Legalization of Marijuana: The Plant Cannabis Sativa

Legalization of Marijuana
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Legalization of Marijuana
Introduction
Marijuana refers to a psychoactive drug, obtained from a parched and dried herbal of a female flower and other parts of the plant Cannabis Sativa. Globally, the drug goes by other names broader sense such as cannabis, ganja, bang hashish, cannabis, ganja among many others. The subject of whether to legalize marijuana or not has been a cause of disagreement and controversial issue in the society today. As much as many attacks have been made about marijuana from different stakeholders, the truth has started to emerge, which seems to back the legalization of marijuana. However, these truths are treated with constant criticism due to the stereotypical perception of what people view as a vice and crime. The proponents of marijuana legalization have also attacked the opponents claiming that the latters’ support on cannabis prohibition emanates from their personal interest. Additionally, in today’s media mainstream, marijuana can be avoided to an extent that movies, music and TV shows with Marijuana contents cannot aired freely. The grounds the makes marijuana illegal tends to be unfair as marijuana has been the parts of America culture over hundred years. For that reasons, the drug has been vilified and and herald as a sensational drug by proponent who have branded it a doorway drug by opponents and projected as an avenue, rope and a platform of other possibilities. Despite these attacks from the opponents, Marijuana poses health, economic and social benefits that substantiate its legalization. From the research and empirics done on the drug, marijuana has proven to be beneficial to the US society for many reasons such as economy, health and even crime reduction. Under economic reasons marijuana legalization can promoted in a controllable manner by establishing a profitable and a taxable industry, and regulated as alcohol and cigarettes. Marijuana should be legalized as it has more benefits harm compared to other drugs, and grants individual entitled freedom of happiness, a constitutionalized right in the America constitution. Therefore, the advantages that marijuana brings both medically and economically are substantial enough to legalize its use medically or recreational in the United States.
In the US, approximately 28 states including, Colorado, Alaska, Arizona, Maryland, Michigan, Massachusetts, Oregon, Ohio among others have legalized marijuana consumption for medical purpose as well as for recreational purposes (Caulkins, Hawken, Kilmer, & Kleiman, 2012, June). The trend indicates that many people continue to side with the idea of legalizing marijuana in America. From many reasons, medicinal value associated with cannabis marks the primary reason many have supported the legalization of marijuana. Marijuana’s medicinal values can be dated back in the history, nearly 5000 years ago, whereby the Western had embraced and promoted marijuana’s medicinal properties by the beginning of the 20th century. The ancient physicians have published numerous literature recommending the use cannabis to cure different kind of disorders. The disorders include movement disorders, glaucoma, pain relief and nausea. Additionally, reports indicates that cannabis contains stimulating content that helps in boosting appetite for patients with HIV/AIDS or patients going through chemotherapy (Jacques, 2014, Janauary). Relatedly, studies shows that marijuana has useful contents that can be used in shrinking the aggressiveness of cancerous brain tumors. Researchers from San Francisco at California Pacific Medical Center confirmed that the chemical cannabidiol found in marijuana prevents cancer by suppressing a gene called Id-1 as cancerous cells can replicate copies of this gene than non-cancerous cells, which tend to trigger a rapid spread in the body (Jacques, 2014, January). Additionally, other studies conducted in America reveals that cannabis could treat epilepsy as well as other seizures disorders. For example, the cannabis hemp oil proves to reduce seizures by 54 %. Other statistic asserts that marijuana tend to decreases seizures on individual with epileptic from 300 seizures a week to one in every seven days (Jacques, 2014, January). In addition, Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), proved to reduce spasticity complication in multiple sclerosis by 30% (Jacques, 2014, January). Furthermore, Cannabis can be effective in reducing depression as well as relieving anxiety. Today, many patients in the US can use cannabis to treat a variety of their diseases because almost the 28 states have approved the consumption of marijuana for medicinal purpose (Jacques, 2014, January).
The recreation benefits associated with the drug justifies the support of legalization marijuana. Since the discovery of marijuana, many individuals, not only Americans but also in other people across the world have found the drug a safe recreational drug. Dating back in history as early as the 19th and 20th century, cannabis has been prescribed by doctors to deal the dangerous ailments such as cancer and glaucoma (Morgan, 2010, August). In treating glaucoma, scientist asserts that cannabis as has proven to have the ability preventing the eye ailment by balancing the pressure in the eyeball when smoked (Morgan, 2010, August). According to the National Eye institute, marijuana reduces the pressure inside the eye as it lowers the intraocular pressure (IOP) on individuals with glaucoma and those with normal pressure. The drugs medicinal values, which includes recreation benefits presents the core reasons why marijuana has been legalized at state level in some states, although illegal at federal government level (Morgan, 2010, August). Compared to other hard drugs like cocaine and heroin, marijuana users believe that the drug has lesser serious side effects in terms of addiction and health hazard. The recreation benefits emanates from the fact the scientist and users who believe that smoking cannabis tend to stimulates ones brain cells as well as brain activities (Morgan, 2010, August). The proponents of legalization believe that marijuana should not be classified in the same category as heroin, cocaine, meth and crack and instead it should be the category of cigarettes and alcohol, which are legal (Morgan, 2010, August). However, an element of irony arises in that case as marijuana users fails to realize that alcohol and cigarettes has huge side effects than marijuana. The common ground being that, as cigarettes and alcohol are used for recreational purpose, marijuana ought to be treated the same across the United States (Morgan, 2010, August). As mentioned the economic benefits of marijuana, like cigarettes and alcohol, legalizing marijuana for recreational benefits, both the state federal government will receive huge tax revenue from the marijuana businesses.
From an economic perspective, marijuana has huge economic benefits to the state government as it generates huge revenue. For example, in the first year of legalizing marijuana, the state of Colorado generated $63 million revenue from cannabis trade and $13 million from fees and licenses (Morgan, 2010, August). The revenue from marijuana marked a new source of revenue that could improve Colorado’s economy as the $30.5 million dollars could be channeled back to the tax payers while the other revenue goes right back to schools constructions and marijuana education programs (Morgan, 2010, August).
Relatedly, marijuana legalization will promote the reintegration of hemp products, a highly valuable cannabis product that can boost an economy as it contains less than 1% Tetrahydrocannabinol that does not cause any “highness” when smoked. Hemp products are grown for industrial purpose only (Rough, 2016, July). Hemp has numerous benefits over a great deal of current resources that the US can extensively exploit. Particularly, hemp’s vital raw material in the textile industry to produce textile products. Hemp fibers contain strong, an aspect that makes it appropriate. In the production of textile based products such as rope, papers and fabrics (Rough, 2016, July). The reintegration of hemp will be a lucrative deal its cultivation tends to produce massive yields per acre compared to cotton. In addition, hemp has a rapid growing rate of 100 days instead of cotton’s 160 days (Rough, 2016, July). The idea has been embraced by the U.S. Department of Agriculture claiming that hemp seeds have more proteins than soy can one can harvest 4 time more from an acre of marijuana than an acre of commercial trees. From all these benefits, hemp would be of huge benefits in today’s economy in terms of revenue generations. Unfortunately, the US are currently obtaining its hemp through importation from countries such as China and Canada, countries who laws are favoring the growing of the cash crop (Rough, 2016, July). Thus, the reintegration of hemp alongside marijuana would not help the US to reduce the channeling of huge amount of money into foreign markets, but also create thousands of jobs for many of the unemployed Americans (Rough, 2016, July). For example, in Colorado where the drug has...