Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
Michael Morel
Abstract
THE EFFECTS OF LEGALIZING 2
[Insert ~150 word project description, summarizing what you have researched, and the primary
Keywords: [Insert 2-3 search terms that others might use to search for your research]
Part I
APA Citation: Adams, M. (2018, November 13). Marijuana Legalization Makes Black Market
https://www.forbes.com/sites/mikeadams/2018/11/13/marijuana-legalization-makes-black-
market-better-in-prohibition-states/#656e7e792633
Summary (~100 words): This article speaks on how the black market of drugs is coming into
contact with better marijuana due to the legalization of it in other states. Dealers can now get a
hand on good products and smuggle it out of states to resell to people. Adams speaks about how
keeping marijuana illegal throughout the states is only causing this to be more of a problem. In
states where marijuana is illegal people are still smoking it and getting a hand on it. This is only
causing trouble in those states where they are trying to keep a tight grip on the issue.
Evaluation (~100 words): Mike Adams is a contributor to Forbes, and he covers various areas
of cannabis. He speaks about how he has been dealing with marijuana for the past six years
looking into it. He also uses various studies and information to make claims throughout the
article. Mike is also in the works of writing a novel when he is not writing articles about
cannabis. He has written articles for the New York Times as well.
Reflection (~100 words): As a result this article will be great information for my essay. Mike
talks about how legalization in certain states causes more trouble for the states where it is illegal.
The previous articles talk about how it has affected the youth, taxation, etc. This is the only
article that shows how marijuana is causing an indirect trouble that other states are just making
worse for themselves. Most of the debt states experience is from police dealing with marijuana
related crimes. “Co-author Jill Manzo said in a press release. ‘By ending these prohibitions,
Illinois taxpayers could save $18.4 million per year’” (Adams, 2018).
THE EFFECTS OF LEGALIZING 4
Significant Quotes:
“Just last month, Nebraska State Police seized 1,600 pounds of edible pot, including nearly 500
“The state is suffering an $8 billion budget deficit, and a recent study from the Illinois Economic
Policy Institute shows that it continues to spend exuberant amounts of money every year policing
Entry #2: Association of State Recreational Marijuana Laws With Adolescent Marijuana Use
APA Citation: Cerdá, M., Wall, M., Feng, T., Keyes, K. M., Sarvet, A., Schulenberg, J., …
Summary (~100 words): This study focuses on the perceived harmfulness of marijuana use in
adolescents after states, such as Colorado and Washington legalized it. Perceived harmfulness is
moderate to severe risk of health associated with smoking marijuana. Data was collected from a
total of 253,902 students in eighth grade, tenth grade, and twelfth grade from 2010-2015. With
the eighth and 10th graders from Washington, perceived harmfulness of marijuana use decreased
and marijuana use increased after legalization of recreational marijuana use (2017).
Evaluation (~100 words): All of the authors have a graduate degree of some kind. All of their
degrees deal with a medical field or study. Every step of the study and surveys were explained
using detailed information and nothing was left out or omitted from the data. The data is from
surveys straight from students and is credible and gives an honest opinion of how the youth is
THE EFFECTS OF LEGALIZING 5
reacting to marijuana. The only thing I think is that some students may not answer honestly, or
not complete the survey completely which may lead to a skew in results.
Reflection (~100 words): As a result this study will assist in writing my essay in many ways.
This varies from the other two sources because it deals with an actual experiment involving the
legitimate change some states have already done. Instead of basing data off other countries
legalization process this study allows the U.S. to get an insight into how some states may be
Significant Quotes:
● “Historical shifts are occurring in attitudes toward marijuana and in state marijuana
policy in the United States. The proportion of adolescents who perceived great risk of
harm in using marijuana once or twice a week has decreased from 55% in 2007 to 44% in
2012, and 58% of adults now support legalization of recreational marijuana” (Cerdá,
● “We tested whether adolescents in Washington and Colorado were less likely to perceive
marijuana as harmful and more likely to use marijuana in the 3 years following
and compared these findings with trends in states that did not legalize recreational
http://www.drugpolicy.org/issues/marijuana-legalization-and-regulation
THE EFFECTS OF LEGALIZING 6
Summary (~100 words): This article talks about where marijuana is legal in the United States.
It also talks about different state initiatives that are for marijuana, such as, New Solutions
Marijuana Reform, Grow New Mexico, etc. They are all for legalizing marijuana in different
areas. New Solutions Marijuana Reform Campaign is to legalize and regulate marijuana for
adults in New Jersey, and Grow New Mexico is to advocate for the legalization of marijuana in
New Mexico. The article goes into the benefits of legalizing marijuana and why it would be a
great thing. The article also goes in the Marijuana Justice Act. MJA is the first bill in Congress to
reinvestment.
