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Should Marijuana be made legal in the United States for recreational use?
This is an interesting topic because of how controversial it is. Many studies have shown that Marijuana doesn't hurt your body as a whole as much as alcohol and other drugs do. Marijuana is also used in medical practices. But does this mean we should make it legal for recreational use?
I think that this whole issu3 is ridiculous. It should not even be question3d weither or not marijuana is leg@l it just should be. Yes marijuana is harmfull to you but so is alot of things that are legal. NUmber one standing fact is that alcohol alone has been charted to have claimed 100,00 lives a year and is still legalized and where are the statistics of marijuana related deaths... but besides that if im not mistakein (correct me if im wrong) but marijuana now has been decriminalized by the government an now lies in the hands of the individual states ..so come on people sell the weed not the seeds u can still make profit .. w3ll imma end it there but If u dont Agr33 u have Obviously never smok3ed before BUT..just try one time you wont b3 a hypocrite just think of yourself as an experimentalist if u still dont agree u aint smokin the right shiiT .. :D
The only reason that no one is ever reported dying from it is because it's impossible to overdose on it. There have been plenty of highway deaths associated with marajuanna use.
Whether it kills people or not, it still is harmful to your body. Ingesting smoke is not good for you. To say something should be made legal because it is less harmful or because it doesn't KILL someone is ridiculous.
There are many things that are harmful to the body. Smoking cigarettes is harmful to the body and is still legal. As you stated above alcohol is more harmful than smoking marijuana, but it is still legal.
Exactly. But that doesn't mean marijuana should be made legal because the other two are. It still harms your body. I don't believe the other two should be legal either. But that is a different topic.
Okay then. If we were to make everything illegal because it was harmful to us in any way we would be living with next to nothing. Just off the top of my head fast food, junk food, driving, traveling. All of those are potentially dangerous. We shouldn't hold ourselves back because of it. If we taught people safer ways to smoke it then it wouldn't be as harmful.
Ok how about lets make it legal because it is NOT HARMFUL. The only negative side effects only come from the fact that people smoke it. You can cook and or vaporize your weed which will get rid of the smoke related issues. And I would argue that the fact that alcohol is MUCH MORE HARMFUL and KILLS ATLEAST THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE each year is enough to say that it should be legal.
In your description, you have stated "Many studies have shown that Marijuana doesn't hurt your body as a whole as much as alcohol and other drugs do."
So, if doesn't hurt your body, what is the big deal for recreational use? People should have the choice just like people choose to eat fatty foods and drink soda. Studies show how those items are harmful to the body. Diabetes, and stroke.
I said as much. Not "Marijuana doesn't hurt your body AT ALL". And people do have a choice. They can smoke marijuana or they can refrain from smoking it. It just isn't legal.
Okay. I see where you are coming from. But by legalize it do you mean like cigarettes? As in people could freely smoke in most restaurants (in the "smoking section" which isn't always a separate room)?
Yes, those who smoke weed should be able to smoke in the smoking section in restaurants the same as cigarette smokers because weed or cigarettes are both drugs along with it's cousin alcohol. Both have a disgusting odor. 450,000 people die to cigarette causes a year while 0 have died from weed causes ever.
What is your fundamental reason to keep weed illegal? None of the reasons are any more than those of cigarettes or alcohol.
Most issues like this, such as sex between minors and alcohol, come down to one thing: it's your choice. If you want to ruin your life, be my guest. It isn't the goverment's job to control that.
Then by your logic, alcohol and tobacco should also be illegal, right?
Because right now in the U.S., those two substances ARE legal to purchase in ANY AMOUNT, from almost any place.
So the question is, since marijuana IS less harmfull to the mind and body than both alcohol and tobacco, WHY are those who use it recreationally, denied to make that choice?
if it was wrong, they would not give it to you at the HOSPITAL... and it has not ever effected anyone I've known in a negative way. after you have tried it, then say something about it.
The worse thing that will happen is more dope heads. It will only raise tax revenue and it would effect the economy. It would create thousands of jobs. Weed is the largest cash crop in the world. Get rid of cartels.
what do you mean mad props? the only reason lots of stoners dont have good grades is because they realize school is fucking stupid. i have average grades but i still consider myself fairly intelegent even though i smoke pretty much everyday. weed doesnt do shit to your ability to do well in school.
Look man, weed can really screw you up. I had a buddy who went from straight A's to dying because of pot. Hell, if you can manage to get average grades and still smoke, than mad props to you to.
Here's the solution: Legalize marijuana and just tax it. That'll cut down on law enforcement costs, plus the cops can worry about more important stuff like making sure national heathcare plans don't get passed. Oh wait...
