Cannibis: A Controversy
Pot, dope, bud, Mary Jane, hemp, herb or whatever you call it, all these words are nicknames that relate to the ever so popular drug plant, marijuana or cannabis. In the 1960s, if you knew whether or not someone had ever smoked marijuana, you could make a pretty intelligent guess about his or her political views. These days, marijuana isn't quite as potent symbols of the cultural divide; still, for a big green bush, marijuana remains mighty controversial. Much of the recent controversy has surrounded government officials' heads concerning the legalization of marijuana for medical and social reasons. But if you go back only a hundred years, and look at the public's attitude toward the weed back then, the smoke clears. For the several thousand years humans have been acquainted with marijuana, they have considered it one of the hardiest and most versatile plants around. However, the question that still remains is whether if the drug plant should be legalized. I believe that it should. If marijuana were to be legalized, there would be a drastic reduction in the criminality associated with the drug. If it were to be sold legally, drug lords would no longer be of high power and importance for the access o
Many people believe in the 'Gateway' Thesis: Pot smokers are much more likely than non-users to graduate to harder drugs like cocaine and heroin. People believe this because statistics show that nearly all heroin users were initially marijuana smokers. In a recent survey conveyed by the National Institute on Drug Abuse found that marijuana smokers are thirty times more likely to use cocaine than those who've never smoked it. Other research confirms correlation between marijuana use and use of cocaine, heroin and the hallucinogens (LSD's). However, no one has been able to prove a causal link between the two. You could also establish a correlation between espresso and a higher incidence of heroin use, but no one would say espresso leads inevitably to heroin addiction. Anyway, it should be expected that more people who smoke pot move to harder drugs than those who've never smoked it, for they have already proven themselves curious enough about drugs to try pot. Many who are against the legalization of medical and social use of marijuana are against it because they feel that legalization of it can open 'a can of worms' (term for a complex or difficult problem) for social and legal issues. These are the concerns that legalization can make marijuana more available for abuse, especially by children. In addition, oppositionists state that there is still little proof that marijuana has any medicinal value. Scientific evidence overwhelmingly indicates that cannabis is substantially less harmful than alcohol. Alcohol is much more addictive than marijuana for marijuana does not contain lysergic acid diethylamide or LSD's unlike alcohol. Effects of cannabis include short-term memory loss, loss of co-ordination and concentration, but the effects wear off at a faster pace than alcohol. Also, if sudden emotional events occur, usually
Some common words found in the essay are:
Drug Abuse, Mary Jane, BC BC's, Police Association, Thesis Pot, Ministers Agriculture, Controversy Pot, law enforcement, harder drugs, legalization marijuana, cocaine heroin, marijuana legalized, social legal issues, medical social, readily available, available alcohol, legalizing marijuana, people believe, readily available alcohol, drugs cocaine heroin,
Approximate Word count = 1238
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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