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An analogy can easily be made to the difference between purchasing a basil plant for $6 versus buying individual sprigs of basil at the grocery store for $2 each.
Medical marijuana aside, serious social, philosophical, and political problems are associated with keeping the drug illegal. First, there is a significant logical contradiction inherent in the legal status of marijuana vs. that of either alcohol or tobacco. Both alcohol and tobacco are widely known to be physically addictive and directly harmful and yet both alcohol and tobacco remain legal. Marijuana, on the other hand, has potential health benefits and is associated only with mild addictive symptoms but marijuana is illegal. The status of marijuana as an illegal substance makes no sense when it is compared with tobacco and/or alcohol.]
Second, the legal prohibition on alcohol in the early twentieth century, which culminated in a United States constitutional amendment, proved to be a dismal failure. Rather than create a more temperate society, the prohibition of alcohol allowed for the proliferation of organized crime and also caused people to resort to dangerous means of distilling alcohol illicitly. The marijuana prohibition has had similar effects: the buying and selling of marijuana enables organized crime syndicates to thrive by increasing their product diversity and marketing segments. Moreover, illegal methods of growing marijuana often entail using dangerous electrical wiring procedures for in-house hydroponic systems. Procuring marijuana illegally also exposes users to dangerous situations including street crimes.
Economically, the prohibition on marijuana makes no sense. A group of economists, including Harvard's Jeffrey Miron and Nobel Prize-winning Dr. Milton Friedman recently petitioned President Bush to change the legal status of marijuana for financial reasons. According to the economists, prohibition is costly as well as dangerous. Their study showed that "Revenue from taxation of marijuana sales would range from $2.4 billion per year if marijuana were taxed like ordinary consumer goods to $6.2 billion if it were taxed like alcohol or tobacco," (Miron 2005)....
If adults have the right to choose whether or not to drink alcohol, or eat at McDonald's, adults should similarly be able to choose whether or not to smoke marijuana. Growing marijuana for personal use would undoubtedly reduce the efficacy of street sales of the drug and could potentially reduce the problems associated with illegal drug trafficking including violent and petty crime. Currently, individuals wanting to use marijuana for medical use or otherwise must perform illegal transactions, risking lengthy and expensive court proceedings, possible prison time, and the social stigma associated with being labeled a criminal. The legal status of marijuana should reflect that of alcohol; both should be approved for limited adult recreational use, and individuals should be permitted to grow their own marijuana safely and without persecution.
Works Cited
Grinspoon, Lester and Bakalar, James B. (1997). Marihuana: The Forbidden Medicine. Yale University Press.
Joy, Janet E., Watson, Stanley J., and Benson, John a. (eds.). (1999). Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base. National Academy of Sciences Press. Report available in PDF form online at http://www.medmjscience.org/Media/pdf/marimed.pdf.
Miron, Jeffery a. (2005). Milton Friedman, 500+ Economists Call for Marijuana Regulation Debate; New Report Projects $10-14 Billion Annual Savings and Revenues. Budgetary Implications of Marijuana Prohibition in the United States. Reproduced online by the Marijuana Policy Project website at http://www.prohibitioncosts.org/mironreport.html.
New, Emerging Evidence of Marijuana's Medical Efficacy. The Science of Medical Marijuana. Online at http://www.medmjscience.org/Pages/science/emerging.html.
Vinciguerra, Vincent, Moore, Terry, and Brennan, Eileen (1988). Inhalation Marijuana as an Antiemetic for Cancer Chemotherapy. New York State Journal of Medicine, October 1988; 88: 525-527. Reproduced online by the Science of Medical Marijuana website at http://www.medmjscience.org/Pages/science/vinciguerra.html.
Works Cited
Grinspoon, Lester and Bakalar, James B. (1997). Marihuana: The Forbidden Medicine. Yale University Press.
Joy, Janet E., Watson, Stanley J., and Benson, John a. (eds.). (1999). Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base. National Academy of Sciences Press. Report available in PDF form online at http://www.medmjscience.org/Media/pdf/marimed.pdf.
Miron, Jeffery a. (2005). Milton Friedman, 500+ Economists Call for Marijuana Regulation Debate; New Report Projects $10-14 Billion Annual Savings and Revenues. Budgetary Implications of Marijuana Prohibition in the United States. Reproduced online by the Marijuana Policy Project website at http://www.prohibitioncosts.org/mironreport.html.
New, Emerging Evidence of Marijuana's Medical Efficacy. The Science of Medical Marijuana. Online at http://www.medmjscience.org/Pages/science/emerging.html.
Vinciguerra, Vincent, Moore, Terry, and Brennan, Eileen (1988). Inhalation Marijuana as an Antiemetic for Cancer Chemotherapy. New York State Journal of Medicine, October 1988; 88: 525-527. Reproduced online by the Science of Medical Marijuana website at http://www.medmjscience.org/Pages/science/vinciguerra.html.
Legislators and drug enforcers are not physicians and should not substitute their belief system for demonstrable scientific studies showing that medical marijuana does benefit patients. The federal argument often begins with a denial of this, as if any study that suggests there is no benefit is automatically preferred to the hundreds that show there is. The next claim made is that the harm is greater than the curative power, which
Medicalmarijuanaprocon.org/bin/procon/procon.cgi?database=5-B-Subs-1.db&command=viewone&op=t&id=1&rnd=414.848519162785)." March 1, 2007 Lester Grinspoon One of the more controversial uses of marijuana is the fact that it is believed to alleviate inflammation which opens the doors for arguments with regard to disorders including fibromyalgia which doctors still debate the existence of. However, as long as the patient is suffering and can match the set criteria for the disorder, who is society to argue that it does not exist and
Medical Marijuana To Governor Rick Perry: In the state of Texas, the use of marijuana for medical reasons is illegal, but I would like you to reconsider this issue. I have a personal interest in this issue as I am terminally ill with colon cancer. By the time this issue is resolved in Texas, it will likely be too late for me, but being ill has made me wish to be proactive
"You could say that anything that makes you feel better," Bock says, "whether chocolate or sex or invigorating exercise or a relaxing evening (depending on one's condition or circumstances), is good for you and could be viewed as medicine. Indeed, most Americans use the term 'good medicine' metaphorically and sometimes almost literally to describe some function or activity that promotes a sense of well-being" (131). Certainly, crack addicts would maintain
Current Events Medical-Marijuana On July 12, 2011 the Seattle city council took the first steps toward the regulation of medical-marijuana dispensaries within city limits. The city would require that "medical-marijuana operations get a city business license and comply with city land-use, fire safety, and other rules." (Martin) The state of Washington has had legalized medical-marijuana for 13 years, but the voter-approved law is scheduled to change on July 22, due to the
Medical Marijuana Use and the National Drug Policy It is clear that the marijuana plant covers numerous elements that may prove prized when it comes to treating a variety of symptoms illnesses or, leading numerous individuals to argue that it should be made legally obtainable for medical determinations. The states of Colorado and Washington in the United Sates have legalized marijuana for fun use. However, there is a quantity of other