... used recreationally (Schwartz 2015). There has been many debates about whether or not Arizona should legalize recreational marijuana. The bigger debate is between federal and state law and who has the power to legalize marijuana. The federal government regulates drugs through the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) (21 U.S.C. § 811), which does not recognize the difference between medical and ... strong regulatory schemes to prevent crime (Russo 2014). In the landmark case of Gonzales v. Raich, 545 U.S. 1 (U.S. 2005), the United States Supreme Court held that the federal government has the ...

• Word Count: 859
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... , 1994, par. 40). Legalizing marijuana can provide the rapid boost and long term economic stimulus in the form of taxes and job creation that the American people desperately need. The federal government has been looking for a way to take American industry and farming back to its glory days of being able to provide for the American people. Again nature has provided the ... federal government with the answer Cannabis Sativa L., also known as hemp, the industrial plant of Cannabis Sativa. Cannabis Sativa L. is associated with strong fibers and oiled seed', containing less than 0.3% of the ...

• Word Count: 2966
• Approx Pages: 12
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... , 1994, par. 40). Legalizing marijuana can provide the rapid boost and long term economic stimulus in the form of taxes and job creation that the American people desperately need. The federal government has been looking for a way to take American industry and farming back to its glory days of being able to provide for the American people. Again nature has provided the ... federal government with the answer Cannabis Sativa L., also known as hemp, the industrial plant of Cannabis Sativa. Cannabis Sativa L. is associated with strong fibers and oiled seed', containing less than 0.3% of the ...

• Word Count: 2966
• Approx Pages: 12
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... marijuana. Many people have testified to marijuana's validity as a unique form of treatment. One of these, Robert Randall, one of only eight patients supplied with marijuana by the federal government, was diagnosed with acute glaucoma and told that he would be blinded within five years (Brazaitis 1C). Randall "discovered by accident that smoking marijuana" relieved the internal pressure of ... the American Medical Association, a group officially opposed to marijuana, have actually recommended marijuana to ease the pain of their patients ("Medical Marijuana" 22). Even with this support, t...

• Word Count: 1107
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... ; the physicians in addition would lose their drug licenses and might even be banned from Medicare and Medicade"(Sager 30). This action was intended to show the states that the federal government was still in charge. Well, this response did not go over well with the public and also infringed on the First Amendment rights of doctors so it was dismissed in ... reasons, sprung up in California after proposition 215 was passed. These were supported by local authorities but all brought up on lawsuits by the federal government. The Justice Department should have had an open-and-shut case since...

• Word Count: 1571
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... laws on how much we can consume and in certain situations. I believe it should be legalized because the constitution does not state that a federal government to regulate or ban substances that we choose to consume. Most states in the country have banned marijuana usage and possession in their counties ... choose what they put in their bodies. The constitution defines our freedom and we can retain our rights from the federal government, where in the constitution it states nowhere that government officials can detain the use of any drug. In Kieffers article she states, "For, the Constituti...

• Word Count: 1375
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... and 26 tons to between 70 and 138 tons; a dramatic increase of over 600% in as little as six years. Marijuana was connected cocaine as a gateway drug, thus the federal government strayed from marijuana decriminalization. In 1981, President Reagan's war on drugs was solely against supply with his budget for eradication increased from Carter's annual average of $437 million to $1.4 billion ... military tactics favored over a mere $34 million possible for treatment. The Drug Abuse Resistance through Education program increasing the youth's interest rather than discourage it. Grim's research ...

• Word Count: 1432
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... -called AS may use marijuana, marijuana is not the cause of their behavior (Chait and Pierri 387). Ever since marijuana has become illegal, enforcing it has been an issue. The federal government of America spends millions of dollars each year trying to keep it off the streets and into dealer's hands, but their tactics barely do a thing. Today, 62% of all inmates ... need to ticket or prison them. The amount of money the federal Drug Enforcement Agency spends each year is $1.3 billion a year. Overall, federal anti-marijuana efforts have cost taxpayers $30 billion (Schlosser 89). All of th...

