Overall Benefits Of Legalizing Marijuana

Do the overall benefits of Marijuana Justify its legality?
When we were just little kids, our parents and teachers told us that drugs were the devil and that we should never even consider taking them. Marijuana was always on that list of “bad” drugs , while we were told that pharmaceutical drugs can help us if we were sick. Marijuana is classified as a schedule 1 substance in the same category as deadly drugs like heroin and MDMA, while addictive pain-killers , anxiety medications (which are far too often abused) , and even methamphetamine are all considered “safer” and less of a crime than marijuana consumption/possession. It is socially and legally acceptable to consume alcohol and cigarettes(both of which kill millions of people each year)
Colorado was the first state to legalize pot back in 2012 and has seen some incredible numbers in terms of tax revenue. Last year, Colorado has collected over $200 million in taxes from marijuana sales alone, while a large portion of that tax money goes directly to school construction projects. Employment in the state also saw a rather helpful boost as 18,000 new jobs were opened up (Marijuana Industry Creating New Employment Opportunities, businessinsider.com). Each year, the rate at which people are buying pot is increasing, due to its growing acceptance in society. While many states are still strictly stood on continued prohibition, they are missing out on heaps of tax dollars that would drastically benefit themselves. There are currently seven other states that have decided to follow in Colorado's footsteps in legalizing marijuana for recreational use, which include : California, Maine, Alaska, Washington, Nevada, Massachusetts, Oregon, and surprisingly enough, the District of Columbia (State Marijuana laws in 2017, governing.com). While many people moved to Colorado after legalization, property values skyrocketed which wasn’t all that fair to the locals who had been living in the state their whole lives. As other states have joined Colorado in its termination of weed prohibition, this issue has become less of a concern
According to studies done by British experts, this is a true statement (Alcohol ranked most harmful drug, cbc.ca.com) Yes, the drug that so many Americans celebrate is considered more dangerous than cocaine, heroin, and undoubtedly, marijuana. Obviously, it would be safer to take a few shots of whiskey than to shoot up some heroin, but many people don’t even realize just how much of the chaos in this world is caused by those under the influence of alcohol. These researchers analyzed a number of factors including alcohol’s effect on the body, environmental damage caused by the drug, its damage on families and relationships, its economic impact (such as healthcare and prison care), and the amount of direct and indirect deaths caused by alcohol. The idea of drinking is so deeply embedded into our society that it will most likely never go away. Despite the fact that alcohol leads people to make poor decisions, is terrible for the human body and brain, makes the roads a risky place to drive, is very addictive, and can even split up families in some cases, the same people that enjoy getting drunk will say that marijuana is a dangerous drug. That is simply preposterous. The dangers and risks associated with alcohol consumption is so far greater than those associated with marijuana. While some like to claim that marijuana is a gateway drug, which in some cases is true, a lot of the time people who are