The only health danger is the tar, which can be practically eliminated with vaporizers; legalization would open up a larger market for vaporizers, increasing demand, increasing competition and bringing prices down so that the market expands even more. Also as part of the condition for legalization the government can provide tax breaks and such for such companies, to decrease the only serious health risk and to improve the economy.
If the purpose of a law is to give as much freedom to people without allowing those people to neglect or abuse others rights, then what right is being threatened by marijuana usage? So called "hard drugs" can lead to many social issues and can actually be directly correlated, and scientifically shown to be part of the cause of right violations. Marijuana has less correlation to such things then the few currently legal drugs. Marijuana is unjustly prohibited.
If we legalized marijuana, it would likely bankrupt the cartels, which are profitable because they are the biggest "under the table" distributer. People would have no reason to buy from them when they could grow their own, or buy it cheaply from WalMart. The problem is that people under the influence of marijuana are more likely to commit crimes. If it is legalized, we need to be prepared to dump unlimited capital case appeals and do some executing.
Common sense does. Have you ever seen people do stupid things while under the influence of marijuana? Things they wouldn't have done otherwise? I have. But for the sake of argument lets say it doesn't cause any harmful mind altering effects (which I'm sure you'll argue next). Do you know of anyone who has been fired for marijuana use? There's a lot of companies that would fire people for that even if it wasn't illegal. When people don't have an income, they get desperate, especially when they want more money for their next fix. Desperate people do desperate (and often illegal) things.
Common sense does. Have you ever seen people do stupid things while under the influence of marijuana?
So in other words, you have no idea, but simply think that it would? Your "common sense" is based on assumption. And Common sense is often wrong for this reason.
Marijuana causes lethargy, which greatly decreases "dangerous activities". Someone who is high on Marijuana is not going to rob a bank, or steal a car, however there is a good chance they will sit on the couch and stare in amazement as a piece of lint floats by, or watch a movie about talking animals.
But for the sake of argument lets say it doesn't cause any harmful mind altering effects (which I'm sure you'll argue next).
Heavy long term usage can impair short-term memory, outside of that there really isn't any. Drinking bleach isn't all that good, yet it is not illegal.
Do you know of anyone who has been fired for marijuana use?
Not personally, no.
There's a lot of companies that would fire people for that even if it wasn't illegal.
SO???
A lot of companies will fire people for showing up late to work, should that be illegal?
When people don't have an income, they get desperate, especially when they want more money for their next fix. Desperate people do desperate (and often illegal) things.
{Laughs!}
Their "fix"?
{Laughs some more}
Thank you for demonstrating you have absolutely no idea what you're talking about. The sad thing is that a lot of people don't know why that's so funny. We aren't talking about heroine here, we're talking about weed. There's no such thing as a marijuana "fix". Marijuana is not addictive. People DONT go through marijuana withdraws, people can go through caffeine withdraws. Marijuana is less addictive than caffeine, which is why your statement that they "need to get their fix" is incredibly asinine. You obviously don't know anything about marijuana, which is funny because you want it to be illegal.
Let me further demonstrate why this statement is idiotic.
Desperate people, will sometimes do desperate (and often illegal) things, such as stealing a car....therefore we should outlaw cars. Following your logic.
Prohibition obviously doesn't work, which is why so many people still do marijuana, many people are sitting behind bars (costing taxpayer dollars) who should not be there in the first place. Marijuana does not hurt anybody.
I don't even like marijuana, but I can't think of a single good reason for it to be illegal.
So in other words, you have no idea, but simply think that it would? Your "common sense" is based on assumption. And Common sense is often wrong for this reason.
No, I have seen people do stupid things under the influence of marijuana, like attempting to drive a car while blazed out of their minds.
SO???
A lot of companies will fire people for showing up late to work, should that be illegal?
I am only trying to demonstrate a principle, not suggesting we illegalize everything that causes people to lose jobs.
Marijuana is not addictive.
"According to the 2008 NSDUH, marijuana accounted for 4.2 million of the estimated 7 million Americans dependent on or abusing illicit drugs. In 2008, approximately 15 percent of people entering drug abuse treatment programs reported marijuana as their primary drug of abuse; 61 percent of persons under 15 reported marijuana as their primary drug of abuse, as did 56 percent of those 15 to 19 years old." -National Institute of Drug Abuse
About 9% of frequent marijuana users will develop a dependency. That's a lot of people if you open it up to the whole nation.
Let me further demonstrate why this statement is idiotic.
Desperate people, will sometimes do desperate (and often illegal) things, such as stealing a car....therefore we should outlaw cars. Following your logic.
