The Marijuana Laws are Failing

For as long as I have been passionate about legalizing marijuana I have always heard the argument that the government will never legalize pot because they make too much money fining people for possesion. I have always been skeptical about that claim because it doesn't seem plausible that the government could be making that much money from pot growth. I read an article that was written almost a year ago that backs up my opinion and shows that the government can make more money legalizing it than they have been with the plant being illegal. It is an article on ABCnews.com written by Nitya Venkataraman called Marijuana Called Top U.S. Cash Crop. She explains how marjiuana was ranked as the top cash crop in the United States. The production of marijuana is valued at $38.5 billion which is higher than the combined value of corn ($23.3 billion) and wheat ($7.5 billion). I was thrilled to learn this because it means that more people are smoking weed than I thought. It means that the there is a solid reason why the government should legalize marijuana, to make money. Could you imagine how much money the government would make if they taxed marijuana? We all know that the greatest incentive for the government is money. A quote out of Venkataraman's article puts it into perspective for the government, "A 2005 analysis by Harvard visiting professor Jeffrey Miron estimates that if the United States legalized marijuana, the country would save $7.7 billion in law enforcement costs and could generated as much as $6.2 billion annually if marijuana were taxed like alcohol or tobacco." So to all the people who said marijuana will never be legal because the government makes too much money illegalizing it, you are wrong because marijuana, as the leading cash crop, can lead the government to greater amounts of money if they only legalize it.

Eric Schlosser's view on Marijuana

I have recently been researching Eric Schlosser, the man who has written such articles as Reefer Madness, Marijuana and the Law, and most popularly, Fast Food Nation. I am so impressed with his opinions and the facts he has about marijuana. I stumbled across an interview on the PBS website with Eric Schlosser. He is questioned mostly about marijuana laws and the criminalization of people associated with the drug. I love the way he answers the questions and how logical his answers are. For example the interviewer said that some people would argue that marijuana laws are effective because the price has gone up. Eric Schlosser's response makes so much sense and is so right on. He responed:
"In 1982, when President Reagan launched the war on marijuana, 88% of American high school seniors said it was easy for them to obtain marijuana. In 1994, 85% said that is was easy for them to obtain marijuana. And during that period, billions of dollars have been spent fighting marijuana. Millions of people have been arrested. More than 250,000 have been sent to prison convicted for marijuana felonies and yet marijuana use is going up. So I think the high price of marijuana and the high profits being earned by marijuana dealers is a guarantee that the marijuana use will not decline because of the phenomenal profits that can be earned growing what's essentially a weed that will grow very cheaply anywhere." I think his answer is so amazing because it sheds light on the fact that the government is losing the war on drugs. They have to find a different solution because apparently illegalizing it and criminalizing people who use it is not working. I just wish more people would open their eyes to reality and not hide the facts from themselves. Eric Schlosser is such a good representative of the topic because he knows so much about why the laws today are not working.

The so-called Gateway Drug

In this post I am going to write solely on my personal experiences. I feel that I fit the description of the average young adult in America. The average young adult that has been faced with trials and tribulations in the drug and alcohol world. I am twenty one years old and was born and raised in orange county. In high school there were many times I was introduced to drugs and alcohol at parties and events. When I was younger and in high school everything was illegal; alcohol, drugs, and cigarettes were beyond my legal reach. They were beyond my reach legally, but not completely out of reach illegally. Everything was accesible from alcohol and marijuana to cocaine and shrooms. There is this idea that adults and parents have that if the law prohibits something than kids won't touch it. That's completely false....kids are curious about EVERYTHING.

The reason why I am talking about this young curiosity is to bring up a common misconception; the idea that marijuana is a gateway drug. A gateway drug is defined as being a drug that introduces people to harder, unsafe drugs. I do not think marijuana is a gateway drug for young adults, especially under the age of eighteen. When a kid is under eighteen marijuana is not the only illegal drug that will introduce them into the world of buying illegal substances. Alcohol and cigarettes are usually the first thing a teenager tries before maybe moving on to marijuana. Therefore alcohol and cigarettes are the true gateway drugs.

