Argument And Persuasion: Ending Marijuana Prohibition
Ralph Venuto Venuto 1
Professor Sindy Finkelson
Argument and Persuasion
November 5, 2013
Ending Marijuana Prohibition “Penalties against possession of a drug should not be more damaging to an individual than the use of the drug itself; and where they are, they should be changed. Nowhere is this more clear than in the laws against possession of marijuana in private for personal use... Therefore, I support legislation amending Federal law to eliminate all Federal criminal penalties for the possession of up to one ounce [28g] of marijuana.”
― Jimmy Carter There is an injustice occurring right now in this country. Many people are suffering because of a prohibition that has unfairly punished and impugned the rights of the citizens of …show more content…
Think along the lines of Mary cigarettes, Mary food products, industrial hemp, candles, lotions, household display items, the ideas are endless. All of these new ventures would create revenue and jobs for the economy. Finally, and most importantly are the estimates of the revenue that the government would be collecting. The number is huge and staggering but it is also in my opinion too small. 31 billion dollars in taxes was the estimate by PhD. Jon Gettman the former head of the National Organization For the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML. (Hardy) Socially, the legalization of hemp (marijuana) could have far reaching affects that would improve the quality of life for many people who enjoy using marijuana recreationally as well as those who need it for medicinal reasons. Patients have been told by their doctors that tree (marijuana) would reduce or aid them with some of their symptoms. Some of these patients are chronically ill and many
Venuto …show more content…
A new very credible Gallup poll reported data that 58% of Americans want marijuana to be legalized. Interestingly enough only 39% were opposed and of those people the majority of them were over 65 years old. Each year the trend is increasing in favor of legalizing. In just one years time the number in favor of legalizing jumped from 48% to 58% (2012 to 2013). (For First Time) It is currently estimated that 25 million Americans are using marijuana. This for the most part is recreation use. Researching data on drug related deaths reported marijuana deaths at 0. Yes, that is a zero! Recreational drug use by as many as 25 million Americans has produced a reported all time high number of 0 deaths. (Annual Causes of Death) For purposes of this paper I asked numerous people (who will remain anonymous) who enjoy smoking marijuana recreationally, “What is so great about smoking marijuana?” Many couldn’t explain why but said, they “love the way they feel when they smoke” some even believe, “It makes everything better.” Throughout this article I purposely switched out the word marijuana with many of my favorite commonly used nicknames. Many people in many countries have
Professor Sindy Finkelson
Argument and Persuasion
November 5, 2013
Ending Marijuana Prohibition “Penalties against possession of a drug should not be more damaging to an individual than the use of the drug itself; and where they are, they should be changed. Nowhere is this more clear than in the laws against possession of marijuana in private for personal use... Therefore, I support legislation amending Federal law to eliminate all Federal criminal penalties for the possession of up to one ounce [28g] of marijuana.”
― Jimmy Carter There is an injustice occurring right now in this country. Many people are suffering because of a prohibition that has unfairly punished and impugned the rights of the citizens of …show more content…
Think along the lines of Mary cigarettes, Mary food products, industrial hemp, candles, lotions, household display items, the ideas are endless. All of these new ventures would create revenue and jobs for the economy. Finally, and most importantly are the estimates of the revenue that the government would be collecting. The number is huge and staggering but it is also in my opinion too small. 31 billion dollars in taxes was the estimate by PhD. Jon Gettman the former head of the National Organization For the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML. (Hardy) Socially, the legalization of hemp (marijuana) could have far reaching affects that would improve the quality of life for many people who enjoy using marijuana recreationally as well as those who need it for medicinal reasons. Patients have been told by their doctors that tree (marijuana) would reduce or aid them with some of their symptoms. Some of these patients are chronically ill and many
Venuto …show more content…
A new very credible Gallup poll reported data that 58% of Americans want marijuana to be legalized. Interestingly enough only 39% were opposed and of those people the majority of them were over 65 years old. Each year the trend is increasing in favor of legalizing. In just one years time the number in favor of legalizing jumped from 48% to 58% (2012 to 2013). (For First Time) It is currently estimated that 25 million Americans are using marijuana. This for the most part is recreation use. Researching data on drug related deaths reported marijuana deaths at 0. Yes, that is a zero! Recreational drug use by as many as 25 million Americans has produced a reported all time high number of 0 deaths. (Annual Causes of Death) For purposes of this paper I asked numerous people (who will remain anonymous) who enjoy smoking marijuana recreationally, “What is so great about smoking marijuana?” Many couldn’t explain why but said, they “love the way they feel when they smoke” some even believe, “It makes everything better.” Throughout this article I purposely switched out the word marijuana with many of my favorite commonly used nicknames. Many people in many countries have