GROW the Economy!!
With the public opinion shifting more and more towards favoring the legalization of marijuana, one can hope that every state will eventually get on board. It makes no sense not to legalize it- all that marijuana "prohibition" causes is counter-productivity; it's ineffective and negatively effects the economy. Now, with the legalization of marijuana, we'd have the medical perks, a better economy, and happier citizens.
With legalization in Washington and Colorado, one can only hope that the rest of the United States will see the benefits. These two states have figured out laws and regulations that make it so there's virtually no negative effects for the population.
Not to mention the fact that alcohol is legal. Don't get me wrong, I'm not against alcohol, but it is definitely more damaging than our green friend mary jane. I think that if we are allowed to drink legally, why not let us smoke? This substance is literally GOOD for us. Not a single overdose case, no nasty side effects, and no depression or anger issues stem from marijuana- can you say the same for alcohol? (NO!)I'm willing to guess that with the legalization of weed, crime rates would go down, economy would go up, and our loyal but unlucky citizens with cancer, glaucoma, etc could be happier and actually see more life.
With Uruguay and more and more of our states here in the US legalizing or at least taking steps towards the legalization of marijuana, I think we will see other states following suit in the near future.
In response to Kara's post "Grow the Economy", I'd say I completly agree and can really only restate what she already said. With all the benefits to legalization of marajuana, it's a wonder it already hasn't happened. Lower crime rates would result from both the starvation of drug cartels primary source of income abroad as well as here in the U.S. with less of the population being locked up for overly harsh drug offenses. With study after scientific study saying the exact same thing, that "it's a lot worse for you than the traditional drugs of choice such as alcohol and perscription pills". With (perhaps most importantly) public opinion so openly for legalization (and once again being defied by their elected officials). With it already having been either decriminalized, legalized, or just plain ignored by police in other countries with no concequences...
ReplyDeleteThere is no reason other than misplaced puritanism that such a (scientificially proven) harmless plant with so many alternate benefits would be banned and demonized the way it is.
I have to say I agree with you on many points. America is a constantly changing nation because the people of this nation are constantly changing and push for progress. The people of this nation are now pushing for the legalization of mari-juana.
ReplyDeleteOn the idea of the medical perks of marijuana, there is apparently overwhelming evidence that marijuana relieves various medical conditions. It is known to relieve nausea and vomiting, pain and spasms, as well as side effects of some prescription drugs. It is also know that it is less toxic than many pharmaceuticals, BONUS!Concerning the medical perks of marijuana there is more than just the medicinal benefits, there is also the research benefits of legalizing marijuana. Right now there isn't any good quality research on marijuana due to it being illegal, but legalize that sucker and that kicks open the door for a lot of research that could further benefit the people.
Alcohol and marijuana are frequently compared, I believe because alcohol is a substance that is used by a large amount of people and that it negatively affects them on the basis of decision making, personality changes, development of health issues, and content. And for some reason it is easily accepted as a legal substance that people can purchase, but marijuana gets the controversy . The argument/confusion comes from the fact that alcohol is without a doubt known to have terrible affects on people, but is somehow more widely accepted than marijuana which seems to have more good effects than bad, if any bad effects at all. Another substance that is compared to marijuana is tobacco. Tobacco is also known to have serious negative affects on people, such as, I don't know, causing cancer! But STILL it is a substance that is legal, that is people are apparently more ok with than marijuana. I have to agree that this is just ridiculous. After looking at all the proven facts, the statistics, it is just astounding that people give the thumbs up to alcohol and tobacco, but have issues with marijuana, a substance that has not had a hard proven case to cause negative effects and only seems to have good ones, and even awesome ones.
The legalization of marijuana has already been approved in Washington and Colorado and their system has not completely fallen apart. A constant concern is if we legalize it then of course there will be more children using it because it's more readily accessible. But in fact, in the states that have legalized marijuana there has been a downward trend in the statistics of teens who use it. These states have in fact set up very strict rules and regulations to control the usage and distribution of marijuana. And you see that this embracement of marijuana has not lead to some society of anarchy, but to a society that is growing exponentially. Colorado has actually opened up the first private marijuana club.
So in conclusion I think marijuana should be legalized, it shows great benefits and I think in the end the voice of the population will ring out and we'll see legalization of marijuana across the nation.