Marijuana is a drug that comes from Cannabis sativa also known as hemp. Marijuana is an old naturally psychoactive substance known to many. The plant grows naturally in many countries. Despite the fact that marijuana is a drug used for both recreational and medicinal purposes, the drug still remains illegal to use, possess and grow in many countries, including the U.S. Although the use of marijuana for recreational purposes is illegal, its use for medicinal purposes is appropriate and legal. Since the founding of marijuana in the year 1970, there has been a debate on the legalization of the drug. Most citizens in the United States support legalization of marijuana. They oppose the prohibition of marijuana and want an end to the arrest of marijuana smokers.
Regardless of a century of probation, marijuana is one of the most used hard drugs in the U.S. with some U.S. citizens claiming that they have used marijuana at some point in their lives. As a result of the growing acceptance of marijuana use and the ineffectiveness or failure of the U.S. existing control system, the issue of legalizing marijuana has received considerable political and public attention in recent years. Marijuana use prevalence greatly varies by state, age groups and gender in the U.S. Most research conducted in developed countries show that youths are the ones who mostly use marijuana (Caulkins et al. 10). As a result of the ineffectiveness or failure of the current system in prohibiting marijuana use in the U.S., the issue revolving around decriminalizing and legalizing the drug has attracted significant media and political attention (Carroll 102). Decriminalization of the drug means that personal use of marijuana is illegal and may lead to small legal fines, although the use of the drug will not be classified categorized as a criminal offense. The legalization of Marijuana in this context means that the drug would be available to adults only. Hence, the legalization of the drug could also help to remove the illegitimate element related with the drug from the market and the various consequences of the drug for the society.
The legalization of marijuana in the U.S. will allow the U.S. Government to regulate the sale and use of the drug. Legalizing recreational marijuana in the U.S. will help to reduce the consumption of the drug. Massive reform in terms of matters surrounding the legitimization of marijuana in U.S.A is required and utmost care and consideration remains critical. Marijuana as a drug should be legal in the U.S. because of the potential social, health outcomes, and economic benefits associated with the drug in the U.S.
The Economic Impacts of Marijuana
One of the most appealing arguments supporting the legitimization of marijuana in the U.S. is an increase in tax revenue. Legalizing marijuana will help to provide important advantages over the prohibition of the drug because it will allow the government of the U.S. to collect taxes from marijuana use or consumption. Some scholars argue that the legalization of marijuana will help to increase the tax revenue of the country through the tax imposed on different products and may also help the U.S. to save its citizens the tax spent on the prohibition activities. The high demand for marijuana use especially recreational marijuana in the U.S. will help the country to yield significant revenue in form of tax levied on the drugs (Vasquez 50). The approximated free market price of the drug is low without taxation. When the drug is legalized, the U.S. government will be able to keep the price of the substance at a competitive level. To ensure that the country experiences positive outcomes in case the process of legalizing the drug in terms of economic boost, the tax generated in the process should be directed towards the construction assistance fund for state public schools and different public programs such as regulation and substance abuse of the drug. This concept will help the government to ensure that it pays for any effects caused by the legalization of marijuana through the tax revenue it generates.
The recreational of marijuana in the U.S. will help to generate tax revenue as a result of the presence of the black market for the drug as one of the most consumed drug in the world. The legalization of marijuana and marijuana products helps in creating employment opportunities for many people who will help to grow and package the drug for sale (Vasquez 93). The legalization of the drug will also help to more employment opportunities for people who will work in health promotion initiative and educational sessions with an aim of promoting the safe and responsible use of marijuana. The legalization of the drug will also help to reduce the U.S. Government’s expenditure substantially when it comes to the enforcement of the various marijuana laws at the federal level. The legalization of the drug leads to substantial savings when it comes to enforcement costs and drug incarceration in the U.S (Saaty 10). The business of marijuana is more than the sale and production of marijuana. There are many innovative directions marijuana can take as a business conducted in a legal way arguably it may be more productive and beneficial than alcohol. The money generated can also be used to construct schools, start marijuana education, act as public school grants, help in funding anti-bullying campaigns, mentor youths, and for the purposes of treatment and drug abuse.
The legalization of marijuana in the U.S. will help to reduce the prices of Marijuana. The people who use marijuana will be able to save since the legalization of the marijuana products and marijuana will make the prices to fall by some significant percentage. This is very important because the money saved by the U.S. citizens might be used or invested in other things. If the legalization of marijuana in the U.S. is successful, then there will be huge savings when it comes to prison costs. The legalization of the drug may make it one of the most valuable cash crops in the United States of America (Vasquez 110). Programs that will regulate the growing of medical marijuana will be able to generate a lot of revenue if the legalization of marijuana is successful in the U.S. The different impacts that marijuana legalization could have on the economy of U.S., could help the country to save millions of dollars.
The Social Impacts of Marijuana
The increasing demand for marijuana products in the U.S. results in the expansion of the illegal or black market and ends up putting the power of providing the products in the hands of people considered to be illegal drug dealers. If the government legalizes the drug and takes control of its distribution, then it will be easier to reduce the rising black market for marijuana. If the supply of the drug is left in the hands of illegal drug peddlers, then there will be an increase in the number of offenses reported to the police associated with the drug. Legalizing marijuana in the U.S. will help to address problems associated with marijuana’s black market like unsafe environments that may be created by the illegal supply or distribution of marijuana and various negative consequences associated with criminal labeling for possessing marijuana in small amounts.
