The Debate
It is no secret that cannabis has gone through many many years of both widespread favor and disapproval all throughout the world. Today, the view on the drug is a very mixed one with no clear cut winner. Though it is quite harmless compared to other substances, many people still hold the idea that it will lead users to other drugs and that it has serious long term side effects. While it does result in the typical side effects one would expect from smoking, smoking marijuana causes much less harm to the body than drugs such as alcohol which is perfectly legal. In the United States, more and more states are beginning to partially legalize marijuana with the medical marijuana program. Though not supported by the federal government, these programs continue to flourish in new locations.
Medical marijuana is reserved for patients who have a legitimate medical condition with which the drug can help. The card can easily be acquired with a small down payment and a doctor recommendation. After that, the patient will be allowed to purchase legal cannabis from any dispensary. With the advent of the medical marijuana program, the drug has become more accessible than ever as more people get their cards every day. Many people believe that this is start of the true legalization of marijuana which is still years away. Regardless of what you believe, the times are changing fast and it is important to keep up with them as best we can. Decades of untruths told about marijuana will all be undone in the very near future!
American History of Weed
The United States of America has a rich history with the legalization of cannabis going all the way back to 1619 in old Jamestown. Along with tobacco, marijuana was one of the most important crops for the early settlers as a fiber. All was going well for marijuana until the narcotic regulations from 1850′s to the 1900′s reared their ugly heads. Just as cannabis was beginning to become popular in the medical community, the government made an effort to control drugs made with marijuana referring to them as poisons. A 1905 bulletin showed that twenty nine of the states at the time had laws regarding cannabis as a poison which is a little harsh to say the least. The entire twentieth century was somewhat of a bleak time for marijuana as everyone seemed to be out to criminalize the relatively harmless drug.
It was the Uniform State Narcotic Act that brought an end to all of the fun when instated in 1932. After the act was passed, every state had at least some form of cannabis regulation. The main purpose of this act was to give the states more power over the users of marijuana and their punishment than the previously instated Harrison Act did.From here on out, the United States government did everything in its power to portray cannabis as a horrible drug. Efforts were made to compare marijuana to harder drugs like cocaine and heroin in order to deter the public from using it. This strategy worked incredibly well and lingers in the mind of the public even to this day when most of the lies told about marijuana have been proven wrong. Even though most sensible people agree that we have bigger things to worry about than marijuana consumption, there are still those who like to think otherwise.
During the 50′s and 60′s, the hippie generation was a great help in bringing the popularity of marijuana back to the states. Marijuana was used a as a symbol of opposition to the government and still remains that way to this day. With the popularity of the drug once again on the rise, the government classified it as one that should be taken the most seriously along with heroin and various other substances. Though marijuana does have its drawbacks, classifying it with drugs that can ruin lives is much too severe. Recreational drug use goes back to ancient times as some people just like to get a little buzz at the end of the day. Without this buzz, some people might find it difficult to make it through the week in a regular fashion. But like it or not, marijuana is still under surveillance from those higher up the totem pole and we will just have to live with it.
Cannabis Legalization in Other Countries
Today the popularity of cannabis continues to rise with the newly instated medical marijuana programs as well as popular culture showing the drug in a new light. Though we are not using it as a fiber like previous generations did, the high produced from smoking marijuana is becoming more and more accepted every day. Seventeen of the fifty states in the United States of America have some form of a medical marijuana program now and that number only continues to grow. In several years time, who knows where we will be on the road to finally legalizing marijuana? Most experts agree that the medical marijuana program is a good first step to the inevitable legalization of the plant. But only time will tell us what will really come of the legal status of marijuana.
Outside the states, there are plenty of other countries that have their own laws about marijuana use and not all of them are as liberal as some like to believe. For example, in countries like China, Singapore, and Thailand, the death sentence is frequently used to stop drug trafficking even if the drug in question is cannabis. This may seem like an incredibly harsh ruling as here in the US, we have ruled that only murder or treason should be punishable by death. But other countries think differently which is why we all have different laws about the regulation of marijuana. In China alone, it is estimated that about five hundred people are sentenced to death each year for charges relating to drugs. We could never imagine such offenses being punishable by death in our country, but this is the way that some countries work around the world and we have to learn how to deal with that.
In contrast to many other countries, a majority of our population is actually in favor of the legalization of cannabis. Though it is a slight majority, fifty six percent, it still shows the radical change in thinking that has been going on since the early 90′s. If marijuana were really to be completely decriminalized here, it would be a change that has not been around since the beginning of the twentieth century! When Harry J. Anslinger started his crusade against marijuana in the 30′s, public opinion quickly swayed with him. It is interesting to note that most negative views on marijuana today are a result of this ancient campaign started primarily to keep hemp from replacing other fibers on the United States market. It is no secret that our country is in a state of financial trouble and legalizing marijuana would only generate billions of dollars in revenue with which to pay our debts off.It is time to wake up and see the good marijuana can do for our country.
Legalize Marijuana!
The fact is that many people advocate the legalization of cannabis as it would only generate good things. While recreational use of the drug would rise, trafficking and illegal activities concerning marijuana would all but stop. New revenue would also be generated for countries in which marijuana is currently illegal which is what every government wants. In many South American countries, as well as Russia, and parts of Australia, the drug is either decriminalized or legal. The United States also has a few states in which marijuana is decriminalized with the medical marijuana program. Just imagine what would happen if this number of legal countries were to increase. The would might just be a much happier place for not only the users of cannabis, but for anyone that the drug affects. The sad truth is that over half of the world still treats the use of cannabis as a criminal offense. Perhaps sometime in the near future, the world will realize what a frivolous thing this is and work to end the criminalization of marijuana.
Even though a majority of our country agrees that marijuana should be legalized, the public still shies away from talking about the issue for fear of stirring up a debate. The country is essentially split between old philosophies and new ones as the public has been given conflicting messages on the real use of cannabis. For most, marijuana is nothing more than a recreational drug to be smoked at the end of the day in order to get to sleep. For others, it is a way to treat various pains associated with illnesses and diseases. We ought to remember that a majority of people consume the drug for their own reasons and that we have no reason to tell them what is right or wrong. One day, I believe that marijuana will be legal for the whole world, or at least for most of it. But that day is still years away with the current state of criminalization against cannabis. Just remember that cannabis is not half as bad as a lot of people make it out to be.
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