My reason for acknowledging this misconcepetion is not to try to get marijuana legal for all ages, but it is to take a sour spin off of marijuana. The term gateway drug for marijuana is just another way to brainwash people into believing that marijuana is dangerous. All of these misconceptions about marijuana being dangerous and evil just heighten the curiosity of kids who have never tried it. Once they realize it is not as dangerous as people claim, then they get the idea that more dangerous, harsher drugs are probably not that bad either. There were many things I was told throughout high school that I wanted to find out for myself. It is like being told that a movie is completely horrible, but there is something inside of you that wants to see it for yourself so that you can make your own opinions.

If marijuana was legal I think it would be harder for young kids to get their hands on because it would be regulated and sold by government regulated businesses. When I was younger trying to get alcohol was much harder to get than marijuana or other drugs. This was true because of the liquor store obstacle. Somebody had to find a person old enough to buy the alcohol or a person with a fake i.d. Unlike buying marijuana where all you had to do is know somebody who had it or sold it. There is nobody checking your i.d. when you want to buy marijuana.

The Many Sides of Hemp

The word 'Marijuana' oftens strikes people's minds as solely being a recreational drug. This is only part of the contributions the plant has to offer. There are so many material things we use in our every day lives that can be substituted with hemp. Hemp is a tough fiber of the marijuana plant. The potential of the marijuana plant is so high, but it is being held back by society. In the early 1900's hemp was considered the 'billion dollar crop'. It has great strength and durability with the ability to have 50,000 different uses. Some examples of it's uses include:

Paper: One acre of hemp in annual rotation will produce as much pulp for paper as 4.1 acres of trees during the same twenty year period. It can produce printing paper, fine and specialty paper, techinical filter papers, newsprint, and cardboard and packaging products.
Clothing: Hemp provides three times the amount of fiber per acre as cotton.
Energy: The use of hemp as a biofuel would reduce the amount fossil fuels (currently 93% of our energy source) and nuclear power.
Eco-friendly Substance: Hemp can be used to replace current toxic petrochemical products. It can also be used as a biodegradable plastic product.
Fiberboard: This is twice as strong as wood based fiber board.
Food: Hemp can produce food supplements, salad oil, margarine, granola, birdseed, nutrient bars, cakes, breads, non-dairy milk, tofu, cheese, and ice cream.
Personal Hygiene Products: Hemp can make soap, shampoo, bath gels, cosmetics, and moisturizers.

The main reason why hemp should be used to replace the fibers used to make most of our products today is the fact that the marijuana as a regrowth cycle of one year. Unlike trees (used for most of our materials) which have decades to grow to their full potential. This causes more and more trees to be cut down when they don't need to be because there is an alternative.

After examining the many sides of hemp, I hope you can realize why I feel the government is insulting our intelligence and limiting our rights by making the marijuana plant illegal. There are so many more reasons why it should be legal than reasons why it should remain illegal.

My Thoughts on Pot...

The more and more I research about reasons why marijuana should be legal I get angier and angier with the fact that it is illegal. I feel like law makers and enforcers are comfortable with the illegal drug remaining illegal. They could care less about the facts on the drug and more about criminalizing innocent people. When you take a step out of our bubble we call "society" and think about this issue as if it is not an actual debate, it sounds ridiculous. Human beings are not allowing Mother Nature to live up to her full potential. Marijuana is just a plant that grows on this earth just like daisies and palm trees. Society is telling us we cannot grow or pick a plant that is naturally involved in our ecosystem. But what IS allowed is chemically altered substances that get abused, such as, vicodin and sleeping pills. Middle class families are living their lives popping pills to go to sleep, to be happy, and to wake up in the morning. These are the same people arguing against the legalization of marijuana. They claim it is dangerous, addictive, and mind altering. Well you know what I have to say to these hypocritical pill poppers? Open your eyes and think about what your saying.....Marijuana is a natural plant and it does not make good people do bad things.

Marijuana and the Legal System

The first law ever concerning marijuana was passed by Virginia assembly in 1619. The law required every household to grow it. Hemp was considered a valuable and necessary commodity. Sails and riggings were made from the plants fibers. Hemp later began to be used as legal tender to boost its production and relieve the shortage of currency. Marijuana later became a main ingredient into patent medicines that were said to cure migraines, rheumatism, and insomnia.

