Legalization paper I did for my college "Writing for Change" class.

I recently wrote this as our "writer's choice" assignment. It's a little long but I thought I'd post it here in GC if anyone is interested in reading it or even if someone was writing a similiar paper and wanted some information to use.



It’s becoming nearly impossible recently to read a paper or watch a news station and not hear ever-growing talks of cannabis legalization. According to recent Gallup polls, 44 percent of all Americans support full-blown legalization, including a system to federally tax and regulate. On the west coast, that number is over 50 percent. In addition to broad public support, the rapid growth of media outlets, political figures and health organizations standing up against prohibition is happening in speeds quicker than could have been thought possible just several years back. The American Medical Association, for the first time in over 70 years has recently announced that they believe the government should consider rescheduling marijuana from a Schedule 1 (in the same category as heroin) to a schedule 2 or 3 drug, which could essentially make it an over the counter medication similar to allergy pills. Huge strides are being made, but many lies still run dormant in our society on the subject.​

The wheels are already in motion. Three states (California, Massachusetts and Colorado) are likely to have initiatives being voted on to legalize it this next year, multiple states and cities have decriminalized it (such as Seattle and Massachusetts) already, and over a dozen states have legalized medical marijuana. It has taken many years for things to reach the current state, but it has been leading this way for many years, and the unjustness of the current prohibition is finally making its way into the public’s eye.



Cannabis, which was legal for hundreds of years before 1937, was originally made illegal because an American Congressman fought that marijuana pushed African Americans and people of Hispanic origin to rape and murder. The Marijuana Stamp Act was quickly passed into law and marijuana was essentially made illegal from that point forward. In the 1940s congress realized that the drug wasn’t as harmful as it assumed. They took a much softer approach, and even made a government-funded video titled “Hemp For Victory” to promote industrial hemp, and the fines for personal use of marijuana was largely dropped temporarily. According to the film The Union, it was soon after that they realized smoking pot was making the soldiers less willing to kill and caused activism to rise, and so they spread the message that weed was a product of the communist meant to weaken our soldiers. 60 years later, and the discussion to re-legalize marijuana is just now gaining true merit in this country.



One of the long-standing reasons towards cannabis prohibition is health concerns. However, this clears up quickly when you take into consideration the fact that, according to the Centers for Disease Control, exactly zero people die from marijuana consumption yearly. In comparison, tobacco kills nearly half a million a year. Alcohol kills anywhere from 50-100,000. Even standard doses of typical drugs such as Ibuprofen and Tylenol are responsible for 7,500 deaths a year.



In a 2006 study funded by the National Institute of Health, which studied the connection between cannabis smoking and lung cancer, the head of the study, Donald Tashkin (University of California), states: “"We hypothesized that there would be a positive association between marijuana use and lung cancer, and that the association would be more positive with heavier use," he said. "What we found instead was no association at all, and even a suggestion of some protective effect."



This concluded that not only was there no connection between the two, but the chemical delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) was found to possibly kill aging cells and keep them from becoming cancerous. Most all other studies done on the subject have finished with the same results, including a 2004 study published in the journal Cancer Research which concluded that there was no increased risk of oral, head, neck or lung cancer “regardless of how long, how much, or how often a person has used marijuana.” This isn’t very hard to believe after taking into consideration that zero die annually from pot.



The myth behind cannabis causing brain damage has been largely shown as false. Web MD in a 2003 Analysis of Studies states that “long term and even daily marijuana use doesn’t appear to cause permanent brain damage.” Several much older studies founded in 1977 and published in the "Journal of the American Medical Association" showed in no way, any link or evidence between cannabis and brain damage. During that same year, the American Medical Association came out as official sponsors of the decriminalization of marijuana.



The myths on marijuana’s effect on the brain lies in people thinking it “makes you dumb” on top of many believing it causes brain damage. Having a lower intelligence is one of the more widespread stereotypes and misassumptions about cannabis consumers, despite no true evidence that has ever connected cannabis smoking with long-term effects on intelligence. In a 1999 study published in The American Journal of Epidemiology it’s reported there was “no significant differences in cognitive decline between heavy users, light users, and nonusers of cannabis” over a 15-year period. Similarly, A 2002 article published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal concluded "marijuana does not have a long-term negative impact on global intelligence."



The sad truth is that the government and many top officials, even those who strongly support prohibition know the lies that have been carried on about this plant. Nearly every government-supported study (and of course there hasn’t been many) has reported that cannabis should not be illegal and has very few, if any harmful effects. One of the largest and most publicized federal studies on cannabis took place in 1972. Richard Nixon ordered the Shafer Commission to study the effects of marijuana on society. After studies and reports were finished, the commission stated that marijuana prohibition is "Philosophically Inappropriate," "Functionally Inappropriate," and "Constitutionally Suspect." Richard Nixon then continued to release the commission of its duties, and continued on as if the report never happened, and never once backed down from his anti-marijuana stance.