That is not at all my logic. if it was, I would have said that we should keep marijuana illegal because people get it illegally. Rather what I am saying is that it is only common sense that it can be a contributor to crime.
Marijuana does not hurt anybody
It most certainly does. There have been many deaths directly linked to marijuana use. Car crashes are a common way in which people under the influence of marijuana harm themselves, and others.
No. Neither do I think Marijuana should be illegal. I just think that if/when we make it legal, we need to be prepared for the possible ramifications of it.
No, I have seen people do stupid things under the influence of marijuana, like attempting to drive a car while blazed out of their minds.
Do you support a ban on Alcohol?
I am only trying to demonstrate a principle, not suggesting we illegalize everything that causes people to lose jobs.
Well, the principal you are trying to demonstrate doesn't help your argument, when other invalid conclusions can be drawn from the same line of reasoning.
"According to the 2008 NSDUH, marijuana accounted for 4.2 million of the estimated 7 million Americans dependent on or abusing illicit drugs. In 2008, approximately 15 percent of people entering drug abuse treatment programs reported marijuana as their primary drug of abuse; 61 percent of persons under 15 reported marijuana as their primary drug of abuse, as did 56 percent of those 15 to 19 years old." -National Institute of Drug Abuse
About 9% of frequent marijuana users will develop a dependency. That's a lot of people if you open it up to the whole nation.
I would really like to know what this article defines as "dependency" because I happen to know that marijuana does not produce withdraw when it's use is ceased.
In the broad sense almost anything can be addicting, or abused. I could abuse Tylenol, but that does not mean it is inherently addictive. So please define your terms here.
Rather what I am saying is that it is only common sense that it can be a contributor to crime.
If Soda was illegal, then drinking Soda would be a contributor to crime. It's only "contributing to crime" because it's illegal.
It most certainly does. There have been many deaths directly linked to marijuana use. Car crashes are a common way in which people under the influence of marijuana harm themselves, and others.
Legalizing marijuana does not necessitate repealing "driving under the influence" laws. Driving while high, would still be illegal, but recreational use in the privacy of one's own home should not be illegal.
I do not support a ban on Alcohol. Nor Do I support a ban on Marijuana. In fact, I have not spent one single moment of my time here saying that it should remain illegal. All I am saying is that it does alter one's state of mind which can lead to crime just as alcohol can, whether it's addictive or not. We need to be prepared for the ramifications of legalizing Marianna if/when it happens.
If Soda was illegal, then drinking Soda would be a contributor to crime. It's only "contributing to crime" because it's illegal.
That's not the same logic. Ideally, marijuana use would be legal, driving would be legal, and they would never happen at the same time. But suppose it does, and someone mows down a pedestrian at a crosswalk and gets charged with manslaughter. In that case, marijuana use would be a contributor to the crime, but not illegal in itself, much like alcohol is now.
Legalizing marijuana does not necessitate repealing "driving under the influence" laws. Driving while high, would still be illegal, but recreational use in the privacy of one's own home should not be illegal.
I agree. But just like alcohol, people will still use it and drive. Especially if it's made legal. Again, I don't advocate it remaining illegal based on that principal, but we must be ready to deal with more high drivers, because that's probably what will happen.
Again, common sense. More people would be more likely to use it, and therefore more people would be driving under the influence. There would probably be a lot of other people doing stupid things because of it too, but there's no way to argue either way on this that wouldn't be conjecture since it is a hypothetical situation.
Unless I am mistaken, lots of people are already using it, I don't think legalizing it would increase use by any significant margin, it would simply be more visible. The type of people who smoke marijuana are not the type of people who obey laws for the sake of obeying laws.
Without a doubt. And I can't believe how many advocating for marijuana legalization still insist it's a harmful substance! Marijuana has never resulted in a death -- in fact, it's been estimated that in order to die from marijuana, a person would actually need to "consume nearly 1500 pounds within about 15 minutes to induce a lethal response" X.
Furthermore, marijuana has a long list of medicinal benefits, most notably for its treatment of cancer and glaucoma. Casual smoking has also been shown to "increase lung airflow rates and lung volume" X. It also promotes neurogenesis (brain cell growth) X.
Lastly, we're all potheads in the loosest sense of the word because our bodies naturally possess cannabinoid receptors which are designed to process cannabinoids like THC (one of marijuana's main components), in turn assisting us naturally with strengthened immunity and pain management. These cannabinoids are even naturally found in breast milk, which assist with newborn development X.
Of course. The simple reason is: Alcohol and Tobacco.
