Why We Should Marijuana Be Illegal

Chase McQuade
Ms. Niespodziany
English 10-2
9 May 2013
Should Marijuana be Illegal? Cannabis Sativa is a Schedule 1 controlled substance. This drug has been known to treat and even cure certain diseases. This drug is also known as Marijuana. Marijuana gives the user a relaxed and sleepy side effect. This is one of the many side effects of this drug. Marijuana has many beneficial side effects and also many grave side effects. “Marijuana can be used to prevent cancer growth” (www.infowars.com). This will be further explained later in the report. “Marijuana is also used for AIDS, anxiety, and other diseases” (Gottfried 20). Marijuana is used recreationally, illegally smoking, and medicinally for medical use when needed. When used medicinally,
“People who smoke marijuana often develop the same kinds of problems that a common cigarette smoker has: coughing and wheezing” (Dudley 51). “If someone is high on marijuana, he or she might seem dizzy and have trouble walking, seem silly and giggly for no reason, have very red, bloodshot eyes, and have a hard time remembering things that just happened” (Dudley 52). While marijuana can be used to treat major diseases and ailments, some of the side effects are just too great. Even though with every medication someone will suffer negative side effects, marijuana poses a great threat to people’s health, while at the same time it can benefit others. “Marijuana contains some of the same, and sometimes even more, of the cancer-causing chemicals found in tobacco smoke” (Dudley 51). This is especially interesting, because in the report earlier, I stated that marijuana can essentially cure cancer with the chemicals that are in it. If that was so, why can we not legalize marijuana and take the cancer-causing chemicals out of it? This sounds more reasonable than keeping marijuana and its beneficial side effects away from the people who can greatly benefit from it. Doing drugs during pregnancy, at any time, is not safe. Alcohol is included because it can result in early birth, and other birth defects. That being said, “some studies have found that babies born to marijuana users were shorter, weighed less,
What is a gateway drug? A gateway drug is a drug that is less powerful than many other hard drugs, but will give others the desire for the stronger drugs, such as heroin, cocaine, or crack. “A 2002 report by the Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse claimed that marijuana users are eighty-five times more likely than non-marijuana users to try cocaine” (Dudley 82). Extensive use of marijuana can lead to a lack of initiative. In fact, “you could start to lose interest in how you look and how you’re getting along at school or work” (Dudley 50). Also, “the short term effects of marijuana include: problems with memory and learning, distorted perception, trouble with thinking and problem-solving, a loss of coordination, and finally anxiety” (Dudley 49). Others effects were mentioned previously but these side effects can be temporary, or some, like thinking and problem-solving, can last for a prolonged time. Time periods for these effects are not existent because these effects can change someone’s life forever. Marijuana can ruin their brain and destroy their brain cells. “All forms of marijuana are mind-altering. They change how the brain works” (Dudley 47). “Some users can experience paranoid thoughts constantly, with prolonged use” (Dudley 49). THC is the most commonly known chemical in marijuana. This is the chemical that induces the high that is associated with marijuana. Still, “Tetrahydrocannibal in marijuana is strongly absorbed by