What are the pros and cons of legalizing marijuana?

Answer 1

PRO's:
-the government could tax it and use the money for treatment and education programs
-legalization would eliminate a large portion of the black market for it thereby eliminting organized crime in our countries and eliminating the dictators and terrorists in the countries that produce it.
-millions in taxes could be saved by not having to pay cops, judges and prosecutors to charge people who have an amount for personal use.
-some of the "mystery" of it would be taken away and kids may be less tempted, and even if they did decide to use it, they wouldn't have some bully selling them basil or weed laced with something worse.
( I knew someone who claimed to have soaked weed in Javex before selling it to a young teenager...he thouht this was a funny story....I didn't).


CONS
-the government would tax the crap out of it and the price would go sky high.

Answer 2

First, you need to read about why marijuana was outlawed in the first place. You can find a summary of the topic at http://druglibrary.org/schaffer/Library/mj_outlawed.htm

In short, it was outlawed for two reasons. The first was because "All Mexicans are crazy and marijuana is what makes them crazy." The second was the fear that heroin addiction would lead to the use of marijuana -- exactly the opposite of the modern gateway myth.

The laws were lunacy from the very beginning. The American Medical Association testified that there was no evidence that marijuana was a dangerous drug and, therefore, no reason to make it illegal. The only other doctor to testify for the law later became the US Official Expert on marijuana. He later testified in court, under oath, that marijuana would make your incisors grow six inches long and drip with blood. The whole story is just nuts.

Every major government commission that has studied the subject in the last 100 years has concluded that the marijuana laws were based on ignorance and nonsense. They all said that marijuana should have been legalized long ago. You can find the full text of these reports at http://druglibrary.org/schaffer/Library/studies/studies.htm

If anyone says that marijuana should be illegal you can be certain that they have never read the most basic research on the subject.

Answer 3

First off, I am totally for the legalization of marijuana, and here is why:
Marijuana has many medicinal purposes, and is not man made (I would rather ingest marijuana then pharmaceutical drugs)
Also, Marijuana is easier on your body then alcohol or cigarettes (anyone heard of someone dieing from lung cancer caused by marijuana?)
And I feel that society would be less stressed out, and we would all get along better.

In an above statement someone wrote about being high at work and what not, well, alcohol is not illegal, but it is a no-no to be drunk at work. I believe the same thing with marijuana, not being stoned at work.

Also someone pointed out about children buying marijuana at the store, if the government were able to regulate it it would probably be sold like alcohol or cigarettes, no minors.

The only negative I can think of are the irresponsible parents who would smoke it in the same room as their children. It is not right to get your child high inadvertently.

Answer 4

The pros were stated above.
The one significant con I can think of is on the days following legalization, the influx of marijuana into main-stream culture. Due to its new found legality people will want to flaunt it, and perhaps to be a constant high for as long as their money will allow.
And as a student, I certainly would not want to have to deal with the stupidity people do/say when they are high for extended periods of time.
Maybe then college class size problems will be fixed by students dropping out because they can't handle school and getting high. (Sure, those who can will respond and say they can. Kudos to you, do you want a cookie?)

Answer 5

Can't say for sure... Amsterdam seems to be doing fine. I think it would be a lot of increases in the economy, tourism being one, sales of junk food another possibility, less money spent reprimanding or even investigating pot dealers and smokers. cons Would you really want your 10 year old to pick up pot at the drug store instead of cigarettes, I have nothing against it but imagine what it would be like if people were allowed to smoke pot anywhere all the time it would be ridiculous esp. since some people are going to **** it up by acting extremely stupid and like getting killed or something, also the government would find some way to **** it up ... like instead of paying 10-20 bucks you'd have to pay like 50 and lord knows what else. I think it's better kept illegal for that reason alone.

Answer 6

Pros would be a lot less tax money spent to kept people in jail for a little amount of marjuana the government could tax it and make it so you had to smoke in bars which then generates money for the city or town the same way booze does number two medicaly it would be alot more accepted treatment for cancer pacients to actuall eat something street crime would drop in rate and less people would be getting killed over marijuana and "turff" this would then also allow the police force to focus on more serious drug problems shuch as crack meth and herion

Answer 7

professional's: generate gross sales and create jobs ( an entire new marketplace, somewhat) shop money from "conflict" on drugs, fewer people in reformatory, much less stress on our courtroom structures shop lives from drug cartel battles via removing an substantial ingredient of their business employer. shop people from dealing with criminals who would push different drugs on them in some unspecified time interior the destiny avert the ruining of lives over a somewhat possibility loose drug probable shrink the abuse of alcohol, which may be deadly. furnish much less puzzling get admission to for individuals with maximum cancers, HIV/aids, continual discomfort and shrink choose for for opiates cons: (that's a lot harder) some attorneys will lose jobs would be abused via some people harder to computer screen in terms of driving under the impression. no longer likely an uncomplicated attempt like with alcohol. sigh. There somewhat are no longer an excellent form of cons. The effect of marijuana on maximum folk of people is a lot nicer than that of alcohol.

Answer 8

They should do the same with POT as Alcohol.
You still can't drive High or have it if you are under 21.
Tax it to death, pay off our debts with it and support MADD, SADD and all the other anti groups, and also keep it illegal to put it in here without doing so illegal, tax it as an import from Mexico.
You aren't gonna stop it , you can't incarcerate all of them. Best to make money than loose money on it.

Answer 9

Who is going to hire all the potheads? Insurance companies give discounts for having random drug testing at work. It provides a safer work environment and protects the employer from law suits!

Just because it is a legal drug does not mean you can be high at work. I would still have drug testing at my business, and anyone failing would be gone!

Answer 10

PROS:
~No taxpayer money wasted on encarcerating people caught with weed.
~The governmant can tax the sales of marijuana and make a KILLING
~There will be less taxpayer money spent on the "war on drugs"
~It might get people away from smoking cigarettes.
~Potheads will actually be contributing to society
CONS:
None.