How can Marijuana be illegal, if Alcohol (which is much more powerful on the mind and body) and Tobacco (which is much more addictive) can be purchased in any amount, at almost any place?
Ill make it simple... Legal 420 = More Taxes, Lets take money from the drug dealers and put it back into our communities! You will be knocking out two birds with one stone!
No, I've had first hand experience of what it's like to be around people smoking marijuana. It's a bad pungent odor that can be smelled several yards away. I mean when you can smell someone smoking marijuana from down the street, it's a social issue. In time even the smell gives me a bad headache. Maybe it's in my head, but none of you have the right to put me through that just so that you can say you can get baked legally.
At least cigars and cigarettes odors dissipate fairly quickly, and their odor, while somewhat bad, are not sharp bad pungent odors that carry down the street and waft through people's windows.
Geez, I can't even have my window open sometimes on a warm summer night or a decent time in my backyard on a Friday night because of my next door neighbor who doesn't seem to care that the odor is very strong across the fence in my yard.
It's ridiculous really. Not to mention, with all the problems we have with the mind-altering substance called alcohol, we'd be opening a whole new host of problems if marijuana were legalized, not to mention the public health concern. I know, I know, Marijuana only alters the mind and it has no harmful fumes, yeah, well, wait until it goes public and it's everywhere, I think we'll find, as we do with almost everything, it's not what we assumed it would be. We may even find it's not as safe as we thought. And imagine someone who happens to be very allergic to the stuff, you can smell that stuff from several yards away, and in some cases as far as football field or more if the wind is just right.
I have no issues with it being legalized for people to do on their own, away from the public, but that's not what will happen is it. No, what will happen is people will test their boundaries, insist that it can be smoked anywhere regardless of who is affected by it, and that will go on for a while until it's finally brought to court, and years later legislation is finally made that says it can't be smoked in public places or where it causes other discomfort. Then people will fight that saying that there are not harmful side-effects, if in fact we don't discover any, which we won't at first, and they will attempt to smoke it in places where others are affected by it anyway.
And then we've proven how responsible we are with legal mind-altering substances by how we use alcohol. Some of us are while many others of us are not, and really, to legalize marijuana would mean a whole new era of legislation to control everyone that would not regard others in their use of the substance. At least now, they have to regard others or risk having the police called on them.
WHAT THE FUCK!!! Youre argument is based on the fact that you dont like the smell of marijuana? What the fuck kind of argument is that? Is febreze illegal because people are allergic to it? Your arguemnt is so fucking dumb. Raise a valid point then we will talk!
Reichpride is right. If you don't like the smell, you could move, you could talk to your neighbor, or you could try something revolutionary. You could IGNORE IT!
Marijuana is a DRUG. These substances cause negative effects on the human body. Alcohol, tobacco, and even caffeine are great examples of why marijuana should not be legalized. All of these substances cause detrimental effects on the human body. Alcohol has the ability to destroy your liver, and tobacco can cause many forms of cancer. Marijuana makes you sleepy and hungry, it is USELESS. If you want to do something "recreational" you should go out and exercise or play a sport. Smoking a useless plant isn't "recreational."
Marijuana is a DRUG. These substances cause negative effects on the human body. Alcohol, tobacco, and even caffeine are great examples...
...of completely legal drugs.
great examples of why marijuana should not be legalized.
On the contrary, they are great examples of why marijuana should be legalized. Both Tobacco and Alcohol are entirely legal, and have much much worse health affects than does Marijuana. There have been exactly ZERO cases of marijuana overdose.
Marijuana makes you sleepy and hungry
And this is a valid reason for it to be illegal????
it is USELESS.
So are many other legal things. Being useless is not sufficient reason to make something illegal.
The answer to the question, does marijuana effect the brain? Marijuana does not effect the brain in damage, but it can alter in functions. Marijuana effects the perception of time, distance, and speed. It upsets motor coordination, causing unsteady hands, a change in gait, uncontrolled laughter, and a lag between thought and facial expressions. Sexual functions can also be disturbed. Short-term memory deteriorates. In early stages of the use of marijuana, some users will suffer from nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Most users may find that when they are high the whites of their eyes and facial skin become red, and the pupils dilate and become sensitive to light, increase in appetite, and a dryness in the mouth and throat. What all these effects have in common is that they result from changes in the brain's control centers, located deep in the brain. "Deep brain functions separated from conscious thought processes. The deep relay centers feed information to the controlling mechanisms of the consciousness." So, when marijuana disturbs functions centered in the deep control centers, disorienting changes in the mind occur (I think that is right). The user's psychomotor coordination becomes impaired. One may suffer or develop illusions and hallucinations, have a difficulty in remembering events which just occurred, slowed thinking and a narrow attention span, "depersonalization, euphoria or depression, drowsiness or insomnia, difficulty in making accurate self-evaluation, a loss of judgment, and mental and physical lethargy." 123helpme.com
This make you want to smoke mary? :) cus it certainly doesnt apeal to me.