• Word Count: 1605
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... drugs are not as safe, but still are sold over the counter. The use of Marijuana should be allowed for medical purposes, and the Federal Government should change its laws towards this natural substance. Cannabis sativa is a hemp plant that grows in warm weather, or inside under strictly controlled conditions ... allows patients to possess and grow marijuana for personal medicinal use providing a doctor approves it. Missouri has gone out on a limb and petitioned the federal government, requesting a lift on the ban of marijuana(http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9702/weed.wars/facts/state.chart/st...

• Word Count: 1279
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... due to their ability to more easily conceal them (Encarta, "Prohibition"). Drug smugglers tend to carry and sell hard drugs in extremely potent form (i.e. cocaine) for the same reason. The federal government also controls the amount of nicotine and other additives in cigarette and cigar manufacturing, in an effort to lessen their risk to public health. The same tactic could be used ... harmful to the American public. Graham Boyd, an attorney representing a group of plaintiffs including eleven prominent cancer and AIDS physicians in San Francisco presented to a federal judge on Friday, Apr...

• Word Count: 1707
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... providers to stay in the market, as they can still cover their costs of production and make a nice profit." Legalizing marijuana would also place a dual burden on the government of regulating a new legal market, while continuing to pay for the negative side effects associated with an underground market, whose providers have little economic incentive to disappear." Although the ... . Thus, it will be much safer if marijuana is legalized." Specifically, where the FDA is concerned ("Marijuana resource center," 2013) makes the following statement, "It is the Federal government's position tha...

• Word Count: 4020
• Approx Pages: 16
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... grow, sell, or possess marijuana (Solomon 2). The penalties that accompanied this act were severe. Without marijuana tax stamps, which were never issued by the government, a person could face five years' imprisonment, a $2,000 fine, or both. In Virginia, possession of marijuana carried with it a mandatory sentence of ... the fifties, referred to marijuana as "tea."" The hippies of the sixties followed the ideas of the beats but called marijuana "grass."" The federal government, seeing the increase of marijuana use, passed new drug laws. The Dangerous Substances Act of 1969 classified al...

• Word Count: 1460
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... the use of medical marijuana. In November 1998, voters in six states (Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington) passed ballot initiatives in support of medical marijuana. A federal appeals court said Tuesday the federal government could not punish California doctors who recommend marijuana to their patient (Bob Egelko, The San Francisco Chronicle). With physician- patient communications protected, patients in nine states can now ... a new drug, as well as to discriminate against the Mexican immigrants that brought marijuana across the border with them, twenty-three stat...

• Word Count: 929
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

When marijuana was prohibited by the United States federal government in 1937 very few Americans even knew what it was. Now, 66 years later nearly 100 million Americans not ... ). Incarcerating the nonviolent marijuana offenders costs the public an additional $23,000 per year per person (NORML). Decriminalizing marijuana would save both the federal government and the states billions in funds that could be used to fund other interests as demonstrated in the state of California with the passing of the ... . Marijuana is considered useful by patients and their doctors in treatment for AIDS, cance...

• Word Count: 1417
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... heroin and LSD as a Schedule I drug, i.e., having the relatively highest abuse potential and no accepted medical use. Most marijuana at that time came from Mexico, but in 1975 the Mexican government agreed to eradicate the crop by spraying it with the herbicide paraquat, raising fears of toxic side effects. Colombia then became the main supplier. The "zero tolerance- climate of the ... 70s it was used by millions of young people in America; its popularity waned as its reputation for bad trips and resulting accidents and suicides became known. In 1967, the federal government classified it...

• Word Count: 5106
• Approx Pages: 20
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... in the treatment of smog-related illnesses, relieves asthma attacks, and many more illnesses and diseases. Research, which has been recently slowed by government policies, would be easier to conduct and several more benefits of the medicinal use of this forbidden medicine could be discovered. The cloud of ... of sick people must undergo unnecessary pain and anxiety to obtain the therapy of marijuana illegally. The legalization of marijuana would also benefit the federal budget in many ways. First of all, there would be a reduction in the amount of money spent on law enforcement efforts ...

• Word Count: 1572
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... 89% are for possession only. That information begs the question, "Is the U.S. winning the war on drugs?" If it is not winning, then perhaps the Federal government needs to consider some changes starting with the legalization of marijuana. The argument for legalizing marijuana arises from some unexpected sources, including economists and law enforcement officers. Legalizing marijuana would ... free up law enforcement resources, save the government billions of dollars, generate billions more in tax revenue, and severely curtail violence associated with the illegal drug market ("Perils of P...