In 1910 there was a wave of Mexican immigration into the United States. The Mexican immigrants brought their traditions and beliefs with them. Their means of intoxication included smoking marijuana. The people of the United States related marijuana smoking with the violent crimes committed by the immigrants. Marijuana smoking was often associated with sailors, West Indian immigrants, African Americans, jazz musicians, prostitutes, and underworld whites. Marijuana was depicted as an intrusion into the pristine American culture. El Paso, Texas was the first city to ban the possession and distribution of marijuana in 1914. By 1931, twenty-nine states outlawed marijuana. In 1937, Congress passed the Marijuana Tax Act which made the possession of marijuana illegal in the United States.

In today's day and age there are many different charges to the offense of possession or sale of marijuana. In California (and other states) having medical permission to buy or possess marijuana can have many risk factors. If one has a medical card by the state for the purchase or cultivation of marijuana they can still get convicted of breaking a federal law. By the state law possession of marijuana with a medical card is legal. By the federal law possession of marijuana can lead from one to three years in jail. By the state law, cultivation of marijuana with a medical card is legal. By federal law, cultivation of marijuana can lead from five years to life in prison. What this means is, for example, a cancer patient with the legal rights to grow marijuana in their backyard can be punished with five to twenty years in prison if the federal government wanted to convict them.

When I think of a prison sentence of life in prison, I think of murder or rape. I certainly do not think of the cultivation of a natural plant (marijuana). In Tulsa, Oklahoma Larry Jackson was sentenced to life in prison for the possession of .16 grams of marijuana. In Oklahoma City, Leland James Dodd was given two life sentences, plus ten years, from buying fifty pounds of marijuana from undercover police officers. There are a lot more cases in which life in prison has been the sentence for the selling, buying, or possession of marijuana. I think it is outrageous to "end" somebody's life because of their drug use.

Many people think that the government will never legalize marijuana because of the amount of money they receive from drug seizures each year, but think of this, the cost of incarcerating one person in prison for a single year in California is nearly $31,000.

Acohol vs. Marijuana

When I think about alcohol abuse in our country and the things alcohol brings people to do, I wonder how marijuana can be illegal. Alcohol alone can kill somebody even if it is their first time drinking. Alcohol can cause people to do things they might not otherwise do when they are sober. Around 50,000 people die each year from alcohol poisoning. By using alcohol statistics I am not saying I think alcohol should be illegal. I am saying that when comparing an illegal substance to a legal substance does it really match up? Marijuana is extremely less harmful than alcohol, yet it is illegal. There has never been a marijuana overdose in history because marijuana is nontoxic. Marijuana is the third most popular drug in America. Alcohol and tobacco are most popular. There are many people objecting themselves voluntarily to alcohol and tobacco which have extreme negative effects. The government allows people to subject themselves to lung cancer from smoking and liver disease from drinking. As a marijuana smoker I would like to have the right to subject myself to marijuana. If I know the negative effects and the positive effects then let me make the decision myself on whether or not I want to smoke marijuana. As a 21 year old I make my own decisions on whether or not I want to drink alcohol. All I am asking is the government to stop insulting the intelligence of their citizens because we have the right to make our own decisions.

The Herbal Remedy

My vision begins to blur, my stomach becomes nauseated, and my head aches viscously. My body painfully embraces the symptoms of a migraine. I turn the lights off and the pain keeps growing. I close my eyes intensely trying to pretend the throbbing does not exist. I gulp down medicine in order to end this agonizing pain. Nothing seems to relieve it. Apparently the doctor’s remedies do not work as the migraine takes over my body.
There is one more option, medicinal marijuana. Throughout my history of chronic migraines I have welcomed an easing reliever into my life, marijuana. The pain brought on by the migraine is completely relieved by smoking. Ever since I have used the plant as a medicine to combat my migraines, I have moved on from viewing marijuana solely as a recreational drug, to viewing it as an herbal remedy.
The question is then raised on why marijuana is illegal when it has the ability to heal.