I would certainly like to know where you get your information from .
People can write or speak anything , Unless you know for a fact of the affects , long term or short term,of marijuana , then keep your pie hole shut , and only speak of subjects that you know the facts on .
The answer to the question, does marijuana effect the brain? Marijuana does not effect the brain in damage, but it can alter in functions. Marijuana effects the perception of time, distance, and speed. It upsets motor coordination, causing unsteady hands, a change in gait, uncontrolled laughter, and a lag between thought and facial expressions. Sexual functions can also be disturbed. Short-term memory deteriorates. In early stages of the use of marijuana, some users will suffer from nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Most users may find that when they are high the whites of their eyes and facial skin become red, and the pupils dilate and become sensitive to light, increase in appetite, and a dryness in the mouth and throat. What all these effects have in common is that they result from changes in the brain's control centers, located deep in the brain. "Deep brain functions separated from conscious thought processes. The deep relay centers feed information to the controlling mechanisms of the consciousness." So, when marijuana disturbs functions centered in the deep control centers, disorienting changes in the mind occur (I think that is right). The user's psychomotor coordination becomes impaired. One may suffer or develop illusions and hallucinations, have a difficulty in remembering events which just occurred, slowed thinking and a narrow attention span, "depersonalization, euphoria or depression, drowsiness or insomnia, difficulty in making accurate self-evaluation, a loss of judgment, and mental and physical lethargy." 123helpme.com
This make you want to smoke mary? :) cus it certainly doesnt apeal to me.
Example, there was once a man who lived to the age of 115 off of nothing in his last 20 years but raw pork and gallons of red wine.
Another example: Some people under the influence of marijuana have increased motor control, increased focus, increased efficiency in memory, etc; and some people experience these things WITHOUT experiencing anything bad either.
Inevitable point: If you don't like the health risk of Mary Jane, don't smoke it. But when you jail hundreds, maybe thousands, of people a year for smoking a drug that is harmless in comparison to alcohol and tobacco, then your laws have a serious problem.
Illegal marijuana is as inefficient as Prohibition. The difference is that the punishment is worse, and the drug is far less dangerous.
I would argue that marijuana should be illegal as long as all other drugs are illegal, but then again, marijuana has actually treated people with anorexia and helped other people with loss of appetite. What does alcohol do that helps when you ingest it? Nothing. It helps when you swab it on an open wound, but then again, why ingest such a thing? A thing so rancid it kills bacteria automatically?
The answer is that people just do. Prohibition proved that people always will, no matter what any government tries to do. Instead of jailing people, it should be legal, and taxed, and controlled by the government so that it doesn't somehow contribute to killing people.
Then maybe one day, the government will be able to stop tobacco and alcohol companies from killing people to.
NO NO NO.It is a drug. people think chocane or steroids are good for them but it is terrible. It causes negative effects on the human body. Some times people get so drugged they don't realize they killed people.
There is no valid comparison to be drawn between cocaine and marijuana. Marijuana is not addictive, it doesn't cause cancer, you cannot overdose on it, and it doesn't make you any more likely to commit other crimes.
The only way it could be dangerous is if you drive under it's influence. Which is no different than most any prescription drug.
I've not seen a single convincing argument for why Marijuana should be illegal.
It might be somewhat misleading to say it's not COMPLETELY addictive, but apparently so is fast food! Should we ban that as well? Because apparently the right combination of salt and sugar makes you addicted to fast food. I don't know, I saw that on Harry's Law (good show btw). But I think the more fundamental question is should we ban something because A. we don't like it and B. because it's bad for you? I should certainly hope not. Although I think the most compelling is the lack of deaths resulting from marijuana which has stayed consistent, 0.
I agree with most of this, although I am talking about addiction in the medical sense, that withholding a substance will cause withdraws. Conversely nearly anything could be "mentally addictive" but that's more of a result of a weak state of mind that it is of an inherent addictive quality that something may posses.
I agree that because something is harmful for oneself is not reason enough to may something illegal. If someone wishes to harm their own body, this is no concern of the Government.
how can 1 person be so freekin ignorant . marijuana is not a substance , it's a plant.
Marijuana is certainly not mind altering drug , Moron , and furthermore , there's never a case where somebody smoked some weed , went out and then murdered someone , my advise to you is Quit believing everything your mommy tells you.
