The controversy about the legalization of marijuana has been evident over the last ten years. As society becomes more aware of the actual uses of marijuana, the more controversial the topic becomes.
Today, marijuana is used for both recreational uses along with medical use. Specific states have legalized marijuana as well decriminalized it for many reasons.
Decriminalizing marijuana can benefit the state by giving the state’s ability to free up policing resources. This can help smaller police departments deal with more serious criminal issues. The act of being “high” does not automatically force you to commit a heinous criminal crime. There has been very little to none research suggesting that there is a direct correlation between the two factors.
It also has been determined that marijuana is not a gateway drug and does not cause further substance abuse problems. Things such as alcohol and tobacco have a much more detrimental effect on an individual’s body than marijuana would.
Legalizing marijuana could potentially give people other options during recreational activities other than drinking or smoking tobacco. This could also in turn decline people’s tobacco and alcohol addictions.
Legalization of marijuana can create financial benefits for states It can give states a new economic market it did not have access to before. Currently the state of Colorado brings in approximately $73.5 million dollars in revenue from selling marijuana and products regarding marijuana.
In addition to that, the legalization can help provide more jobs for people and in turn decrease unemployment rates. The black market for marijuana would no longer exist because it could be mandates through the problem legal channels.
People would no longer have to seek the marijuana random sources or worry about the ramifications of purchasing it. States such as Oregon and Washington have also seen tremendous results after legalizing marijuana. This could be the solution for states that are struggling finically or with their unemployment rate. This would create a new market for long-term jobs for people regardless of age or other underlying factors.
In addition to that, there have many research studies that have shown that the use of medical marijuana can help cancer survivors. It helps stimulate pain management along with that it helps patience’s with epilepsy and muscle spasms.
Unfortunate because marijuana is not legal in all fifty states some people are not given access to such pain management resources. This could somewhat be considered a violation of an individual’s Fourth amendment right.
By giving patients of some states a health benefit from marijuana and denying others of it automatically puts a certain group at a disadvantage because of the law. This is direct violation of the Constitution. Currently, the status quo forces biased against those groups who are in states that criminalize marijuana.
There are many more benefits from legalizing it than there are negative outcomes. The legalization could essentially remove the black market and benefit millions.
If marijuana was legalized, it could also be regulated and better accounted for. The chances of the marijuana being laced with other drugs would be minimal forcing there to be less chances of overdose or other medical injuries.
Overall, people need to steer away from the negative stigma that comes from marijuana. The legalization of it will bring a surplus of benefits to this generation along with the next.
As a society, we need to be open to change and this could benefit not only young millennial but also people facing medical challenges. Being a political science major, the issue of legalization comes up often. Most students can see the clear benefits of it. This a stance young people feel strongly on and it should be considered by the federal government.
