Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Will California be Able to Smoke Blunts Legally?
In California, the biggest debate coming up for the elections on November 2nd is about the legalization of marijuana. Polls show the people of California are closely divided. The majority of the big time politicians oppose the idea to legalize marijuana in California. Personally I think marijuana should be legalized for a certain age category. Fifty-one percent of people that were arrested in 2009 were arrested for something that had to do with the sale or possession of marijuana. Prisoners cost the people of our country an enormous amount yearly, because all the money that pays for their living comes from our tax dollars. I think this would also help the part of our society who is struggling right now and could use a few more of their tax dollars back. It has been estimated that the legalization of marijuana with a high tax rate on it could make California up to 1.4 billion dollars a year in revenues from those taxes. The fact that alcohol has a greater negative effect on one’s body should mean in my eyes that alcohol would be more illegal than pot. If anything there should be an age to which pot should be legal for, similar to buying or consuming cigarettes or alcohol. Far too many high school and college aged students already smoke pot; I think it makes them feel cool to be disobeying the law while enjoying the undescribable affects it temporarily bestows on the body. Just like under aged drinking has grown into quite the legal issue, I think the growing need to smoke pot by teenagers throughout America is going to cause more legal problems than it’s good for. http://www.africanaonline.com/2010/09/legalizing-pot-is-the-last-great-hope/
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The legalization of pot in California should not be a question in my opinion. I feel like it should be legal, mostly for the reasons you have stated. One, it would give California an opportunuty to make more money. Which is something they need when you look at how bad their economy is. With all the revenue gained from a tax on marijuanna California could fund rebuilding projects to help get themselves beack on their feet. Two, it is not as harmful as alcohol. Alcohol seriously impares our senses, and destroies your liver as well. I've read that marijuanna actually opens up our air tubes allowing more bad things to be exhaled thus leaving your lungs cleaner. Pot also doesn't have as high a mortality rate as alcohol does. I do not hear about the thousands of marijuanna related deaths in this country every year. Three,other countries like Belgium have legalized pot and they aren't at any risk of being destroied due to pot. With taking all of these things into account I agree with you Alex, pot should be legilized in California.
ReplyDeleteYou propose that Marijuana should be legalized for a “Certain age group,”and I totally agree. I think it should be legal when you turn 18. Marijuana is one of the worlds safest “drugs” and has been proven to be much healthier than tobacco or alcohol. Scientists have argued that overdosing on marijuana is next to impossible. While nearly every single drug known to man has a toxic and potentially lethal effect for a certain amount of consumption– marijuana has no such level. There is no record anywhere describing a proven, documented overdose fatality for pot. In comparison, aspirin (a very common over-the-counter medication) causes hundreds of deaths every year. Even scarier is the consumption of alcohol and how much unhealthier it is than weed. Alex points out in his blog that he believes that alcohol should be more illegal than weed, and I could not agree more. Every year thousands of people are killed from overdosing on alcohol (alcohol poisoning) and other alcohol related events. So what is the logic in having something that deadly as legal, and something so safe as illegal? I couldn’t tell you but it seems to me that the logic here is backwards. Alex also points out that an estimated 1.4 Billion dollars could be had if we were to legalize weed. $1.4 Billion Dollars! That is an unreal amount of money that could be used to help pull this country out of the recession we are in. People in California are starting to recognize the stupidity of this situation and will hopefully vote for the right official in the upcoming elections that will lead this movement with a strong arm. Legalize weed in California!
ReplyDeleteI agree with mostly everything you have stated above. Marijuana should be legalized in California. The tax revenues will do nothing but positively affect California’s economy. Also, I agree that if alcohol and tobacco are legal then marijuana should be legal too. More health problems are related with alcohol and tobacco anyways; marijuana is a much safer drug.
ReplyDeleteThe one thing I do not agree with is your argument about our money being spent on marijuana prisoners. You mention how “fifty-one percent of people that were arrested in 2009 were arrested for something that had to do with the sale or possession of marijuana.” But are most of these arrests not misdemeanors? From my experiences misdemeanors are just another way for the government to raise revenue. When someone receives a misdemeanor they are fined and usually forced to pay for some sort of drug education class. People do not go to prison for misdemeanors and therefore our tax dollars do not go to imprisoning as many marijuana related incidents as you say.
I still think that taxing marijuana will raise far more revenue than the misdemeanors associated with people breaking the law. Legalizing pot will not only positively affect California’s economy, but it will also clean up some of the legal records of many teens and improve their lives as a whole.
I also agree with everything that has been stated above. The legalization of weed would not be a problem in my mind. Besides, legal or illegal, people will still use marijuana. Furthermore, there have been many studies done and there is apparent evidence that marijuana is much less devastating smoking cigarettes or tobacco, both in which are legal. So why is the legalization of marijuana such a big deal? Just because it is not illegal doesn’t mean people will lose their ability to say no to it. I believe that the choice should always be made by Americans and not be cut short of choices by the government, for the basis of our country has always been freedom. If someone wants to use marijuana, I think they should be able to make the decision for themselves and not have someone or something else like the government make the decision for them. Even if marijuana was such a terrible thing which it is made to seem by the current law, I still believe that people can decide to use it if they wish.
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