So this is an essay I wrote in regards to legalizing cannabis sometime last year. The teacher whom assigned the persuasive essay's is a very conservative, tight christian, "highly" against anything exciting of this nature. I think its a good essay, especially since I wrote the whole thing stoned. Anyway I just wanted to post it and get your opinions on it. I think the Rhesus monkey info I put in was slightly skewed, but it was only to get the point across, and most of us already know about that little piece of bullshit in our History. Oh I got an 85 on this Essay (gay...) Whatever though, since the time I wrote this my arsenal of knowledge on MJ's benefits has grown and thats all that matters to me. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Injustice: The Prohibition of Cannabis The prohibition of cannabis has always been a touchy subject; a record of mixing emotions, ambitions, and less often examined corruption of early America. To understand the mindset of the pro-legalization movement, the reader must accept some things. Accept that these people, who support this movement, look beyond the desire to make legal, the personal and private use of cannabis for "leisure." To answer the question “Why should cannabis be legal?” It should be first understood, why cannabis is illegal. A better question to ask of those who already support legalization is “How can we make legal, a ‘drug’ that uses ¾ of the drug enforcement budget!?” Why does the government push more money and pressure into maintaining a prohibition on the softest of illegal drugs, leaving very little money left to every other hard drug in existence? The answer is to protect people. Not all people. These are the people that have put in place certain corporations and institutions endangered by the cannabis plant. What institutions fear cannabis and why? Pharmaceutical companies fear cannabis legalization because of the herb’s natural medicinal qualities. It has been proven that use of cannabis can help alleviate pain, cancerous activity, depression, Parkinson’s disease, glaucoma, and even insomnia as well as many other ailments. Pharmaceuticals would not lobby for the legalization of a non-patentable, fast growing, easily renewable, and highly medicinal plant. Cannabis is also the enemy of, surprisingly, the clothing industry. Hemp fiber is longer lasting and far more durable than cotton decreasing the overall need to buy more clothing. Hemp fiber can also make paper far more superior than wood pulp paper; however this must seem like an alien concept since we cannot use such paper, since the timber industry lobbied for its illegalization in the late 1930s. Of all these “big wigs” the oil industry is the biggest lobbyist of keeping cannabis illegal. Cannabis is a constantly renewable source of biodiesel fuels. These fuels would eliminate need of oil in foreign countries, lessen (greatly) the pollution of our airwaves, and sadly, eliminate Exxon mobile’s spot as the highest profit margin annually. We as a society should not hold loyalty to such institutions when they can be replaced by equally profitable, more beneficial, natural roles of public service. Why then is cannabis illegal? The general census seems to be that there is something for you to fear; Potential danger to yourself and others after using cannabis. The “official truth” of the federal bureau of drug and narcotics has changed several times over. In the times of propaganda films such as “Reefer Madness”, cannabis was said to have the undeniable effect to make you insane and possibly cause you to kill people. However, through the 70+ year period of its prohibition; through observe use in the African American Jazz movement, The 60s hippy movement, and mostly every other recreational use and display; There has been no crimes, murders, or acts of violence in which only motive was cannabis use. Interestingly enough, it is certain that you, the reader, cannot find one legitimate death attributed to marijuana usage, ever recorded, in the thousands of years of known cannabis use. Its only possible overdose is to smoke somewhere close to 20,000 or so joints in ten minutes to get a lethal dose of Delta 9 TetraHydroCannabinol (THC). Back to the official truth, which has always changed from personal fallacies such as laziness or the “Gateway Effect,” (which are 100% of the user’s own will) to today’s propaganda which explains little and shows images such as: Running over a child in a fast food parking lot with a recently “hot boxed” car, to receiving concerned monologues from your pet dog in your home kitchen. Propaganda that many cultures see through; similar to how we saw through Hitler’s propaganda from his rise to power. Many German people bought in though, because it is easier for a person to fool one’s own people and culture, than another. Our Government is just that, people, not an omnipotent entity, that protects people of its choice; institutions of its choice. Now the subject of the infamous Prohibition turns a somber mood. The illegal agenda towards cannabis has no doubt inflated its value. Today, cannabis is worth more in its weight than gold. To the risk takers, (America’s backbone) this presents a chance to make a pretty generous sum of money. In the British Columbian province alone it is estimated that the annual revenue of “The BC bud trade” is higher than 7 billion American dollars. Thus, a grower is born; or perhaps a dealer or jumper (to get the product across certain borders). These are just people who are under minding a policy that under minds them. The wealth, however, can go to their heads as easily as anyone else. You see, a concern of both Anti-Marijuana and Pro-Marijuana lobbies is to keep cannabis out of the hands of young children. Children who are simply too young or not of sound enough mind to responsibly use cannabis. Policies like this already exist for tobacco (legal to U.S. residents 18 years or older) which claims 425,000 deaths a year, and to alcohol (Ages 21 or older) with 85,000 annual deaths, both in the United states alone. Without legalization and government regulation, who will protect your children? A dealer doesn’t ask for I.D., he/she asks for money; and if they get the money, your child gets the marijuana he/she paid for. Though