...Decriminalization of Marijuana. Marijuana is a drug that comes in many forms and strains. The decriminalization of marijuana could have outstanding effects on our country. Decriminalization is to make something no longer a criminal act but was marijuana always illegal. The benefits of decriminalization are double to triple the negatives of decriminalization. Four groups of people would be hurt by this. You may be wondering can this be regulated by government. The answer may shock you but California already has it well regulated. I believe it best we decriminalize it when the time is right and some states are already seeing that the time is right. We can’t talk about why something needs to be decriminalized without first discussing why it was criminalized in the first...
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...cashing in on children’s addiction. Marijuana is being marketed in candy form, bright intriguing packaging, used to attract youth. Marijuana is easier than ever to use with all the new gadgets coming out to make smoking undetectable, efficient, and easy. There is no more need to develop a bong out of a water bottle, now youth can buy items such as the third iteration of Pax Labs’ eponymous handheld vaporizer which is subtler than ever before. Or one can purchase a Puffco Peak, which is a battery-powered gizmo with four different heat settings, which allows smoking to go undetected. For older parents with children using marijuana, they may not even know what to look for to know that their child is using. Macro Perhaps the government perhaps sees this all as part of the consumer society. Using taxation, regulation, and prohibition to gain. “Most critics have argued that...
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...cousin Jimmy started smoking marijuana at an early age of 13. As his life progressed, he continued to keep on smoking marijuana. Since he smoked Marijuana for a good 5 years of his life, Marijuana affected him on the long run. Since he started smoking Marijuana at the young age when his brain was not fully developed, it caused him to be “slow” in the head as some people say. Since he was “slow”, his worth ethic was not so good, and he lacking many skills due to his brain not being fully developed which caused him not to be hired at certain places. “By the end of 2014, four states- Colorado, Washington, Alaska, and Oregon passed laws decriminalizing Marijuana”. Many people want to legalize Marijuana due to how it saves money off of tax revenue. For example, “Michigan is said to have saved millions off of medical tax revenue”(VanHulle). Furthermore, the recreational use of Marijuana is a big subject in our world today, and it should be illegal. It causes many health problems, such as a decline in IQ...
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...definition) * 1) Prohibition * 2) Decriminalization * 3) Legalization * 4) Medicalization * 5) Harm Reduction * For Legalization: (short answer) * Policies creating more harm than drugs * Legalize so they don’t have to commit criminal acts * So many people are using it, should be legalized * Failed to reduce use and addiction * Prohibition has negative health consequences * Reduced drug price reduced violence * Crime would decrease less crowded courts and jails * Focus too much on illegal drugs focus on legal drugs * Against Legalization: * Alcohol has history of social acceptance in US * Prohibition is affective against illicit drugs * Legalization of drugs increases consumption increase in overdose and death * How come crack involves higher level of violence than cocaine if less expensive drugs results in less crime? * If legalized more people will start using drugs * Good Country Policies (essay question) * England: * Marijuana is not prescribed for medical use * Prescribe heroin for heroin addicts * Reach out to people to get treatment through the Justice System * When you want help you get help * Portugal: * Jail time replaced with treatment * People caught with small amount sent to a panel * Decriminalization decline illegal drugs, HIV, people seeking...
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...Legalizing Marijuana 1 Crystal N. Nichol Tiffany Davis March 5, 2012 Dying To Get High: Marijuana as Medicine People around the world are dying to get high, off the cannabis also known as marijuana to treat certain medical conditions, which is why marijuana is something that should be legally justified to treat specific pre existing medical conditions in all fifty states (Meltzer,2004). The controversial issue of legalizing marijuana for medical use is a worldwide concern, although thirteen states already have legalized marijuana for medical reasons. The legality of marijuana has been a hotly debated subject for decades until the government of US and many other established countries outlawed its use, smoking marijuana had been a widespread activity for thousands of years (Meltzer, 2004). Marijuana has been illegal in America since 1923. Since the authorities banned the recreational use, sale, and growth of this substance many groups have sprung up and protests have been organized to fight for the right to possess and use the plant (Meltzer, 2004). Opinions appear to be pulled in two directions: that the use of marijuana is an extreme social, moral, and health ‘danger’ that must be stamped out, or that it is an innocuous, pleasant pastime that possesses health benefits and should be legalized(Zimmer,1997). It may be some time before all the truths concerning the use of this ancient drug in our society are fully known. An understanding of the history and attitudes...
