Research
Jennifer Irving
English 121
08 November 2020
“I find it quite ironic that the most dangerous thing about weed is getting caught with it.”-
Bill Murray. Marijjuana has been a controversial topic within the United States for many years
and recently it has been legalized either just medically or both medically and recreationally in
thirty out of fifty states within America. Recreational marijuana across the United States should
be legalized because it creates economical gain, it saves taxpayers money, and is linked to less
crime compared to the long list of narcotics we are familiar with.
To begin, economic progression is a vital part of a city and the people within it.
Throughout states that have legalized marijana in the past decade, there have been many visible
economic benefits. According to research, in 2018, the National Cannabis Society quoted the US
Senator and had multiple facts that prove these economic changes.
“The legalization of cannabis has significant implications for state economies, as well as the
national economy. The industry totaled more than $8 billion in sales in 2017, with sales
estimated to reach $11 billion this year and $23 billion by 2022.2 There were more than 9,000
active licenses for cannabis businesses in the U.S. in 2017, with the industry employing more
than 120,000 people.”
This quote exemplifies that since cannabis has been legalized, it has positively affected the
economy by creating billions of dollars in sales every year. The quote also proves that this is one
of the many reasons why marijana is legalized in the first place. Many people knew that it would
create monumental amounts of money in their local economies. People create negative stigma
around it when it actually is very beneficial in the economy. Secondly, not only does marajuana
add money to the economy, but it has created millions of job opportunities. To have a steady
economy you need a few main things that keep it stable. Cannabis legalization has improved
jobs, tax, and economic revenue. In the previous article by The National Cannabis Society, it
goes in more depth about this topic.
“The growth of the cannabis economy presents opportunities for greater job creation, more tax
revenue, and better patient care. But current conflicts between state and federal law threaten to
impede social and economic growth. Going forward, lawmakers and regulators should prioritize
solutions that promote greater research into the health effects of cannabis and reduce regulations
that restrict the industry’s ability to conduct business.”
The quote talks about other ways that legalization of cannabis is good for the economy and
community. Unemployment is a huge part that determines if our country is doing well or not.
Since legalization, there have been so many jobs created to bring the unemployment rate down.
This is huge for states that had been struggling in the past. Overall, cannabis has been a
detrimental part of the economy. Not only has it created millions of job opportunities, but it has
made billions of dollars in revenue.
Continuing on, legalizing cannabis saves every American money in taxes. Tax money
each year is wasted in keeping people who smoke marijuana locked up. Cody Jorgensen from
Boise State found,
“More than 608,000 of those arrests were for marijuana possession only. This means that law
enforcement is primarily arresting recreational cannabis users, not dealers. Many of those
arrested will end up incarcerated, exacerbating the fact that tax monies supporting the
incarceration of nonviolent drug offenders are significant. Costs range between $30,000-$35,000
per year to house an inmate.”
If we did not arrest and hold inmates for marijana possession, it could save a minimum of 18
billion dollars yearly. This could open up space in prisons to house people that have committed
bigger and more detrimental crimes. This quote shows that giving specific statistics give a
realistic number of how much money we could save as a country if we legalize cannabis, not to
mention we would open space for people who are much more deserving of being in jail like
rapists and murders. Also, with legal marijuana laws, Americans can save a lot of money by
saving on medicaid cost according to Abigail Miller from UF health
“The researchers further estimated that if all states in the U.S. had a ...marijuana law in the year
of 2014, savings on Medicaid prescriptions would have been near $1 billion. The researchers
conducted a similar study of medical marijuana laws and prescriptions filled by Medicare
beneficiary”
The quote is saying that if all states were legalizing cannabis medically and recreationally then
they would save more on healthcare and benefit the people as well as their own tax money. There
has been studies and math done to prove that it could have major effects on the economy and tax
income. The second quote further proves that there are so many ways legal marijana can save
Americans money and provide people the care they need. Tax on healthcare could drop by
billions of dollars which is huge to the people who need it. In conclusion, millions of tax dollars
are saved every year because of things like the money going into arresting innocent people and
helping clinically ill people get care that is affordable. These have been some of the biggest
controversial topics and it is clear that cannabis legalization is a definite solution.