no census has covered children too young of age to consume cannabis, in 2005, 86% of all 12 graders questioned reported it being “very easy” or “fairly easy” to obtain marijuana. Seemingly, it is the prohibition itself that radically twists the ability to get any real statistics of its use. What, then, is there left to prove? Who needs convincing? To the everyday people who do not use cannabis; you should, by natural law, be the undecided party until you have educated yourselves satisfied. To those who are still undecided, there is one more theory against cannabis that made priority to be refuted. Quoted many times, is the idea that cannabis use kills brain cells. This is a painful thing to refute, not because the allegation has any truth in it, but because of the subject matter that is about to be covered. This common claim that cannabis kills brain cells is based on The Heath monkey study of 1974. This study provided U.S. President Ronald Reagan with false information that he may or may not have known at the time. In the initial report, Dr. Robert Heath concluded that Rhesus monkeys began to atrophy and die after 90 days of being supplemented with 30 joints worth of cannabis each day. Heath then took control monkeys, killed them, and compared the dead brain cells of both variables. Heath found a greater abundance of dead brain cells in those supplemented with the herb. Luckily, after 6 years of suing the government, NORML forced the documentation of an accurate, in depth compilation of the procedures that took place. They discovered, almost immediately, a voodoo methodology that Robert heath omitted from the initial report. To quicken the overall procedure, Rhesus monkeys were strapped to a chair by gas mask and fed 63 Columbian strength joints in five minutes, every other day, losing no smoke in the process of consumption. So where did the dead brain cells come from? Was it cannabis? Or was it the combined carbon monoxide poisoning and lack of oxygen to the brain by suffocation? Though research is limited due to prohibition, there is strong evidence of cannabis use stimulating brain cells, killing brain “cancer” cells, and helping the brains natural ability to create neurons. There is without a doubt an ongoing injustice in the name of prohibition. This prohibition, like the prohibition of alcohol, and even the prohibition to eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge has failed, and will continue to fail. We must take a stance for freedom. Too many people are led astray of the truth, it is not their fault, for their own community has deprived them of certain education. There are thousands of products to be made with cannabis, millions of patients with specific cannabis strains to match their ailments, and billions of dollars lost fighting a plant from its right to natural existence. This documentation only scratches the surface of profiteering against, what might be, the most useful plant on the earth; but it is truth in itself, a rare thing, that dares to be proven otherwise. Legalize this herb.
Could use a little formatting to be easier on the eyes but overall a good essay +rep however, nothing that made me go like "mm" never thought of it like that before...
Thanks Whats funny is I initially got a 0 on this because my teacher straight up told me that it wasn't my essay. She's like "I found it on the internet" I was like "uh... no you didn't?" I just think the whole essay made her uncomfortable with some sort of 'ignorance' she never realized she had on the subject.
Its good but citing specific sources would have yielded you a higher grade and would have increased your argument strength
I completely agree. Though my mindset while writing it is "Im stoned right now, and I want to portray a personal feel when someone reads my argument. Like, people read it, thinking that weed is a bad thing, when they're reading the words of someone baked off their ass "
Oh I was stoned when I read that, We had to do a work cited page, though I don't have it on my computer.
great read.. Thinking about doing a speech on legalizing for my comm class.. but idk, to much pressure in general with public speaking, adding that topic would make me crumple in front of the class.
Um heres an essay I wrote for my gf, for her oral comm class...I wrote it one night so yeah..um here it is ibogaine Treatment Think of a poster child. Don't think Gandhi and non-violence or of Bill Gates and his wealth. Think of destitution, hopelessness, slavery, loneliness, AIDS, death, think of the destruction of a life. Think of a drug user who has been addicted to cocaine, heroin, methadone and alcohol and believe that forever they will be slaves. That is our poster child. There are a lot of people like our poster child and as many as 19,102 per year seek help. They go to rehab and then they go to relapse, they go cold turkey and then they suffer immeasurable pain from withdrawal. They spend their money and life on drugs and when they lose their money and they lose their life to prostitution and crime to obtain more drugs. The most successful are treated with methadone, which is only a more stable lifetime addiction, not even curing their addictions for drugs at all. Now imagine there was a drug, more effective than methadone, with which as little as one dose would stop the cravings, and withdrawal of not only the most severe addicts, but also of alcohol, caffeine and tobacco. Now realize that this drug is called ibogaine, and it is just as illegal as the heroin addiction it cures. I propose we update the addict's avatar to include hope from new pharmaceuticals. Ibogaine has been shown in clinical studies to assist patients in quitting the most common and dangerous addictive drugs. It has been stigmatized due to its hallucinogenic nature and criminalized despite its obvious medical applications. I am not advocating for the drug in itself but for the millions of Americans who stand to regain their lives with the medical use of Ibogaine and the funding of further Ibogaine research. To better define the future of Ibogaine, first we must understand its past. Europeans in Gabon first witnessed the use of the iboga plant in the late 1800s. The locals used the root bark of the Tabernanthe iboga plant as a sacrament of their