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Marijuana arguments lack support, research

Published: Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Updated: Tuesday, December 8, 2009 06:12

Editors,

After reading the marijuana opinion column by Beth Mendenhall and the letter to the editor by Jacob Hughes, I find that neither person has given sufficient evidence to either side.

In regard to Mendenhall's column, she lacks effective support, though she does bring up interesting arguments. This issue of "legalizing marijuana" is something that should be put to rest. America is too conservative to take into account any views that are not part of the Christian agenda.

The letter to the editor by Hughes also lacks efficient support countering her argument simply stating that we are only allowed to pursue happiness and that marijuana should not be legal, because it only pertains to less than half of the population.

The closest thing to legalizing marijuana that America could possibly come close to is to decriminalize it. Such acts have been taken by the infamous Netherlands. While everyone says pot is legal in Amsterdam, that is a myth. The Netherlands has taken a proactive approach to a growing marijuana problem. They decriminalized marijuana and taxed the sale of it. The money that the government makes off of the sales goes toward the fight against hard drugs.

The claims made by Hughes about the importing of the drug raises a valid question of "where would we get it?" If the United States was to adopt a policy like that of the Netherlands, there are restrictions on the number of plants that can be grown and how much you are able to import. If you go beyond these restrictions, the law can prosecute you.

In the United States, Congress is looking at Senate Bill 714, The National Criminal Justice Commission Act of 2009, which seeks to initiate a comprehensive re-evaluation of America's drug and prison policies. This bill is headed by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va.

While the issue of legalizing marijuana will not be solved overnight, arguments like Mendenhall and Hughes' should be valued only if sufficient support is provided to back up their arguments.

-Brandon West, junior in secondary education

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6 comments

Donnie McLeod
Mon Dec 14 2009 19:30
Canada you know can be blamed for marijuana laws. It was a Christian of the right, a Canadian Episcopalian who concluded taking drugs was an immoral activity because it had no value. Like the people getting all their entertainment from watching Fox news or reading People magazine, an immoral activity because there is no value. On a scale where you measure brain neuron loss I suppose a joint is better than People magazine because the join leads to discussion, inquiry and learning. Any way blame Canada we gave America bishop Charles Henry Brent who concluded that morally drinking Alcohol was all right, doing dope was a sin. Do a google book search for The American Disease author David Musto.
Your name
Thu Dec 10 2009 13:30
Um - what is the difference between legalization and de-criminalization? Because I'm pretty sure that whatever you think it is, both authors are using the terms interchangeably.

"the infamous Netherlands"? Are you serious?

Your name
Tue Dec 8 2009 15:21
America is not all part the christian agenda,it may be the most practiced religion in the U.S. but i think alot of christians use or have used marijuana,and half of every other religion in the united states. people have a bad perspective of it because of salckers, but people who use marijuana can be a useful part of our society. it relieves stress and pain, and is not addicting, unllike cigarettes, that relieves stress for the five minutes that you are smoking it and are more harmful.
Ken G
Tue Dec 8 2009 14:55
"America is too conservative to take into account any views that are not part of the Christian agenda."

I do not agree, nor does the latest Gallop poll. According to that poll 44% of Americans favor complete legalization for medical and recreational use. That is up from 35% in 2005. It goes on to show that at the rate Americas position is changing in regards to marijuana re-legalization, by the end of Obama's first term the majority will favor complete re-legalization and regulation. The internet has educated the masses as to how costly our wacky war on weed really is.

For one, it costs us tax payers $30,000 per year to lock up a pot smoker. Pot smokers then come out of our jails and prisons gang banging racists, educated in organized crime. The harsh sentences do much more harm then good. Marijuana is not Heroin, it's about as addicting as Coffee. As a tax payer I don't want to waste my hard earned money housing pot smokers in our prisons, and I think that is why Americas outlook on marijuana is changing.

Regulation of marijuana, like alcohol and cigarettes is the only sane thing left to do with it. The Mexican drug cartels get 70 to 80 % of their illicit money from marijuana's prohibition. Taking that from them would mean billions in lost illicit funds. Americans would get billions back in new taxes, jobs, less prisoners, less law enforcement costs and a lot less street crime which is fueled by marijuana's prohibition.

As well, regulation makes it harder for kids to get it, drug dealers don't card. The latest studies say that kids can get marijuana easier then either cigarettes or alcohol.

My Name
Tue Dec 8 2009 14:24
"America is too conservative to take into account any views that are not part of the Christian agenda."

Genesis 1:29 "Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food."

Jesus Christ's Anointing Oil, Exodus 30:23 "12 and a half pounds of liquid myrrh, half as much of fragrant cinnamon, six and a quarter pounds of fragrant cane" Fragrant cane has been translated from "calamus" also known as "Keneh bosem" or the flowering tops of the cannabis plant aka marijuana.

"there are restrictions on the number of plants that can be grown"

It is legal to grow a "personal amount" of marijuana in Amsterdam, but nowhere near enough to supply coffee shops. The the cops turn a blind eye to large grow ops, taking money from criminal drug cartels who control the marijuana trade. Buying pot from illegal growers is legal in Amsterdam. Coffee shops cannot grow their own. It is convoluted and ridiculous. It absolutely COULD NOT work here, because we have REAL GANGS who fight with REAL GUNS for SALES TURF. Amsterdam does not have the violent gangs we do or the firearm proliferation.

The only way to end the criminal drug gangs is to take away their major source of revenue, marijuana. The only way to control marijuana is tax, regulate, put age limits, have potency controls, and create a legitimate market like alcohol. Anything else will fail just as bad as our current system is.

Mr No.
Tue Dec 8 2009 12:28
Go check out the tomes and tomes of available medical research and case studies that have already been done. I wouldnt expect these two authors to regurgitate all that data, but I would expect one side to completely disregard it.






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