On the other hand, there are many clear and proven reasons on why marijuana’s negative
stigma is just a hoax, however, there are still people who see it as an illegal drug with no purpose
but to get people high. There has been articles and research done on how cannabis can negatively
affect performance in school. In an article written by the National Institution of Drug Abuse,
there are some facts that show marijana can “slow down” the brain, as most people expect it to.
“Research has shown that marijuana’s negative effects on attention, memory, and learning can
last for days or weeks after the effects of the drug wear off, depending on the person’s history
with the drug. Consequently, someone who smokes marijuana daily may be functioning at a
reduced intellectual level most or all of the time. Considerable evidence suggests that students
who smoke marijuana have poorer educational outcomes than their nonsmoking peers.”
This states that the use of marijana can indeed have negative impacts on someone's brain,
especially if you use it daily. Things like memory and attention are important while learning and
working in the normal life of a person. It is seen as people who smoke marijana have lower IQs
and can turn out to be bad people or even felons on certain occasions. Although this can affect
how people act or retain information, most people are not taking high enough doses to feel this
effect. There will always be people who abuse the drug, but most of the people who are using it
medically and recreationally don’t feel the need to do this. The study has also only found these
results for the specific group they were testing, you can not generalize this to every person who
uses cannabis. Everyone who uses it does it for unique reasons. Not to mention that weed is one
of the most unharmful drugs compared to the other long list of narcotics. Marijana is not a drug
that makes you aggressive and you can not overdose on marijana. Not one person has ever died
specifically just from marijana. The rates of domestic abuse in homes is significantly higher for
people that have drinking problems than people that smoke. It is overall just a safer and more
friendly drug that doesn’t bring the worst of people out. All in all, even though marijuana is
considered a class one drug, it is a lot healthier and has a lot less affects to the body and mind
compared to other drugs.
Although there is a valid counter argument, legalizing marijuana can actually lower the
crime rate. According to studies from the Reason Foundation, it was found that the crime rate has
been way less since this legalization. “From this evidence, it is clear that, while legalization does
not necessarily eliminate illegal production, distribution and sale of marijuana, it tends to
diminish it dramatically” This quote is focusing on how research has shown that the crime rate
that has to do with marijuana lowers dramatically. The article also says that “…studies have
generally found no increase in property crime around medical marijuana dispensaries. A 2017
study found that crime rates fell significantly in the neighborhood of dispensaries.” Overall,
these two quotes show the real truth about the crime that comes from marijuana which is very
low and shows that marijuana is not tied up with large amounts of crime.
All in all, the stigma of marijana is continued to be seen as negative even though there
has been proven facts of economic growth and mass amounts of tax revenue. The stigma comes
from the opposing side because for decades it has been named as a class one drug. People have
been incarcerated for just having it with them. There have been billions of dollars created within
the economy as well as in taxes. The unemployment rates have gone down by a noticeable
amount. If we can continue to see the benefits in the economy from the legalization of cannabis
and start to put the negative stereotypes we typically hear behind us, we can grow as a country
and help people who are in need of this vital medicine.
Works Cited
U.S Senator Martin Hienrich. “The National Cannabis Economy.” Joint Economic
Committee Democrats , 2018,
www.jec.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/bf473de9-98bb-4465-a310-de992926409a/national
-cannabis-economy-final.pdf.
The Blue Review. “How Marijuana Legalization Would Benefit the Criminal Justice
System.” The Blue Review , 19 May 2020,
www.boisestate.edu/bluereview/how-marijuana-legalization-would-benefit-the-criminal-ju
stice-system/.
Juliane Morris. “Does Legalization of Maraijuana Reduce Crime?” Reason Foundation ,
2018, reason.org/wp-content/uploads/does-legalizing-marijuana-reduce-crime.pdf.
“Medical Marijuana Laws Could Be Saving Taxpayers Money.” UF Health Podcasts ,
podcasts.ufhealth.org/medical-marijuana-laws-could-be-saving-taxpayers-money/.
National Institute on Drug Abuse. “How Does Marijuana Use Affect School, Work, and
Social Life?” National Institute on Drug Abuse , 11 June 2020,
www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/marijuana/how-does-marijuana-use-affe
ct-school-work-social-life.
U.S Senator Martin Hienrich. “The National Cannabis Economy .” Joint Economic
Committee Democrats , 2018,
www.jec.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/bf473de9-98bb-4465-a310-de992926409a/national
-cannabis-economy-final.pdf.
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