Evaluation (~100 words): The article involves a lot of information from a senator by the name
of Cory Booker from New Jersey. He is someone that represents his state and should be deemed
as a reputable person. He goes into depth about the Marijuana Justice Act, and talks on why it is
a great bill to pass. Booker also received his undergraduate degree from Stanford University, and
Reflection (~100 words): This is the first article that mentions the Marijuana Justice Act. The
MJA doesn’t just focus on legalizing the drug, but also on the legal process with people who
Significant Quotes: “Senator Cory Booker (NJ) introduced the Marijuana Justice Act in the
U.S. Senate and Representatives Barbara Lee (CA-13) and Ro Khanna (CA-17) introduced the
companion bill in the U.S. House to end federal marijuana prohibition, support racial justice, and
help repair communities most devastated by the war on drugs” (DPA, n.d).
APA Citation: Hendricks, L., Abassi, A., & Aslinia, D. (2013). The Pros and Cons of
https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/de44/60c652c4bacd4cab9dcb80906d7f074a32bf.pdf
Summary (~100 words): This article highlights the risks that marijuana may pose of youth, but
also highlights different beneficial aspects of the drug. Throughout the article many credible
people are asked to speak on the subject and explain different things about marijuana. “Denise
Walker, a researcher at the University of Washington, believes the public may not be aware of all
the health issues related to the use of marijuana. She states that marijuana “can be addictive, it
can diminish intelligence, it impairs driving and it can trigger anxiety and psychological
illnesses” (as cited in Sieczkowski, 2012, para. 12)” (Hendricks & Abassi & Aslinia, 2013).
Evaluation (~100 words): Abassi and Aslinia both have their PhD from Texas A&M
University. Hendricks has a EdD from Texas A&M University. All three authors focused
Education and Human Services. These three authors use many credible sources and people to
Reflection (~100 words): As a result this article will provide good information for my essay.
This source varies from the first because it has multiple people speak on the subject rather than
just the one author. These three authors acknowledge both sides of the controversial argument
Significant Quotes:
THE EFFECTS OF LEGALIZING 8
relating to use by adolescents, one showing no difference in use after legalization and one
showing increased use among youths” (Hendricks & Abassi & Aslinia, 2013).
● “Third, because marijuana grows naturally throughout the United States, “purity and
Entry #5: Dad Gives Toddler Battling Brain Cancer Medical Marijuana
APA Citation: [KXLY]. (2011, April 29). Dad Gives Toddler Battling Brain Cancer Medical
Summary (~100 words): The Hyde Family’s son Cash was diagnosed with a stage four brain
tumor on June 21st, 2008. Cash nearly died many different times, and was very affected by the
chemotherapy associated with cancer. For six weeks straight, different doctors kept diagnosing
Cash with mono, but his father did not believe what they were saying. Cash was constantly tired,
and began throwing up. They brought him to the hospital where he got a CT scan and found a
gigantic tumor in his brain (4.5cm). Cash endured three rounds of chemo, then a stem cell rescue,
and then high dose chemo. Cash’s father went against doctors orders and got the authorization to
get cannabis oil and administer it to Cash through his feeding tube. The results were almost
instant and Cash was taken off all of his nausea medication. He began eating food and hadn’t
eaten for 40 days before that point. Shari Allen is talked to who is a nurse practitioner in Oregon
who evaluates medical marijuana patients. She truly believes it is a medicine, and a lot of people
speak about the benefits. A week after KXLY did this interview Cash was sent for another scan
Evaluation (~100 words): This news video is very important and credible because it is an actual
life experience from a family who has undergone sickness and marijuana has cured it. They also
spoke to Shari Allen during the news video and she spoke on the benefits of marijuana on sick
patients.
Reflection (~100 words): This primary source is a very great contribution to use towards my
essay. This video focuses on why marijuana is a great thing to legalize in the first place.
Marijuana has many more benefits than just getting rid of debt, or decriminalizing it. Marijuana
is something that can benefit many people with different illnesses or even healthy people who
wish to use the natural ailments it provides. I also think this video is interesting because during
this time in the healthcare world the doctors were very against administering this to Cash and
patients, but in modern day we see people starting to come around more with the use of
marijuana.
Significant Quotes:
“What I try to do here at this office is to create an atmosphere that is truly medical because I do
believe that cannabis is medicine, and we are trying to use it as medicine” (Allen, 2011).
APA Citation : Todd, T. (2018). The Benefits of Marijuana Legalization and Regulation.