The growing markets that conduct the distribution of marijuana pose a major threat to the well-being of the children in the U.S. The legalization of the drug may help to minimize or eliminate the direct contact of the children with black market activities. Eliminating this illegal access point will help to reduce the rates of youth illegal activity, and also to diminish the power of the drug dealers over the U.S. youths (Mair 112). Although legalization of marijuana in the U.S. may fail to completely eliminate the number of black markets and their sizes, it will help to reduce their sizes.
Legalizing marijuana will help people who smoke to enter incredibly fun and friendly states of mind. It is hard to find a toner who is angry or people who are stoning fighting. When people smoke marijuana and become ‘high’ it is very hard to feel or experience negative feelings unless a person takes too much of the drug and ends up being paranoid. Marijuana is a drug that helps to reduce stress and also helps people to relax. People who consume marijuana tend to be honest and true. Marijuana can also enhance a person’s creativity (Mair 114). A good example is that of famous producers, actors, musicians and other talented people who are fond of marijuana because when they consume the drug, they are able to enhance their creativity. Marijuana helps to increase a person’s creativity by releasing the hormone dopamine into the brain and also reducing different inhibitions. When a person consumes marijuana he or she is able to reduce his or her anxiety. Many stoners find it easy to relate to others after they consume marijuana. Marijuana is known to reduce anxiety if a person consumes it in the right dose (Mair 115). Lowered inhibitions combined with reduced anxiety help stoners to connect with other people on a deeper level.
The Public Health Impacts of Marijuana
Although the use of marijuana is associated with different adverse health effects, there is evidence indicating different therapeutic benefits associated with the use of marijuana in inflammatory urinary tract diseases, neuropathic disorders, epilepsy, and managing various adverse side effects of chemotherapy (Hudak 41). According to research, cannabis found in marijuana can help in the treatment of chronic pain. Marijuana or medical cannabis is also very helpful with muscle spasms associated with multiple sclerosis (Okere 10). The legalization of marijuana will be beneficial in the health sector since medical marijuana can help to treat diaphragm spasms which are untreatable by different prescribed medications. Research also shows that the consumption of marijuana may improve a person’s lung capacity.
Marijuana also helps in treating glaucoma which is a disease of the eye that increases pressure in a person’s eyeball and thus damaging the person’s optic nerve while causing loss of vision (Caulkins et al. 100). Marijuana is able to reduce the pressure inside the eye of a patient suffering from glaucoma. According to research, marijuana also helps to control epileptic seizures and decrease the different symptoms of Dravet’s Syndrome which is a severe seizure disorder. There are many individuals who report the usefulness of marijuana in controlling the seizure of their children. There is a chemical in marijuana that helps to stop cancer from spreading in cell cultures (Carter et al., 250). At the right dose, marijuana can be very effective in shrinking tumors and stop the spread of cancer. The drug can also slow down the process associated with the progression of Alzheimer. The chemicals found in marijuana help to slow the progress of amyloid plaques by obstructing the enzyme found in the brain cells (Okere 11). The drug also helps to ease the pain associated with multiple sclerosis. Marijuana is able to bind the muscles and nerves receptors to relieve pain. Other health benefits of marijuana consumption include; lessening the side effects from increasing treatment effectiveness and treating hepatitis C, help patients with diseases linked to inflammatory bowels, relieve arthritis discomfort, and soothing tremors for those people who have Parkinson’s disease among others.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the legalization of marijuana will not only help to generate tax revenue for the U.S. from the taxations but will also enable the U.S. government to save U.S. citizens the tax dollars that they spend on prohibition legislation. The saved tax dollars and the profits may be spent on health promotion and public education programs. Marijuana legalization will also help to reduce crime and also reduce the size of United States of America’s black market and the consequences of the drug to the society. The legalization of the drug will only be effective if the U.S. government comes up with appropriate strategies that will help in keeping the drug away from minors, to heighten knowledge and awareness on the adverse effects of marijuana and to avert compromised driving abilities. The legalization of the drug in the U.S. will also help to offer opportunities for other countries to study the effects associated with the legitimization of marijuana in U.S.A The legalization of marijuana in the U.S. will create room for multiple improvement streams. The legalization of marijuana in the United States would help to take a burden off the enforcement centers in the U.S. in the system of the criminal justice. There will be fewer arrests and there will be a significant decrease in relation to the costs associated with those arrests. In addition, legalizing marijuana in the U.S. will help to increase the country’s savings mostly when it comes to the area of public defense, therefore, allowing the government to allocate the money to other productive areas or things that will help to improve the economy of the country. Different comprehensive strategies should be put in place when legalizing the drug so as to increase knowledge and awareness on the adverse effects of its use.
Works Cited
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Carter, Gregory, T., Dale Gieringer, Rosenthal Ed. Marijuana Medical Handbook: Practical Guide to Therapeutic Uses of Marijuana. Oakland, California, 2008.
Caulkins, Jonathan P., Beau Kilmer " Mark, Kleiman. Marijuana Legalization: What Everyone Needs to Know (2nd Ed.). 2016.
Hudak, John. Marijuana: A short History, 224. Brookings Institution Press, 2016.
Mair, Christina. "The impacts of marijuana dispensary density and neighborhood ecology on marijuana abuse and dependence." Drug and Alcohol Dependence
154 (2015): 11-116.
Okere, Arinze Nkemdirim. "Policy Reform With Marijuana Use: Weighing Risks and Benefits." Annals of Pharmacotherapy 1.1 (2018): 10.
Saaty, Thomas L. "A Marijuana Legalization Model Using Benefits, Opportunities, Costs, and Risks (BOCR) Analysis." International Journal of Strategic Decision Sciences 6.2 (2015): 1-11.
Vasquez, Margie. Marijuana : Medical Uses, Regulations " Legal Issues 119. New York, USA: Nova Science Publishers Inc, 2016.
