From the perspective of America's controversial war on drugs, marijuana is one of its toughest enemies. And since alcohol and tobacco, two potentially life-threatening drugs, are legal the question begs why marijuana remains illegal throughout most of the United States. In fact, a 2010 study shows marijuana sent the least amount of people to the hospital for drug related reasons with only 27,000 visits, with alcohol coming in second with 35,000 "(The federal government's own statistics show that marijuana is safer than alcohol.)". Small quantities of the drug have been allowed in regions such as Europe, North America and South America. Moreover, Medical marijuana is currently legal in 23 states, with four of those states (Alaska, Oregon, Washington and Colorado) also allowing for recreational use. The penalties for the other 46 states generally range from simple to severe. In this argumentative essay, I seek to argue the reasons why both medicinal and recreational marijuana should be legalized throughout the United States, and why it should not.
Primarily, marijuana should be legalized for its medicinal benefits, which would allow for higher quality health standards. Doctors will often recommend medical marijuana to their patients for its numerous health benefits. For example, Dr. George Wagoner, a practicing OB-YGN for 29 years, obtained marijuana illegally for his wife after undergoing intense rounds of chemotherapy. "We were running out of options," the doctor said. "She took two puffs, looked at me, and said, " 'The nausea's gone'. It was miraculous. Within seconds,the nausea just disappeared (TESTIMONY OF DR. GEORGE WAGONER)."Patients with cancer, seizures, and PTSD in were fighting to legalize medical marijuana in Texas as recently as last month at Capitol Hill, pleading with Congress see their side. Barbara Humphries was among those pushing for legalization, admitting she buys it illegally to cope with her intense chemotherapy for stage three breast cancer "(Patients fight for legal use of medical marijuana).
