Hemp is the plant called "cannabis sativa" which is more commonly called marijuana.
Marijuana has been illegal in the U.S. ever since the Great Depression. The question we .
must ask ourselves is "why?" Why is a drug that has so many beneficial uses illegal? Is it .
because its poisoning the youth of today? Is it because it leads to harder drugs, the health .
problems, the addictiveness, the short-term memory impairment, the auto accidents, or is .
it simply because politicians tell us it is for "our own good?" We have grown up learning .
that marijuana is a terrible drug, and that using it gives us brain damage, kill all of our .
brain cells, and makes us lose our memory. The fact is though, that marijuana does not .
effect us in any of the ways listed above. The idea that marijuana impairs short-term .
memory is true, but misleading. Any signs of short-term memory impairment vanish once .
the user is no longer intoxicated. Mainly the reason we think marijuana is bad is because .
that is what the Partnership for a Drug-Free America wants us to believe. They tell us that .
marijuana will cause brain damage and memory impairment, it will kill brain cells, and .
lead to more crime. But what they forget to mention is all the benefits we can receive .
from legalizing marijuana. For example, the medicinal uses, and the textile and .
construction uses. It is very likely that legalizing marijuana would decrease the crime .
rate, and by legalizing marijuana we will save a lot of money because we won't have to .
spend it on fighting marijuana as part of the War on Drugs. There are many habits much .
worse than marijuana, one example being cigarette smoking. "Tobacco smoking kills .
more people each year than AIDS, heroin, crack, cocaine, alcohol, car accidents, fire and .
murder combined. Tobacco smoking is the number one cause of preventable death in the .
US. Tobacco smokers have 10 times the lung cancer of nonsmokers, twice the heart .
