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The Legalization of Marijuana Marijuana, also known as Pot, Grass, Weed, Reefer, Joint, Roach, Maui Wow, Loco Weed, Mary Jane, (department of human services division of substance abuse) is one such substance that most people are familiar with. As this drug has leaked out into our society everywhere, one must wonder how destructive marijuana really is, and whether or not it can be controlled. Then again, the question may be, is it really destructive at all? One issue that has been controversial over the last decade is whether or not marijuana should be legalized. Will the legalization of marijuana really benefit our society or will it just contribute to the increase of its use?
Seemingly it can be offered in many different perspectives. As a college student, I agree strongly with legalization of marijuana. Not because I smoke it everyday and worry about the police catching me, but because the number one reason this situation is out of control is due to the strong emphasis our society places on it. Very few Americans had ever heard about marijuana when it was first federally prohibited in 1937. Today, nearly 70 million Americans admit to having tried it (National household survey of drug abuse 1993). According to government-funded researchers, the perceived availability of marijuana among high school seniors has remained increasingly high and steady, despite decades of a nationwide drug war.
With little variation, every year about 85 % consider marijuana fairly easy or very easy to obtain. (Bachman) In 1993, the federal government spent over $ 12 billion on the drug war. Approximately 70 % ($ 8. 4 billion) was spent on enforcement, court, and prison expenses. (The rest was used for treatment and education. ) In 1991 he most recent year for which data is available state and local governments spent a total of nearly $ 16 billion, of which about 80 % ($ 12. 5 billion) was used for enforcement, court, and prison costs (National Drug Control Strategy, Office of National Drug Control Policy, Washington, D. C. , 1994). The department of Human Services, Division of Substance Abuse of Utah states that 9, 880 teenagers in Utah reported that they started the drug between the ages of 12 and 15 during the fiscal year of 1999. This alone shows how harsh the situation really is. Why do children of this age even know about a drug like Marijuana?
The way society emphasizes this so-called dangerous drug has a large part to play in why everyone knows a great deal about it. As many mothers and fathers can often say, children enjoy doing things that they are told not to do. Marijuana is one such thing that parents direct their kids to stay away from. This I believe is the number one reason those children actually start using the drug marijuana.
Maybe we should look at this situation from another perspective. Perhaps the legalization of the drug will pose as a benefit to society, and help solve this huge problem. Depending on the conditions of how the drug is legalized, what the age limit would be and at what prices marijuana would sell at, it could really be a good idea. Maybe this is one idea that society should look into, or obviously all avenues should be researched before coming to a decision of this sort.
If we look at many different statistics of the drug marijuana compared to other legal drugs such as alcohol, cigarettes, caffeine and aspirin, you can see how marijuana is really not as dangerous as society s perception. The following figures are for 1994, from the federal governments Bureau of Mortality Statistics and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The number of deaths caused by tobacco alone was 340, 000 to 450, 000. The number of deaths caused by alcohol (not including 50 % of all highway deaths and 65 % of all murders) was 150, 000 plus.
The number of deaths caused by caffeine (From stress, ulcers, and triggering irregular heartbeats, etc. ) was 1, 000 to 10, 000. The numbers of deaths caused by aspirin were 180 to 1, 000. Lastly the most effective statistic in marijuana s defense is: the number of deaths caused by marijuana was 0. So wouldnt it really be wiser to make marijuana legal and make tobacco and alcohol illegal?
After all, the main reason that these things are made illegal is because of the amount of damage they do to the human race, and as these statistics shows marijuana really does not cause as much harm as society suspects. Depending on your age you will have a different opinion about this issue. The majority of college students will be pro legalization because its easier for them to get the drug and it will also be safer to use if it. But the majority of parents would rather make this drug stay illegal because they are afraid that their children will start using the drug. The thing that they do not know is that their children are just as likely to start smoking and drinking alcohol at around the same age. It is very important to stress what legalization is.
It is not suggesting that it be available to anyone, but to those the government feels responsible adults, like they do with tobacco and alcohol. It is important to think about the legalization of the drug because all currents laws have failed. This war on drugs has simply been too expensive and ineffective. Years of time, money and effort have been put into enforcing these laws, but yet its not done anything to prevent the use of marijuana. If anything it has increased, it is the market for the drug. Legalize the drug and ensure that the right measures are taken to enforce the laws of that drug, and maybe then and only then, will this drug war slow down or even come to an end.
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