marijuana at some time in their lives. 18 million have smoked marijuana within the last

year, and ten million are regular smokers. Almost all of the people arrested for marijuana

are arrested for possession. And because of harsh federal and state penalties, these people

may be sentenced to lengthy jail terms. I think this is an abuse of drug laws in a great

nation. The marijuana laws need to be reformed, and the war against marijuana rethought.

One reason these laws need to be rethought is for medicinal purposes. Most people

think marijuana is a dangerous drug that can kill. This is true if taken in heavy doses but

that's also true for aspirin, alcohol and ibuprofen, which are all largely legal. Doctors have

discovered that under controlled and medical supervision, marijuana has is "one of the safest

therapeutically active substances known to man" says Dr. Grinspoon, at the University of

Florida. This is just one reason why it should be allowed for medical purposes. Marijuana

could be used for more useful things like schools, roads, and cancer research. Over half a

criminals. It takes 23,000 dollars to hold each prisoner in jail for one year, which is also

to marijuana hasn't gone up. Who is to question that the same wouldn't happen here?

with marijuana penalties since the mid 1970's. These studies show that "decriminalization

problem America today. Since 1976 marijuana possession has been allowed by the

prohibition against marijuana hasn't stopped marijuana use by teens, or anyone else.

government of the Netherlands. Investigations show that marijuana use or crime relating

tobacco, this is a tiny number. Should alcohol and tobacco be prohibited? Of course not,

marijuana possession. These overcrowded jails could be holding much more serious

Some common words found in the essay are:
University Florida, America Marijuana, , Netherlands Investigations, marijuana laws, serious criminals, marijuana possession, cancer patients, laws rethought, laws reformed, alcohol tobacco, smoked marijuana, marijuana hasn't,
Approximate Word count = 741
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)