

creating a high contributes to anxiety relief by softening painful memories. Marijuana can also

help tourette's syndrome by taking away unwanted tics. People that suffer from daily seizures

can also find that taking marijuana can take away their seizures completely. Pot reduces muscle

spasticity that accompanies cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, and paraplegia. Cannabinoids

work by binding to the brains receptors to create a feeling of euphoria. Cannabis models the

work of neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins. Legalizing medicinal

marijuana would also reduce adolescent marijuana use. In the states that legalized medical

marijuana, they have found that there has been a significant decrease in teen marijuana use.

Marijuana has been used for thousands of years and is 100% natural. Long term use of

marijuana does not produce the severe debilitating impairment of memory, attention, and

cognitive function found with chronic alcohol abuse. British Medical Journal New Scientist
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reported that a single glass of wine impairs driving more than smoking one marijuana joint.

There have never been any reported deaths associated with marijuana. Everyday someone dies

of alcohol poisoning or drunk driving. If marijuana was legalized over alcohol, maybe we would

have lower crime and death rates. Studies show that alcohol is more addictive than marijuana.

Millions of Americans have tried marijuana, but most are not regular users and very few are

dependent on it. Alcohol is also more damaging to the body than marijuana. People who are

drunk are far more likely to contribute to acts of violence than people who are high. Marijuana

is not addictive and does not produce cravings and symptoms caused by withdrawal. In 1988

Administrative Judge Francis L. Young declared a ninety page decision from the DEAs point of

view that marijuana is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man.

Counter arguments for this issue would be that high paying jobs are associated with drug

testing. Also the more dangerous your job is, the more frequently you will be drug tested. The

psychoactive ingredient in marijuana called THC, can make the user test positive up to 30 days

depending on usage. This is why people who are on probation get hooked on to harder drugs

because they know it will be out of their system before their probation officer comes to test them.

The least dangerous drug stays in your system the longest! A recent study has shown that 70% of

illegal drug users are currently employed. Most of the illegal drug use was marijuana. This

shows that marijuana users can still be successful and maintain good jobs. Another counter

argument would be that marijuana use increases the users chance of trying different and more

dangerous drugs. Marijuana is typically called a gateway drug.

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The only way marijuana would be or could be a gateway drug is if someone makes it one.

Everyone is accountable for their decisions, and if the high of marijuana is not enough, they

should not be doing anything at all.

Federally legalizing marijuana will be one of the best things we can do for the people of

the United States of America because it is proven to actually help and save lives everywhere in

the world. If marijuana was legalized federally, the world could be a much safer and calmer

place. Marijuana should not be considered a schedule 1 drug because it has been proven to

provide medical benefits to many different kinds of people. If marijuana was fully legalized, the

money that usually goes to cartels in Mexico would stay in the United States and help go towards

funds for education. Marijuana helps and saves lives all around the world. It can positively

change lives for the better. The faster it will be legalized, the better.

Works Cited

Clayton, Lawrence. Drugs, Drug Testing, and You. New York: Rosen Pub Group, 1997. Print.
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Marijuana Policy Project. Research Shows That Marijuana Use is Safer Than Alcohol Use.

The Legalization of Marijuana. Ed. Noel Merino. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven

Press, 2016. Opposing viewpoints. RPT from Marijuana is Safer than Alcohol; its time

to treat it that way. Opposing viewpoints in context. Web 13 Jan. 2017

Donald, Heather Mae. Pot Possession and the Police. City-journal.org7. June 2012. RPT. in

the Legalization of marijuana, Ed Noel Merino. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press,

2016 Opposing Viewpoints in context. Web 18 Jan 2017.

Drug Policy Alliance. Marijuana Should be fully legalized, not just decriminalized. The

Legalization of Marijuana Edited by Noel Merino, Greenhaven Press, 2016. Opposing

viewpoints in context. Jan 2015.

Gerber, Rudolf J. Beneficial Effects of Marijuana as a Medical Prescription. Legalizing

Marijuana: Drug Policy Reform and Prohibition Politics. Westport CT. Prager 2004.

RPT. in Marijuana. Ed. Joseph Tardiff Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2008 Web !9 Jan

2017.

Gumbiner, Jann. Teen Substance Abuse seldom leads to Addiction. Teens at Risk. Ed.

Stephen P. Thompson. Detroit: Greenhaven Press. Rpt from The Teenage Mind.

Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web 17 Jan 2017.

Introduction to the Legalization of Marijuana. Opposing Viewpoints The Legalization of

Marijuana. Ed. Noel Merino. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press; 2016 opposing

viewpoints. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web 18 Jan 2017.

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Larkin, Paul., Jr. Medical or recreational marijuana and drugged driving. American Criminal

Law. Review Summer 2015: 480+ Opposing Viewpoints in context. Web 19 Jan 2017.

Marijuana Policy Project. Research Shows That Marijuana Use is Safer Than Alcohol Use.

The Legalization of Marijuana. Ed. Noel Merino. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven

Press, 2016. Opposing viewpoints. RPT from Marijuana is Safer than Alcohol; its time

to treat it that way. Opposing viewpoints in context. Web 13 Jan. 2017

OKeefe, Karen and Mitch Earlywine. Medical Marijuana Laws do not encourage teens to use

cannabis. Teen Drug Abuse. Ed. Pamela Willwerth Aue. Detroit: Greenhaven Press,

2006 Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt from Marijuana Use by Young People. Web 19 Jan

2017.

Americans For Safe Access. Patients Should Be Allowed To Grow Marijuana Plants For

Medicine.

The Legalization of Marijuana. Ed Noel Merino. Farmington Hills MI: Greenhaven Press

2016. Opposing Viewpoints. RPT from Patient Cultivation. The seed of safe access

2011: Web 19 Jan 2017.

States Use Nullification to End War on Marijuana. The New American 5 Dec. 2016 7.

Opposing Viewpoints in context. Web. 19 Jan 2017.

Where does Colorados money go? Weekend All things considered . Oct. 2016. Opposing

viewpoints in context. Web. 19 Jan 2017.

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