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...The War on Drugs was intended to reduce the use of criminal drugs. The United States government, with the assistance of other countries, have been wanting to reduce the use and trade of illegal drugs. This initiative includes strict laws and policies, such as prison time, this is meant to discourage the production, distribution and consumption of these targeted substances. In the following essay, it is important to make the distinction between street and prescribed drugs, their effects, and the punishment one may receive for having drugs. We can identify the cost our country has put into this extremely controversial campaign and whether or not is has been effective in accomplishing what our government has set out for. This can be compared to...
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...Marijuana Prohibition Marijuana prohibition in America has become a much heated debate over the past decade or so which has launched countless campaigns both for and against legalizing the plant for a variety of reasons. Unfortunately, excessive propaganda has been used to distort the facts and prevent education on the matter. It may surprise you to know that 100 years ago this was not even an issue. Most people in America simply assume that marijuana was criminalized due to the result of scientific research which determined that it fell into the category of a dangerous drug. This is completely false and the history of marijuana’s criminalization is filled with fear and corrupt legislation. The laws that were created as a result were made for the wrong reasons using false evidence. Despite what the opposition says, legalizing marijuana is beneficial to everyone for several reasons: it is a healthier alternative to pharmaceutical drugs, it will free the court system and jails from unnecessary time and expenses, and it will create a substantial source of revenue for the country. For nearly a century, health care personnel and government officials have stressed the potentially dangerous side effects of marijuana usage. Currently marijuana is the most commonly abused illicit drug in the United States. (NIDA, 2010) Marijuana is the dried flowers that come from the hemp plant Cannabis Sativa. The main active chemical in marijuana is delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol which...
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...Legalization In most countries, possession and use of cannabis that is also commonly known as marijuana is considered illegal. In fact, it can be noted that for many years, cannabis has been considered to an illegal drug in most countries. Nevertheless, today, some countries have legalized cannabis while other countries have not. In particular, small quantities of cannabis have been allowed in regions such as Europe, North America and South America. Moreover, in the United States, some states such as Washington and Colorado have also legalized the possession and usage of marijuana for medical purposes. On the other hand, various penalties are imposed for use or possession of cannabis in most countries. The penalties generally range from simple to severe punishments. Possession of small quantities of marijuana is not punished the same way as possession of large quantities. In this argumentative essay, I seek to argue the reasons why cannabis should be legalized, and why it should not. Primarily, cannabis should be legalized since it is used for medication, and its legalization means better and higher quality health standards. For example, Sativex is a recent drug that has been discovered to cure Multiple Sclerosis (Kmietowicz 89). The drug has been used in the United Kingdom to treat MS patients, and it has been found to work effectively. Therefore, banning of cannabis would be a disadvantage to people who suffer from diseases that use cannabis as a major component in their medicine...
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...However, more commonly it has become the quite-looking, straight A student that never said a word in class. By applying Floyd’s method to my artifact, I will establish the generalized view on marijuana. When researching cannabis stereotypes, High Times claims the most common ‘myths’ were lack of ambition and motivation. As stated earlier, many people use primacy as a form of stereotyping cannabis users. An example of primacy is that the first cannabis user you meet is lazy and lacks ambition therefore you assume any other cannabis user is lazy and unmotivated like that first cannabis user you met. Nevertheless, High Times, The Huffington Post, and I can beg to...
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...Rebekka Sherry English 1108 Essay #3 28 April 2015 The debate for marijuana legalization has been getting more and more attention as more and more states are opting for legalization for not only medical purposes but also recreational purposes. Since it was outlawed in “1937 when congress enacted the marijuana Tax Act made it a federal crime to possess,” (Alex & Alexander pg1 13s) people believed that marijuana was a terrible drug that did harmful things to our bodies, and that it lead to the use of harder drugs. It just had a bad reputation all together. More recently there has been more and more people deciding to be pro legalization. Marijuana has been studied rigorously and over many years and has proven to provide a very beneficial impact on society in many different ways and this is why there has been a huge push for legalization in most recent time. These benefits have been seen in positive health gains for adults and children being treated for an array of illnesses, revenue gains in several different areas, as seen recently with amendment 64 being passed in Colorado, and criminal/court system spending goes down, along with spaced being freed up in prison systems for harsher criminals. These benefits should be viewed as something that can greatly help are economy and citizens within which in turn would make our country a more thriving better place to live and that is why marijuana should be legalized. Marijuana is a naturally grown plant that can be grown...