Summary (~100 words): This article shows various reasons of why criminalizing marijuana is a
bad thing. The article focuses on the idea of no criminalization with use, but to regulate it and
control its use across the public. It causes many problems in many aspects of people’s everyday
lives. The workplace, environment, and public health are some examples of things that are
THE EFFECTS OF LEGALIZING 10
negatively affected by the criminalization of marijuana. The article brings up the many beneficial
uses, and the history of the drug. Not only does the article touch on the different aspects of the
physical aspects of the drug, but also touches on data and statistics of how Americans feel on the
Evaluation (~100 words): Tamar Todd is an attorney who focuses in many areas, such as,
policy advocacy, cannabis law and policy, etc. Todd received her B.A. from the University of
Vermont and her J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center. She has an expertise in
California Cannabis Advisory Committee, is the former legal director of the Drug Policy
Alliance. and has even co-authored ballots and statutes, such as, in Colorado and California. She
uses reliable sources, and provides sufficient evidence to support her claims.
As a result this source will be helpful in my essay as it shows not only the history of American
people and the use of marijuana, but also statistics and data. The use of many reliable sources
Significant Quotes:
● “Approximately one out of every seven American adults (14.1%) has used marijuana in
the past year.2 Over half of all American adults (51.1%) have used marijuana during their
lives.3 All of these people have committed a federal drug crime” (Tamar, 2018).
● “Existing law makes tens of millions of hardworking and productive Americans illicit
● “Based on the most recent Gallup poll in October 2017, sixty-four percent of
majority of Republicans think marijuana use should be legal.5 The vast majority
that have legalized marijuana for medical or adult use.6 And ninety-four percent of
Entry #7: More Reasons States Should Not Legalize Marijuana: Medical and Recreational
APA Citation : Wilkinson S. T. (2013). Medical and recreational marijuana: commentary and
Summary (~100 words): The study shows that legalizing marijuana poses a negative health
effect on the public. Wilkinson speaks on how many health benefits are lacking evidence and not
strong enough to have it be legal yet. He also talks about how marijuana can be contaminated or
laced with substances because it is grown in different areas and dispensaries throughout the
country. Many different regions of the negatives of marijuana are discussed by Wilinson.
Evaluation (~100 words): Samuel Wilkinson is in the department of psychiatry at Yale. All of
the sources he uses throughout the article are found on scholarly websites, and backed up with
data and statistics. Wilkinson has been awarded a big number of different awards all the way
from 2012 till now. He has not just been awarded, but his name is found on many different
THE EFFECTS OF LEGALIZING 12
studies and research. He focuses on depression, PTSD, and other mental health problems and is
interested in how cannabis affects people who suffer from these illnesses.
As a result this source will be helpful in my essay as it shows a majorly opposing side to all of
the other articles and data entries. It is interesting on how he talks about it not having many
health benefits while another source of mine completely contradicts that point.
Significant Quotes:
increased risk of lung cancer, and it is suspected to be associated with reduced pulmonary
● “Unlike any other prescription drug used for medical purposes, marijuana is not subject
have regulatory standards ranging from strict to almost non-existent” (Wilkinson, 2013).
● “A growing myth among the public is that marijuana is not an addictive substance. Data
clearly show that about 10% of those who use cannabis become addicted; this number is
Part III
The legalization of marijuana is a very controversial topic in modern day culture. The
studies and information analyzed show a wide variety of some advantages and disadvantages to
the legalization of marijuana. Through the different entries, many aspects are taken into account,
such as, the age group affected, states that have legalized the drug and how it has affected them,
and as a nation what the effects are for better or worse. Marijuana is something that may affect
THE EFFECTS OF LEGALIZING 13
certain communities, or even the economy. Some people believe taxing marijuana and legalizing
it is a great way to boost the economy, and others believe that it is corrupting children throughout
the U.S.
There are certain groups of people that believe legalizing marijuana on a federal level is
believes the public may not be aware of all the health issues related to the use of marijuana. She
states that marijuana “can be addictive, it can diminish intelligence, it impairs driving and it can
trigger anxiety and psychological illnesses” (as cited in Sieczkowski, 2012, para. 12). Denise
focuses on the aspects that affect the health of people who are exposed to marijuana, rather than
an economic game piece to fix the country’s debt. On the other side they’re people who feel that
health issues are not a problem with marijuana and that the benefits of the drug far outweigh the
problems with it. “Siezkowski (2012) points out that within the past 25 years over 241,000
people were arrested for possession of marijuana in the state of Washington at a cost to taxpayers
of over $300 million with most of those arrests coming within the past 10 years” (Hendricks &
Abassi & Aslinia, 2013). In summary, the article by Hendricks, Abassi, and Aslinia shows that
while Denise speaks on how the drug deters the country’s health, while Siezkowski shows that
the criminalization of the drug is deterring to not just a person’s health but their way of living.
