Legalize It

Legalize It

The legalization of marijuana has been a debate for many years among our society, but the debate needs to end. It is a fact that the consumption of marijuana is much less harmful then many legal drugs, for example, alcohol, tobacco, and caffeine just to name a few. Marijuana also has medical benefits. The legalization of marijuana would not just benefit the user, it would also benefit our country economically. Marijuana needs to be legalized for the greater good of our country.

How addicting is marijuana? The fact is, marijuana is not physically addicting at all. Medical studies rank marijuana as less habit forming than caffeine, a commonly used drug. Furthermore, the legal drugs tobacco (nicotine) and alcohol can be as addicting as heroin or cocaine, but these drugs are legal, so why not marijuana.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse showed that tobacco kills 400,000 Americans ever year, more people than any other drug.

United States

A NIDA educational pamphlet.

Coffeeshop

However, tobacco is completely legal to anyone over the age of eighteen. Then there is alcohol, which ranked second killing 100,000 Americans annually, not to mention the number of people killed by intoxicated drivers each year. Alcohol is legal to anyone over the age of twenty-one. Caffeine is legal to all ages and kills 2,000 Americans annually. Marijuana related deaths each year are zero, and in fact, marijuana has not killed a single person in recorded history. So why are these other drugs legal and marijuana not?

Some people believe if marijuana was legalized it would send the message to children that the drug is acceptable. The fact is marijuana is here to stay. If it were legal parents would feel more comfortable talking casually about the subject. It would also eliminate the dangerous black market. Many high school students say it is...