Marijuana Legalization Term paper
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What Is Marijuana?
Marijuana, a drug obtained from dried and crumpled parts of
the ubiquitous hemp plant Canabis sativa (or Cannabis indica). Smoked
by rolling in tobacco paper or placing in a pipe. It is also otherwise
consumed worldwide by an estimated 200,000,000 persons for pleasure,
an escape from reality, or relaxation. Marijuana is known by a variety
of names such as kif (Morocco), dagga (South Africa), and bhang
(India). Common in the United States, marijuana is called pot, grass,
weed, Mary Jane, bones, etc. The main active principle of cannabis is
tetrahydrocannabinol. The potency of its various forms ranges from a
weak drink consumed in India to the highly potent hashish. The
following consists of pure cannabis resin. Marijuana is not a narcotic
and is not mentally or physically addicting drug. One can use mild
cannabis preparations such as marijuana in small amounts for years
without physical or mental deterioration. Marijuana serves to diminish
inhibitions and acts as an euphoriant. Only once in a while will it
produce actual hallucinations. More potent preparations of cannabis
such as hashish can induce psychedelic experiences identical to those
observed after ingestion of potent hallucinogens such as LSD. Some who
smoke marijuana feel no effects; others feel relaxed and sociable,
tend to laugh a great deal, and have a profound loss of the sense of
time. Characteristically, those under the influence of marijuana show
incoordination and impaired ability to perform skilled acts. Still
others experience a wide range of emotions including feelings of
perception, fear, insanity, happiness, love and anger. Although
marijuana is not addicting, it may be habituating. The individual may
become psychologically rather than physically dependent on the drug.
Legalization Of Marijuana
Those who urge the legalization of marijuana maintain the drug
is entirely safe. The available data suggested, this is not so,
Marijuana occasionally produces acute panic reactions or even
transient psychoses. Furthermore, a person driving under the influence
of marijuana is a danger to themselves and others. If smoked heavily
and a great deal of consistency, its use has been clearly associated
with mental breakdown. In many persons who smoke chronically, the drug
reinforces passivity and reduces goal-directed, constructive activity.
The chronic use of pure resin (hashish) has been associated both with
mental deterioration and criminality. One of the major complications
of marijuana use is the tendency on the part of some users to progress
to more dangerous drugs. Users in economically deprived areas usually
go on to heroin, whereas more affluent individuals tend to move from
marijuana to more potent hallucinogens such as LSD. There is no
established medical use for marijuana or any other cannabis
preparation. In the United States, its use is a crime and the laws
governing marijuana are similar to those regulating heroin. Many
authorities now urge that the laws be modified to mitigate the
penalties relating to conviction on marijuana possession charges.
The Case For Legalizing Marijuana Use
The United States stands apart from many nations in its deep
respect for the individual. The strong belief in personal freedom
appears early in the nation's history. The Declaration of Independence
speaks of every citizen's right to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness." The Constitution and Bill of Rights go further, making
specific guarantees. They forbid the government to make unwarranted
entry into dwelling places. They forbid seizure of personal property,
except when very clear reasons are approved by the courts. They allow
every citizen to remain silent in court when accused of a crime. Legal
decisions have extended these rights, so that every citizen may feel
safe, secure, and sheltered from public view in the privacy of his or
her home.
The Right To Privacy
In recent years, Americans have referred to privacy as one of
the basic human rights, something to be claimed by anyone, anywhere.
United States citizens feel strongly about this and often tell other
countries that they must honor their people's claims to privacy and
personal freedom. Foreign leaders often disagree. They resent what
they deem arrogant meddling by the United States. Leaders of the
Soviet Union, for example, regard individual privacy as trivial when
compared to the needs of the state. If the United States is to be
persuasive in promoting freedom in other parts of the world, it must
respect the privacy of its own citizens. Sometimes it is hard to do
this because what goes on in people's private lives may seem
offensive. But, according to U.S. traditions, there is a strong case
to be made against legislating the private behavior of adults, so long
as that behavior does not in turn violate the rights of others. Some
people feel that this reasoning should hold also for marijuana. A
person who smokes at home is not doing injury. The marijuana user is
indulging in a minor pleasure over which that government should have
no jurisdiction. It is quite clear from survey data that most people
do not become physically dependent on marijuana. The majority use it
as others use alcohol - to relax occasionally and to indulge a festive
mood. How can a mild intoxicant, taken less than once a day by most
users, be seen as a public threat? Even those who are "hooked", or
psychologically dependent upon their habit, should not be penalized by
the law. Some people find any compulsive and unproductive behavior
disgusting. But that is not a reason for outlawing it. Consider
eating, many people develop compulsive habits about food. They talk
about it frequently. They spend many of their waking hours
anticipating, planning, obtaining, and consuming food. This may be
unattractive. It certainly is not productive and it can be harmful if
the "food addict" is over weight. But there are no laws to prevent
food addiction. If Congress tried to forbid the eating of ice cream
sundaes or cotton candy, many people would be outraged, others would
simply laugh. The same sort of argument is raised by some people with
respect to marijuana. Even compulsive marijuana smoking by an adult is
not so offensive that it injured neighbors or requires government
intervention. The attempt to use the law to tell people what they may
and may not consume at home is an arrogant invasion of personal
privacy. Protecting the Drug User's Physical Health Sometimes it is
said that the law must protect the drug user from himself. The
argument takes two forms. One has to do with the damage a drug may do
to a person's health and the other with the individual's power of
self-control or freedom. First consider the health effects. By any
reasonable standard, marijuana is a mild drug and as for overdosing,
there is no scientifically valid evidence of anyone dying of an
overdose of marijuana smoke. Of course, it is possible to commit
suicide by consuming large amounts of marijuana. But it is possible to
die by eating too much salt. Salt is not illegal. Aspirin kills by
overdose and that's legal. Many people die by drinking too much
alcohol, an addictive drug. It too is legal. Why is marijuana
considered more dangerous?
Protecting Society from Marijuana
One argument made against the legalization of marijuana is
that it damages not only the user but innocent bystanders. This
argument, like the one about protecting the user, has two parts. The
first deals with physical injury and the second with spiritual health.
The main physical threat to society is that users under the influence
of a drug with crash a car or airplane, or lose control in some way
and do harm. People who have recently smoked marijuana do show signs
of clumsiness and disorientation. They should not operate machinery in
this condition. One study estimates that alcohol plays a part in 55%
of all fatal highway crashes. Marijuana may present similar risks, but
at present there are no reliable data on its importance in accidents.
According to John Stuart Mill's writings, the government should try to
control only the aspects of drug use that injure society. In this
vein, it makes sense to...
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