Legalization of marijuana

2009.03.25

There have been wide-ranging opinions on legalization of marijuana. There are people who consume marijuana and want it legalized. There are people who do not consume it and do not support its legalization. And there is still a faction who does not take marijuana but still support its legalization. They cite common sense as there main reason.

In 1972 then American President Richard Nixon initiated a series of government programs intended to suppress the consumption of certain recreational drugs. The exact phrase used by him was “War on Drugs”. Marijuana is one of them. However, the first attack Marijuana has not occurred in 1972 but in 1937 when the Marihuana Tax Act was passed.
The law was quickly passed without much debate as it pointed out the problem of illegal Mexican immigrants, who had entered United States of America during the Great Depression, as the main problem. These immigrants were known for hemp cultivation.

But passing the law which makes possession of marijuana illegal only increases the crime rate. There has been no significant drop in consumption. Some people see it as a hindrance to serious law enforcement. Because possession of marijuana is a crime, now the jails are over crowded and courts filled with marijuana cases instead of real issues. Those who voice for legalization of marijuana claim that a lot of time and money of law enforcing department can be spared for real crimes if marijuana is legalized.

Marijuana is legal in Amsterdam, Netherlands. When marijuana was legalized it saw a significant dip in the crime rate (as much as 60%) without any significant increase in the number of consumer.

Recently marijuana possession was legalized in Ontario, the largest province of Canada. It was welcomed and produced similar results as in Amsterdam. So is marijuana harmful and should be deemed dangerous? Consumer and researcher beg to differ. Marijuana is considered as a mild drug which is used as recreation like alcohol. It has no long-term effects. It can cause mild hallucination, sleepiness, vision impairment and effect decision making. But the effects last for a small time. So how many people die annually due to cannabis? The answer is zero. However 430,000 people die annually in USA alone due to Tobacco consumption. It is the nation’s foremost cause of death. There are 116,113 people dying annually due to alcohol. And 200,000 deaths results from prescription drugs. Now, with all Illegal drugs combined (excluding cannabis) there have been 14,218 deaths. And keep in mind there have been zero deaths even distantly related to marijuana.
Cigarettes which are legal, according to health.com, is more addictive, causes cancer, damage the respiratory system, raise blood pressure, decrease oxygen in the brain and body, and cigarette smoking is an important risk factor for the cause of emphysema, chronic bronchitis, stroke, hypertension and osteoporosis. And they are full of chemicals that are toxic to the human body. Cigarette is not only harmful for the smoker but also to the people around him as passive smoking is considered more dangerous. Alcohol is a legal stuff but it is also very dangerous. Alcohol abuse is endemic in America and causes liver disease which kills 25,000 Americans each year. The debate over legalization of marijuana is still going on around the world.