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...crack cocaine epidemic that swept across the nation in the 1980s and 1990s, and was firmly convinced by it that drugs were the primary cause of African-American suffering. Dangerously close to following the path down a life of crime like so many of his friends and family members, he was spared by a series of chance encounters that led him to join the air force. While stationed around the world he took college classes and met several mentors that would show him the extent of racism in America and open his eyes to the real causes of the suffering he grew up around. Decades of repressive and racially motivated laws had been used to put down minority groups since the late 1800s and, disguised as a war on drugs, harsh penalties were created for marijuana and crack cocaine use in the 1900s, leading to the mass incarceration of poor black people. The effects of these discriminatory laws still reverberate today, but with the help of drug research by scientists like Dr. Hart and a growing awareness of the problem by the general public, it is hoped that new laws will be made to end the war on drugs and allow its victims to succeed in the future. The construction of the transcontinental railroad in the 1860s was one of the most extensive and complex engineering feats to ever take place. The railroad stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, was built entirely by hand, and was completed in just six years. This was made possible only because of the Chinese immigrants who had flocked...
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...Should Marijuana be Legalized? BCOM/275 November 26, 2012 Should marijuana be legalized? Throughout the years, the topic should marijuana be legalized is often heavily debated. For many years the use of marijuana was forbidden and outlawed in the United States, but in more recent years marijuana seems to be becoming accepted. Scientist has found many useful applications for marijuana. Recently, here in the United States, many states have approved legislation for marijuana for medical purposes. Most recently, two states Colorado and Washington have passed referendums that will allow people over the age of 21 recreational use of marijuana without the penalty of a criminal offense. These two states will oversee the use of marijuana for its constituents similar to how alcohol is controlled. Whereas, the government at the state level in Colorado and Washington is in favor for the legalization and passed legislation for the legalization of marijuana, the federal government has not. This causes legal, moral, and ethical issues and begs that questions; should marijuana be legalized? Pros of Legalization One benefit of the legalization of marijuana would be the ability for state and local governments to tax the legal production and sale of it. Currently, because marijuana is illegal the sale of it is not taxed so the local, state, and federal governments do not reap any of the benefits of this “$10.5 billion dollar industry” (Miron, 2005, p.4). In a report written by Jeffrey A....
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...CCJ 11 Introduction to Criminal Justice Topic: How does the Australian Criminal Justice system respond to one of the forms of crime? addressed in the last part of the course/unit? What are the Strengths and Weakness of this response? Crimes addressed include White Collar and Corporate Crime, Organized Crime, Illicit Drugs and Violence. Illicit drugs affect everyone. They may cause family problems, health problems even effort jobs or your performance. Even with the use of drugs that may have to be swallowed or even injected into your own body could increase chances of obtaining the HIV virus. But drugs that we smoke like marijuana could cause lung cancer. Illicit drugs can also affect the brain, by causing the brain cells to die and in cases resulting in permanent brain damage. The abuse of drugs also affect the economy, people using drugs are accident waiting to happen. Each year drug uses is the cause of a large number of accidents at home, office and on the roads. Everybody pays the price of drug abuse more cops and prisons more hospitals and treatment centers and many lives lost. Australia has approximately one drug overdose death each year. Broadly speaking, the prevalence of illicit drugs has been falling since the late 1990’s though some drugs have increased over that period. The authoritative reports below will summaries the trends as follows. In 2010, approximately 15% of the national population 14 years and above had used one or more illicit...
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...addiction, there is no scientific proof or medical test for an addict. To keep things in the broadest perspective, addiction will be defined here as the continual repetition of a normally non-problematic behavior to self-destructive access. This 3 definition leaves room for a broad range of behaviors without physical cause that will allow for a search of the real problem behind the behavior and not the excuse of saying that it is the result of a disease. Since addiction is believed to be a social problem then an attempt at cutting off the source of addiction, drugs in this case, is thought to cure the problem. If that be the case then gambling and food abusers should be treated the same as addicts. Since drug legalization is the topic of this essay let us focus on alternatives to the War on Drugs. One possibility...
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...a general promotion of drug education and the elimination of our current system's many de-legitimating hypocrisies. However, before the specific outcomes of Congressional influence and policy impact can be evaluated it becomes important to first review the general history and current situation of drugs today. Our present drug laws were first enacted at the beginning of the century. At the time, recreational use of narcotics was not a major social issue. The first regulatory legislation was for the purpose of standardizing the manufacturing and purity of pharmaceutical products. Shortly after, the first criminal laws were enacted which addressed opium products and cocaine. Although some states had prohibited the recreational use of marijuana, there was no federal criminal legislation until 1937. By contrast, the use of alcohol and its legality was a major social issue in United States in the early 20th century. This temperance movement culminated in the prohibition of alcohol from 1920 to 1933. Recreational drug use, particularly heroin, became more prevalent among the urban poor during the...
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