Legalization of Marijuana by Alexandria England

Okay I’m sure you’re thinking “here goes another pot head rambling on about marijuana.” Actually I don’t smoke and think it is very annoying being around people who are high just like I get annoyed around someone who is drunk or who smokes cigarettes. Though I don’t do it, I do know how beneficial legalizing it could be to our country.

            Let me start by explaining why marijuana was made illegal in the first place. It all started in the early 1900’s, there was a social outcry for marijuana to be made illegal because they were afraid of the effects it had. Movies like “Reefer Madness”, made in 1936, helped spread these fears. In 1937 the Federal government passed the Marijuana Tax Act which put a one dollar tax on every purchase of marijuana. Harry J. Anslinger was the head of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, an outspoken racist and the main reason why marijuana is illegal today. Anslinger once said

“There are 100,000 total marijuana smokers in the US, and most are Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos, and entertainers. Their Satanic music, jazz, and swing, result from marijuana use. This marijuana causes white women to seek sexual relations with Negroes, entertainers, and any others.”

Despite all the facts that marijuana was not harmful in anyway Anslinger continued with his “war on drugs.” Marijuana was originally made illegal for nothing but social reasons like racism, and because hemp was a competitor to the paper company Anslinger had ties with.

            What if I told you the way out of this recession could be marijuana? Think about it, if we could tax all the marijuana sold in the U.S. we could make a fortune!  Yes I understand it could take years to make it work and there would still be the people who sold it illegally, but even with these tiny problems the country could make a lot of money in taxes. Not only would the country be making money, but also saving money on all the jail space that is taken up by people who were caught in the possession of marijuana. With police officers not having to worry about catching kids experimenting with marijuana, they could focus on the real criminals out there who kill, rape and steal. Marijuana is the third most popular drug next to tobacco and alcohol, so illegal or not people are still going to do it. Not to mention the drug cartels that are wreaking  havoc in Mexico right now get most of their money from buyers in the U.S. and if we were able to grow and sell our own we would be able weaken those cartels.

            Marijuana is currently listed as a Schedule 1 drug which means it has no medical use. How is this true when everyone knows that marijuana helps with cancer patients in chemo therapy to eat and reduce pain?  It is also being used with problems such as moving disorders, wasting syndrome, glaucoma and insomnia. On top of all that it is proven that marijuana doesn’t create any physical addictions. Many argue that marijuana is a “gateway drug” that leads users into other drugs, but alcohol is known to increase aggression leading to fighting, beating up your spouse or other reckless behavior so what don’t we make that illegal too?

So to sum it all up here are the quick facts:

·         Marijuana is not physically addictive

·         Could generate revenue for the country

·         Keeping it illegal helps support crime

·         Keeps jails and prisons overflowing

·         Having it illegal takes away police time from other more serious crimes

·         Has no long term side effects

·         Safer than tobacco and alcohol

This entry was posted on 7. December 2009 at 21:58 and is filed under Introduction to Sociology. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.