An article called Marijuana Legalization Makes Black Market Better In Prohibition States from
Forbes touches on states that do not allow the use of recreational marijuana. Adams talks about
how the legalization of the drug in some states is allowing for it to be smuggled into prohibition
states to be resold to people. “Just last month, Nebraska State Police seized 1,600 pounds of
edible pot, including nearly 500 boxes of THC-infused chocolate bars” (Adams, 2018). Using
these statistics Adams shows that it is more work to regulate and control the illegal use of the
THE EFFECTS OF LEGALIZING 14
drug, rather than just legalizing it. Many lawmakers oppose this view and are frightened that
with the legalization of marijuana will come intoxicated driving as people do with alcohol. This
to lawmakers is viewed as an added danger to the people throughout the country. A case study
titled Association of State Recreational Marijuana Laws With Adolescent Marijuana Use from
JAMA Pediatrics differs from the other sources in the sense that it focuses on the distinct group
of adolescent kids. Data was gathered from nearly 300,000 eighth, tenth, and twelfth graders in
Washington and Colorado. The objective of this experiment was “To examine the association
between the legalization of recreational marijuana use in Washington and Colorado in 2012 and
the subsequent perceived harmfulness and use of marijuana by adolescents” (Cerdá, M., Wall,
M., Feng, T., Keyes, K. M., Sarvet, A., Schulenberg, J., … Hasin, D. S., 2017). “Of the 253 902
participants, 120 590 of 245 065 (49.2%) were male, and the mean (SD) age was 15.6 (1.7)
years. In Washington, perceived harmfulness declined 14.2% and 16.1% among eighth and 10th
graders, respectively, while marijuana use increased 2.0% and 4.1% from 2010-2012 to 2013-
2015. In contrast, among states that did not legalize recreational marijuana use, perceived
harmfulness decreased by 4.9% and 7.2% among eighth and 10th graders, respectively, and
marijuana use decreased by 1.3% and 0.9% over the same period” (Cerdá, M., Wall, M., Feng,
T., Keyes, K. M., Sarvet, A., Schulenberg, J., … Hasin, D. S., 2017). This information shows a
decreased while the use of the drug increase, but in Colorado there was no identifiable change
between perceived harmfulness and marijuana use. The Benefits of Marijuana Legalization and
Regulation is a study from Berkeley done by Todd Tamar. Todd talks on why Marijuana has
been looked down upon and why it is perceived by people in many different ways. “These new
fears were seized on by Harry Anslinger—the first real drug czar—who was a racist. He
THE EFFECTS OF LEGALIZING 15
zealously defended criminalizing people who used marijuana, using racist language and making
racist claims to do so. He maintained that marijuana was primarily being used by Mexicans and
African Americans who were bringing it into white communities. He falsely claimed that
marijuana would turn people into psychopaths, murderers, and rapists” (Tamar, 2018). Tamar
speaks on Harry falsely claiming that marijuana affects the mental health of people, but some
people believe that. “Marijuana for recreational use will have many adverse health effects. The
drug is addictive, with mounting evidence for the existence of a withdrawal syndrome.
Furthermore, it has been shown to have adverse effects on mental health, intelligence (including
irreversible declines in cognition), and the respiratory system” (Wilkinson, 2013). Wilkinson
doesn’t just touch on mental health but also physical health. “It is associated with symptoms of
obstructive and inflammatory lung disease, an increased risk of lung cancer, and it is suspected
to be associated with reduced pulmonary function in heavy users” (Wilkinson, 2013). Lastly, a
family has experienced the benefits of marijuana and all it has to offer. The Hyde Family’s son
Cash was diagnosed with a stage four brain tumor on June 21st, 2008. Cash went through many
different procedures and treatments that made him far sicker than ever. His father looked into
alternative medicine and his son was not only feeling better while going through things like
chemo, but years later in now cancer free. Throughout the newscast, the father talks on how
medical professionals are very against the use of marijuana especially in a child. They tell the
family that they do not support such a thing in the hospital. KXLY spoke to Shari Allen, a nurse
practitioner that deals with the use of medical marijuana. “What I try to do here at this office is to
create an atmosphere that is truly medical because I do believe that cannabis is medicine, and we
All in all, there are many differences on the topic of legalizing the recreational use of
marijuana. One of the many topics discussed throughout the articles is the fact that it affects your
health. One side claimed it can cause diseases and lung problems, while the other showed how
cannabis oil has changed their young sons life forever. Another big thing looked at was the
perceived harmfulness and one side spoke about how many teenagers viewed the drug as less
harmful and the drug use was increased, but the other study showed that in Colorado there
wasn’t a correlation to show the differences between use and perceived risk. Many of the articles
were written years ago and we are already seeing a push for the legalization of marijuana, but
there are still people who believe it is not a good idea. The legalization of marijuana is a topic
still debated and middle ground is being found with state legislatures, and lawmakers. The drug
still does not have enough studies done to solidly say one side is better than the other. It is
important to understand the effects of the drug both good and bad.