Blog Stage Five: Legalization of...
Legalization of...
For years the controversy over the legalization of marijuana has been a largely debated topic that's been left on the back burner by the federal government. State governments have began taking the initiative in their laws regarding marijuana. Many states have opted for only legalizing medical marijuana, and some have even gone as far as making marijuana recreationally legal, so why is the federal government not addressing the controversial topic?
Because of the ethical controversy surrounding marijuana studies, we honestly don't know much about the drug itself. However, we've gained a little insight as to what our nation would look like, and what the marijuana industry could do for our economy by seeing what happened in Colorado when the state decided to take a leap of faith in legalization. In 2015 Colorado collected more than $135 million in taxes and fees on medical and recreational marijuana. Sales in North America grew 30%, to $6.7 million, in 2016, and is projected to increase to $20.1 billion by 2021 according to a market research study. Could you imagine if every state generated as much tax revenue as Colorado did? That would give the United States an extra six-billion seven-hundred and fifty million dollars to add to their spending budget. Although states would receive most of the revenue, the federal government could place federal taxes on the "drug" and generate even more revenue towards the federal budget.
A large issue in today's society is the amount of jobs available to the American citizen. Now let's consider the generation of jobs created in the United States by creating a marijuana industry. An economics study concluded that Nevada could support over forty-one thousand jobs until 2024, and generate over $1.7 billion in labor income. California also estimates at least eighty-one thousand jobs have become available as a result of legalized marijuana sales.
I agree with you entirely. You mention statistical information to support your argument which is an excellent idea since it supports the logic of legalizing marijuana as a way to improve the U.S. and state economies. Also talking about research studies to support the fact that we will have a better federal budget is an excellent way to strengthen your argument.
ReplyDeleteIn fact, we know more about marijuana than we actually think we do. We know that cannabis is smoked widely in many countries, more concentrated in Western countries. Today, there have been no reported cases of lung cancer of emphysema attributed to smoking marijuana. In all honesty, inhaling a day’s dose is less threatening than breathing in a city’s poor air quality to people’s health. If you mentioned more insight about marijuana usage, you would have a stronger argument since you are focusing on how marijuana isn't that life threatening.
Mentioning proven statistical data and a research study to support the economic benefits was a great idea since we need to put more focus on how much revenue and money marijuana can bring to the U.S. If you take my constructive criticism into account, you would have an even better argument since you would also be mentioning more information about marijuana and perhaps studies done to prove it isn’t entirely that bad.
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ReplyDeleteGabrielle,
ReplyDeleteYou make a great case for the legalization of marijuana. However, I disagree with you on the amount of research that's been done on marijuana. On the contrary, the effects and health benefits of marijuana have been heavily researched. It has been proven to treat various medical conditions raging from anxiety, migraines, epilepsy, pain management to treating cancer. Even the American Medical Association has spoken to its medical benefits. Pharmaceutical companies are lobbying against the legalization of marijuana as it would great reduce their profits. They've brainwashed society into thinking it's a harmful substance. The hypocrisy is mind bogging. Big pharma produces "legalized drugs" that are made out of harmful and addicting chemicals. The result is that we're now in the middle of an opioid crisis. These "legal" drugs are not just "treating" illnesses, they're now taking lives by the dozens. When it comes to making money, the ones in power with the big bucks are the ones to that hold the cards. They're in a position to influence policy and society into believing (and doing) what they want. Until we take a stand against big pharma, things will not change. Marijuana is not only economically beneficial but it has great medical benefits as well. You brought up Colorado and the fact that it's collected $135 million in taxes. I'd also like to add that's one of the only states in the U.S. that's working off a surplus lessening their dependency on federal government funding. Marijuana takes a lot of fewer lives than opioids. It's deeply disturbing that our country can't see this. Simply because it doesn't come in the form of a pill. Sadly, most in this country can't see the big picture.
I agree with you Mackenzie, marijuana would be a big contribution to lowering the national debt. We may not know as much about marijuana as we do about other "drugs" but we do know that it is a lot safer than smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol in excess. Cigarettes kill people every single day in America. I also believe that marijuana being available for people with health problems will help out the prescription drug problem. I believe that the legalization is not being talked about like it should is because of the sociodemagraphics of our government. Most of the people in our government have been told marijuana is bad as long as they have lived, and change will take time.
ReplyDeleteOften, many people write claims on their blogs that they do not care to support with evidence and I think that the contrary is very well done in this article. I agree entirely that marijuana should be legalized to help our state’s and nation’s economic growth. To continue to support our claims on why the plant should be legalized nationwide, in 2013 a A Gallup poll released revealing that for the first time in history, Americans are more in favor of legalizing marijuana than criminalizing it. Now, 58 percent of Americans are in favor allowing the plant to be legal. Prohibition doesn’t control the use of marijuana in the United States. States under prohibition gain nothing from it. The states spend their money, time, and resources enforcing it to no end. The states that have legalized marijuana have already acquired over $200 million in combined tax revenue compared to the other 46 states. The states are saving money in the police departments, courts, other essential agencies that are bothered with marijuana prosecutions.
ReplyDeleteSo many people may think having a large amount of THC in your body will lead to death, but that isn’t possible. Since marijuana has been around, not one single account of death from overdose of marijuana has been recorded or accounted for. Meanwhile in 2010, about 39,000 people died from drug overdoses. Sixty percent of those overdoses were related to prescription drugs. In that same year about 26,000 people died from alcohol related causes. So if cigarettes and alcohol are a higher health risk, then why isn’t marijuana legal as well?
In this article, you mention that one of the United State’s biggest national issues is the lack of jobs available in our country. I 100% agree that we would benefit economically from the increase in demand of labor and the marijuana industry in itself. If 81,000 new jobs have been created in california alone, there is no telling how much the U.S could flourish if all states legalized it for medical and recreational usage.