Sterling Harris
Mrs. Melnychenko
English11B
13, April, 2014 Cannabis For many years people have put a title on others who smoke Marijuana such as, pot head, stoner, or even low life. The aggravating part is the fact that these judgmental people have never tried it and just consider it bad because that’s what society wants them to think. There are more reasons to smoking Marijuana than just the high, in most cases it is prescribed to people in pain or depressed . Statistics show that at least 80 percent of Americans have tried marijuana once in their life time. For this and other reasons, marijuana should be legalized in the United States. Marijuana has been prescribed to patients with nausea, cancer, and even AIDS, to relieve their pain. Many prescribed drugs these days are more toxic than Marijuana and over all, are more harmful if abused unlike marijuana. Although Cannabis (Marijuana) has been smoked all through the Western countries for more than 40 years, there have been no reports of Emphysema or Lung Cancer contributing to marijuana. Also Patients who have used Cannabis, have had improved immune function and have gained, on average, 4 pounds that may have saved their lives. People always go out on the weekend to buy some beer and relax, so why should it be illegal to buy a joint and relax all the same? Part of the issue is that many people are simply unfamiliar with marijuana. The truth is that marijuana is widely used in a manner quite similar to alcohol. To most people, alcohol is just more “socially acceptable”, but does more harm than smoking Cannabis. Alcohol is more toxic, more addictive, more harmful, and more likely to lead to interpersonal violence than marijuana. Statistic show that Cannabis does not cause long-term cognitive impairment in adult users. Although there are no long-term effects, for the 1 ½ -2 hours you feel the high, you are impaired and can injure yourself just the same as alcohol. People who use marijuana are more likely to lose stress and anxiety. For many adult users, Cannabis relieves pain and helps with depression, sleep, creativity, eating, and, of coarse, relaxation, which is why it is so popular to most. Not everybody sees marijuana as a harmful or bad thing, which is why, for those who really need it and cannot get their medical cards or are restricted from getting it should be legalized. The easy availability of drugs would create new consumers rather than rescuing them from it. Also legalizing marijuana would give kids the impression that drug use is acceptable and therefore , could become a gateway to other drugs. Drugs are not only harmful to the users but also to the people around them. Parents addicted to drug use could lead to neglect of their children and can create a bad environment for such a being. Drug dealers will sell to anybody to make a quick buck and that is a threat to kids and teens because of how it could effect them long term wise, jobs, goals, or their out look on life could change. If drugs were legalized, the companies that manufacture and market them would be sued,