Marijuana: Good or Bad?

Marijuana: Good or Bad? There has been a major debate on if marijuana should be made legal. Statistics show that about 443, 000 people die every year due to a tobacco related illness and there has been no evidence to support that there have been fatalities that are marijuana related. Tobacco is harmful to the lungs and can cause lung cancer, bronchitis, and emphysema. Jacques and van Luling (2013) explained that in 2010, 38, 329 people died from drug overdoses. Sixty percent of those were related to prescription drugs. In that same year, 25, 692 people died from alcohol-related causes. Cannabis is used by twenty five million annually, and is currently the largest cash crop. An addition to that, marijuana has been proven to help and even cure some medical sickness. It is known to be effective in reducing the nausea induced by cancer chemotherapy. In fact, more than twenty medical studies prove that cannabis can have an effective treatment on cancer. The first recorded use of marijuana as a medicinal drug occurred in 2737 B.C. by Chinese emperor Shen Nung. The emperor lauded the drug as a miracle cure for rheumatism and gout. Marijuana is a plant that comes from the dried flower clusters and leaves of the cannabis plant; it is usually smoked or eaten to induce euphoria, which is a feeling or state of happiness. The plant has many street names weed, pot, ganja, hash, grass, Mary Jane, Acapulco gold, reefer, bud, and dope. Marijuana is not lethal and it is way safer than alcohol. It is scientifically proven that marijuana is not toxic to humans; marijuana overdoses are nearly impossible. Marijuana is not nearly as addictive as alcohol or tobacco. Most marijuana users develop a tolerance to many of marijuana’s side effects, and those who do not, choose to stop using the drug—whereas it is harder to break the habit of drinking and smoking cigarettes.
Over 100 Americans have admitted to smoking cannabis in the past year. Over 50 million Americans

References: Jacques, Renee & Van Luling, Todd (2013). This Is Why Marijuana Should Be Legal Everywhere. The Huffington Post. Retrieved from www.huffingtonpost.com/us/emtry/4151428. (2007, Aug.) The Top Ten Reasons Marijuana Should Be Legal. AlterNet. Retrieved from www.alternet.org/story/60959/the_top_reasons_marijuana_should_be_legal. Sands, Conor (2011, April 3) Many Reasons Not To Legalize Marijuana. Phillyburbs. Retrieved from http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/local/the_intelligencer_news/opinion/guest/many-reasons-not-to-legalize-marijuana/article_77af0c64-5ed2-11e0-842d-001a4bcf6878.html "Why Marijuana Should Be Illegal" StudyMode.com. 03 2012. 2012. 03 2012 .