It seems as if on this issue, the government is behind on the facts and what the people are starting to realize. Currently, cannabis is the number one cash crop in the country with an average annual gross of over $35 billion; over $12 billion more than corn in second place. Despite strong illegality throughout the country, the industry has flourished. Although laws are passing before our eyes to constantly lower or even eliminate the penalties behind marijuana possession, the problem is still ridiculous on a massive scale. Over 800,000 are arrested for simple marijuana possession and over $7.5 billion of tax-payers money is being spent making these arrests, and a total of $10-$15,000,000 is spent to fully enforce them. Over 25,000 people sit in state or federal prisons serving sentences where marijuana violation is the controlling offense. 90 percent of these inmates have absolutely no history of violence.



With no recent studies to go off of, in 2004, the average federal jail sentence for a marijuana related felony was in the same national range as aggravated assault. What this system is doing, is taking thousands of non-violent citizens who choose to use a plant that has been used for thousands of years, and is lumping them in with serious offenders who have been charged with heinous crimes such as rape and murder. Our country is suppose to stray from “cruel and unusual” punishment, but when someone loses several years of their life for smoking, or even selling marijuana on a small-scale is entirely unusual and undeniably cruel. When you consider that thousands of parents have their kids taken away from them over enjoying an occasional toke, the picture becomes even direr. Even if someone is not for legalizing, taxing and regulating marijuana, it should be made a priority of everyone to at least vote to decriminalize and lower the penalties on it.



However, the only answer that will really work (because we all know prohibition can’t), is legalization. Decriminalization would stop many mindless arrests and dollars spent, but it doesn’t solve all of the problems. Many serious drug lords and gangs rely heavily on the sale of marijuana. With a legally regulated system, the money these individuals gain would drop greatly, and in many cases it would put them out of business, or at least cut off their financial flow which in many instances can be used to recruit and entice new members. It would also make it much harder for young kids to get a hold of. The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University reported just a few months back that in studies it is widely found that teens could more easily access pot than they could alcohol and cigarettes. With alcohol and cigarettes, the system is regulated; to purchase any of these items an ID must always be shown to make a purchase. However, if a kid is pursued, or approaches a dealer on the street, as long as the kid has the money, the dealer couldn’t care less about his age in the majority of cases.



What most of this comes down to, is that prohibition does all of the wrong things for our country. It causes inflated police budgets that could be organized far more efficiently, it makes crooks out of everyday citizens and medical patients, it makes it more accessible for children and separates families, and it takes away an essential freedom we are suppose to possess as Americans to make a choice in what we want to consume as adults.



When you look at it in a strictly financial aspect, obviously the government has billions of dollars that could be made annually from halting marijuana arrests as well as from the taxes made. However, an argument against marijuana in a financial sense is that it would greatly increase health care costs for users similar to alcohol. This was a worth-while argument for prohibitionists until a study within the last week between the Centre for Addictions Research of British Columbia at the University of Victoria and the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse at the University of Ottawa concluded that health care costs related to tobacco per user were 40 times higher than pot related costs, and alcohol related costs were 8 times higher. The average cost of a marijuana related case is merely $20. The tobacco related average is $800, $160 for alcohol.



Another concern for some is the gateway theory, which insist that marijuana in many cases is used as a stepping-stone to harder drugs. Although this may be the case in certain situations, it is almost always due to its illegality. Considering it is illegal, it is pushed into an underground market. In this market a dealer could very possibly be in the business of selling more dangerous drugs as well, which would mean people simply looking to buy pot could end up with the “temptation” to buy a harder drug, or possibly even be pushed into it. Besides this, there has never been anything proven about marijuana that would lead anyone to believe that the gateway theory is valid, at least not anymore than energy drinks or coffee can be considered gateway drugs. If cannabis was legal and was able to be sold in stores, head shops and dispensaries then the connection to other drugs would largely be cutoff for many.



The hypocrisy in our drug laws becomes apparent in the DEA’s message on cannabis. Marinol is a chemical drug made up of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is the element of pot that gets you high and does most of the healing in medical patients. Marinol is made directly from cannabis plants but is mixed in a chemical compound, which results in negative side effects that don’t come with just smoking or consuming it. Marinol is a schedule 3 drug and is federally legal and the DEA considers it to have full medical value, however, they state on their website that they believe smoking cannabis does not have medical value and still continue to raid medical marijuana dispensaries and arrest medical marijuana patients.



The issue of cannabis isn’t new to our society, and it has been discussed for decades and since the start of prohibition. However, never in over 70 years has there been the support there is currently for legalizing. The movement seems to be gaining even more ground ever week that passes. Soon, the issue will largely be put on the shoulders of the voters. Six in ten California residents say they would vote to legalize marijuana if given the chance, and with it being on the ballot next year, it looks like California will make the first splash. What we can do as concerned citizens to solve this issue is to vote whenever given the chance, and to contact local and state elected officials. This fight has been waging for a long time, but the conclusion is right around the corner.