paper on legalization

[SmokeyTheBear]

hey guys, im doing a high school paper on why marijuana should be legalized in the U.S. and i need some good reasons other than for medicinal purposes. also if u can give me some good sites with factual info supporting them. im really in a tight jam so any help would be greatly appreciated.

[SmokeyTheBear]

just to let u know i need three reasons

[dr_krapp]

i had to do a paper on wh yit should be legalized in the uk, i can remember saying "people do it while its ilegal so instead of trying to crack down why not just let them have it,their not gonna stop" but i dont know any other uses lol

[12inchbong]

Here's a copy of a word document that I used to make notecards for my Pro Medical Marijuana debate for our junior convention. I deleted my bibliography for those notecards, though.....

Intro: Lets not be “blunt”. Legalizing marijuana for medical use is a big issue these days. Although a significant amount of the population doesn’t want marijuana legalized, a great majority of the American public does. A poll conducted in 2001 showed 73% of the American public favors the legalization of medical marijuana. In addition to that, 33 states have either decriminalized marijuana, made it legal for medical use, or are in favor of legalizing marijuana for medicinal purposes.


It’s not just the American public that is in support of legalizing medical marijuana. Many doctors, oncologists, and even the Federal Government support it. In 1999, the Federal Government’s Institute of Medicine report verified that marijuana does have medical benefits, and argued that it should be made available to patients who could benefit from its use. In addition, many AIDS physicians, and 44% of oncologists surveyed recommend marijuana to some patients. It is true that there are some prescription drugs that are the synthetic form of THC, the principal psychoactive component in marijuana. Marinol, which is the brand name for dronabinol, and other synthetic forms of THC can produce the same effects as smoked marijuana, but cost at least two times more. And with these synthetic forms of THC comes side effects such as irritated stomach lining, or difficult breathing.


So what are the benefits of smoked marijuana?
-It is one of the only alternatives for patients who have not responded to standard approved therapy.
-Provides relief from glaucoma by reducing intraocular pressure
-Provides relief from asthma by opening bronchial passages
-Fights the imbalance, weakness, spasticity, and low energy symptoms of multiple sclerosis
-Protects brain cells from damage that occurs during a stroke
-Acts as an anticonvulsant in patients with epilepsy
-Slows weight loss in cancer patients by increasing appetite
Research is still being done, and new benefits of the use of marijuana are still being found. Recent studies have indicated marijuana valuable in the treatment of brain injuries and diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.

Risks: The risks of smoking marijuana for medical use are very low. -Marijuana, in most cases, has less of a risk than smoking tobacco, which is currently legal for adults 18 and older.
-The 1999 Institute of Medicine report concluded, “except for the harms associated with smoking, the effects of marijuana are within the range of effects tolerated for other medications.”
-The risks associated with smoked marijuana and Marinol, the synthetic form of THC, are identical
-Annual deaths: Tobacco: 400,000; Alcohol: 110,000; Prescription Drug OD: 100,000; Aspirin: 7,600; Marijuana: None. There have been no reported deaths related to marijuana use according to the National Institute of Drug Abuse.

[dr_krapp]

i could never be that smart in english lol