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Should Marijuana Be Legalized?

Should Marijuana be Legalized? Christina Coltharp ENG/102 March 3, 2013 Robyn Glasscock

Wilkey (2012) a reporter for the Huffington Post in San Francisco writes: “A pair of scientists at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco has found that a compound derived from marijuana could stop metastasis in many kinds of aggressive cancer, potentially altering the fatality of the disease forever” (para 1). Legalizing marijuana for medical and recreational use will allow for many great things to come to this country. A hundred million Americans have smoked marijuana at least once in their life to include the president, his two right hand men, the mayor of New York and numerous of other Americans of that 100 million at least 25 million of them are regular users of the drug (CNBC, 2010). Marijuana has become a part of the American life (CNBC, 2010). Marijuana comes from a dried plant that is created to induce euphoria. However, it is no more addictive than tobacco or alcohol and even can bring good to the body and mind. Marijuana legalization will help those with medical issues, lower crime rates, and help decrease debts in the United States. Legalizing marijuana for medical and recreational use will help people with medical issues such as cancer and glaucoma. According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse: The Science of Drug Abuse & Addiction, marijuana is classified as a drug that is not an acceptable form of medicine for those with medical concerns, to include cancer (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2012). However, when considering the research done on the subject of marijuana as medicine for those with cancer, the results have shown time and time again a compound in marijuana actually helps stop and prevent the spreading of cancer cells (Wilkey, 2012). In more depth, breast cancer cells reflect the most decreased amount

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