• Word Count: 1215
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... 1914, the federal approach to drug abuse control has included a variety of ways for reducing both the supply of, and demand for, illicit drugs. At first the supply and demand reduction strategies were grounded in the traditional deterrence model: Though legislation and criminal penalties, individuals would be discouraged from using drugs; by setting an example of traffickers, the government could force ... idea that people could be trusted to drink in moderation, arguing that alcohol use inevitably led to moral corruption and undesirable behavior. Accepting these premises led Congress t...

• Word Count: 2648
• Approx Pages: 11
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... than trafficking. Since cannabis arrests constitute 44 percent of all drug apprehensions, the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) estimates that the government's war on pot smokers costs taxpayers $9.2 billion annually. Using U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics data, MPP calculates that 37,500 federal, state and local inmates were incarcerated for marijuana violations in 1998; 15,400 of them for possession alone. At an ... average cost of $20,000 each, government spent $750 million to imprison these offenders. The National Drug Control Budget has swelled from $1.65 billion ... that roughly 100...

• Word Count: 2154
• Approx Pages: 9
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... legalize marijuana. Mind you, that alcohol was formally deemed illegal; all for the same reason marijuana is illegal today, before many taxpayers and government officials revolted against prohibition. Yes I will agree that if any of these substances are abused, various negative effects can affect the user, but ... with marijuana (with the proper funding from the government) can be used for medical benefits, money used toward the "War on Drugs" can be used somewhere more of a necessity, ... and New York just passed a law this year (Wing). But with marijuana still being classified as a Sc...

• Word Count: 847
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... law enforcement also differs from one state to another. Some states have established programs that support the use of marijuana as a medicine. However, these programs contradict the laws of the federal government on the use of marijuana. Just like Colorado, Washington repealed their laws, which prohibited the recreational use of marijuana, through the Washington Initiative 502 (Caulkins, 2014). The move ... has made it possible to adopt legal regulations on marijuana use, which are contrary to the statutes established by the federal government. The establishment of laws and statutes that...

• Word Count: 666
• Approx Pages: 3
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... tops of the cannabis plant, is the most commonly used drug in the western world (Marijuana-Tobacco Facts). Although the use, distribution, and possession of marijuana are illegal under U.S. federal law there have been over 20 states that have legalized the use and distribution of marijuana for medicinal purposes. Furthermore, Colorado and Washington State have even legalized the use of ... imprisoned for marijuana-related crimes could be released from our already overcrowded prison system (Pot Legalization Changes). Opponents of the legalization of marijuana believe that our currently en...

• Word Count: 1081
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... -term future for them. He believes that because of this and the well known fact that the drug provides relief for these patients, the government is wrong in preventing the treatment from being available; as he puts it "a federal policy that prohibits physicians from alleviating suffering by prescribing marijuana for seriously ill patients is misguided, heavy handed and inhumane" (670). In the ... a common belief that legalization would result in a tremendous increase in recreational use of marijuana, yet then goes on to provide his own solution. The solution he proposes is for the govern...

• Word Count: 694
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... smoking marijuana is a fringe or deviant activity engaged only by those on the margins of American society. Marijuana is the recreational drug of choice for millions of middle class Americans. Government's surveys indicate more than 70 millions Americans have smoked Marijuana at some point in their lives. Marijuana is the third most popular recreational drug of choice for Americans, exceeded only ... amounts of heroin and cocaine. Cultivation of 100 marijuana plants or more carries a mandatory prison term of five years. Large scale marijuana cultivators and traffickers may be sentenced t...

• Word Count: 2773
• Approx Pages: 11
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... , the plants long standing history as a cash crop gave way to its new image as the "Devil's Weed." In 1930, the government founded the Federal Bureau of Narcotics who started a misinformation campaign against marijuana citing reports of insanity and violence known as "reefer madness." Because of this propaganda ... nation took a strong shift to the right and responded with harsher penalties for drug offenses. This continued through the Clinton administration with massive federal funding for the war on drugs. There are arguments for and against legalization. I believe the legalization of ...

• Word Count: 1147
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate