In this article are the primary reasons to change marijuana laws on a federal degree:
- Restriction has been a failure. Any declarations that the war on drugs has succeeded is entirely unsupported by proof. The authorities has sought to use criminal punishments for over 75 years, but ultimately the restriction has failed to control the use and production of marijuana.
As of today, over 25 million people use marijuana every year, making it the largest cash crop in the United States. Any thought that marijuana will be eradicated from this country or from the world is more than a dream– it’s a ridiculous imagination.
- It would cut down gang activities. It is common sense: The illegality of anything is going to make it more valuable and desirable than if it were legal. Marijuana’s illegality makes foreign cultivation and smuggling to the United States an extremely profitable business for drug cartels and gangs. They send billions into the underground economy of other nations who may be offensive to the US.
This also goes with domestic drug dealing. Though the use of alcohol and tobacco continues being a serious health problem, even though they are legal, the accessibility of these two commodities gives people less incentive to sell them on the black market. If the sale of pot were legal, then young adults would face more problem making effortless money off of selling it to their friends and peers.
- Legalizing marijuana is safer for the community. Basing on history, regulation associates to public safety. A good example is the restaurant industry, which has to be inspected for health violations, or pharmaceutical companies, who need to submit their products to the FDA for testing. The marijuana business would work the same way. Regulating marijuana would displace the underground market, making it more challenging for minors to get the drug, while making things less complicated to hold specific pot dealers more accountable for foul play, ensuring consumers get quality products without any hazardous additives.
- It’s a valuable agricultural commodity. Altering marijuana laws could lead to billions of dollars in tax revenue. The induction of Colorado’s Amendment 64 brought in greater than $30 million of taxable revenue for their budget. If California taxed and regulated the sale of marijuana, it could raise yearly revenue by $1.4 billion. If marijuana is legalized federally, the marijuana industry could potentially be three times bigger than the NFL, which could all be taxed, saving the US $13.7 billion a year.
Even if recreational marijuana use was not legalized, the US is still missing a golden opportunity to support legal hemp development– like Canada and Europe. It is also crucial to develop hemp as a biofuel source, as a way of decreasing carbon emissions. Hemp stalks will also not enhance demand and prices for food, like corn does.
- Marijuana is much safer than alcohol. Testing has revealed that using marijuana is significantly safer than drinking alcohol. In fact, for every thousand regular alcohol drinkers there are eight more trips to the E.R than for every thousand marijuana users. In short, you are 30 percent more likely to get sent to the E.R. for alcohol than marijuana. It is an established scientific fact that overdosing off of marijuana is nearly impossible. Marijuana is also not as addicting as alcohol or tobacco.
- Marijuana is costing our court system. On average, over 750,000 individuals get arrested for marijuana possession every year. The responsibilities of law enforcement are too great to concentrate on marijuana offenders and it is far too expensive for our justice system to dispose every one of these cases– as it wastes space, clogs up the court systems and diverts time away from attorneys, judges, and corrections officials. Their attention would be better spent on cases involving violent crimes and terrorism. What’s more, taxing marijuana would provide the money required to fund vital criminal justice and social programs.
- Marijuana can treat and heal. Although for many years the restriction on marijuana has hampered serious scientific study into the risks and health benefits of marijuana, there is considerable documentation that it can actually minimize many medical disorders, such as:
- Pain: 70-80 % of individuals experienced pain relief when utilizing medical marijuana.
- Glaucoma: Marijuana reduces intraocular pressure, and lowers breakage to the optic nerve.
- Epileptic Seizures: Cannabinoids regulate seizures by binding to the brain cells in charge of improving excitability and managing relaxation.
- Cancer: In some researches, cannabidiol has been revealed to put an end to cancer by turning off a gene named Id-1.
- Alzheimer’s Disease: Investigations have discovered that THC, the involved chemical in marijuana, decreases the build-up of amyloid plaques by preventing the enzyme in the brain that creates them. These plaques are what kill brain cells and trigger Alzheimer’s.
- Inflammatory Bowel Disease: University of Nottingham analysts discovered that chemicals in marijuana, consisting of THC and cannabidiol, interact with cells in the body that play a significant role in gut function and immune feedbacks.
- Anxiety: Studies recommend that some of the drug’s benefits may actually improve the smoker’s disposition and act as a sedative in small dosages.
- Enhancing Lung Health: In a research study, tobacco smokers lost lung function eventually, yet pot smokers indeed showed an improvement in lung ability.
- Legalization is will eventually happen. Now, four states and Washington D.C. permit recreational marijuana use, while 19 states authorize it for medical uses, and 14 have decriminalized it. Alaska, Oregon, Washington are currently in the process of initiating a model where marijuana can be legitimately marketed, taxed and managed.
In the 19 states wherein medical marijuana is legitimate, regulation changes so largely regarding the needs for obtaining a medical marijuana card that it consequently assumes a quasi-legal standing. Like with medical marijuana, states that decriminalized marijuana can vary a lot in their laws. In the 14 states that have decriminalized marijuana, the charges have softened a large deal that the law courts are frequently limiting or eliminating prison period and opting for fines preferably.
Support for an adjustment in marijuana laws to legalization has continuously improved, with current votings indicating that over 58 % of the country is in favor of changing marijuana laws.