Bwiti religion. The plant induced visions that allowed them to “speak†with their ancestors. Because the plant in small doses acts as a stimulant, it was sold in France for that purpose in 1939 until 1970. At that same time, the FDA labeled Ibogaine a Schedule I drug on par with substances like LSD and Heroin. Beginning in 1985 Howard Lotsof patented the use of Ibogaine for opiate and later cocaine withdrawal. However, reports of this effect date back to the 1960's, when other psychedelic drugs were also popular. By 1989 many informal clinics opened up across the globe. Countries like Mexico, Canada, United Kingdom, and the Netherlands remain the only places Americans can receive Ibogaine treatment. In 1989 a $400 a day heroin addict received a single dose of Ibogaine in the ARC (Addiction Research Center), which is a part of the National Institute of drug abuse. When he returned months later for an evaluation his physician was shocked to see he was clean and sober. When the arrangement of an evaluation of another patient was requested, higher-ups denied the request and ordered the conducting physician to cease such treatments. Two years later, under pressure from activists, NIDA (National Institute of Drug Abuse) began toxicology and other research. In 1995 Mash requested NIDA funding for clinical trials but was rejected. In 1999 however, Mash was able to open up a clinic, St Kitts, in an island in the Caribbean. In 3 years Mash collected ibogaine data from 257 patients. Research continues in Mexico and other foreign countries. Conducting ibogaine research is very difficult in the United States. There are an estimated 810,000 heroin addicts, 34 million Americans who have used cocaine at least once, and 14 million Americans that fit the diagnostic profile of an alcoholic. The discoveries Americans scientists could be making could be saving millions from their addictions. It is monumentally important for steps to first raise awareness to the public of simply the existence of ibogaine. The astounding potential of this medicine is sadly overshadowed by the FDA's regulations, which impede not only research but also treatment. For this reason American's must be educated on the nature of ibogaine so that in their future congress may amend the wrongs it has brought on millions of addicts and their families. Ibogaine is unlike other drugs used to treat addiction and withdrawal. For example, ibogaine is not addictive and can be a powerful hallucinogenic at higher doses. Ibogaine works by binding to numerous receptors in the brain, such as kappa-opioid, NMDA, and sigma receptors. Ibogaine is metabolized into noribogaine, which has also been shown to have anti-addictive properties. These pharmaceutical effects are anti-addictive, however, the hallucinogenic effects also play a role. Ibogaine triggers the patient to remember long ago memories visually in the minds eye. These intense visual memories may also be accompanied by hallucinations. Many patients feel the sensation of an energy scrubbing their bodies clean, which purifies them. The recollections may be used effectively to reflect on one's life, on all the events that led to the addiction, and the struggle to overcome it. This is very similar to the personal inventories that are part of 12 step programs in Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotic Anonymous. Ibogaine's effects can last for more than a day with their most intense effects lasting about 8 hours. The entire experience can be physically and mentally demanding, side effects can include nausea, ataxia and vomiting which is unrelated to withdrawal. These symptoms often make ibogaine an unattractive recreational drug. It is important to realize that ibogaine isn't a miracle drug; it is true that many people have had fantastic success with ibogaine treatment but others failed to recuperate. It may be the case that we don't know enough about ibogaine and how to best use it so that it is effective on all patients or it may be that additional therapy is required. Nonetheless, I firmly believe that ibogaine will play an important role in eradicating a very substantial portion of addictions in the United States. Research on ibogaine's mechanism of action may also shed light into the very addiction. Supporting the legalization of ibogaine is essential for progress in the United States. Americans simply do not have access to this new treatment in their own country. If you seek treatment, the closest places are Mexico and Canada. The US government considers this medicine a toxic substance. A lot of addicts would consider the medicine a salvation. John Doe prostituted himself to save money for an ibogaine treatment in a foreign country. Jane Doe doesn't know about the treatment and has attempted suicide and succeeded. These people are the people we have been taught to be afraid of in our D.A.R.E lectures. We have been taught to think these people are the villains in the alleys. In truth these people were just like us and they remain just like us, only sick from an illness. If the government does nothing to remedy the situation people will continue to be addicted, and when these people die from violence, or disease, or starvation plenty of others will soon fill their void. Now, right this second, we have an opportunity to make a difference. An opportunity to not simply make millions of sick people's lives worthwhile but to make our own life worthwhile by acting. Martin Luther King Jr. once said “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter†and I assure you the lives of drug addicts matter. These are people who have had families just like you, and lost them, had careers and relationships and lost them to drugs and addiction, these are people who had lives and with the help of ibogaine, may eventually regain what they have lost. I implore all of you to give your voice. It is as simple as bringing it up in conversation, sending an e-mail, blogging about it, even just thinking about it. The point is to spread the word. There will be no change until the law is changed to reclassify ibogaine as medically valuable chemical. There will be no change until research can be funded without hesitations. There will be no change until the congressman's voice is just an echo of your own.