Analyzing Viewpoints Regarding the Legalization of Marijuana

Conflicting Viewpoints
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Conflicting Viewpoints
Marijuana legalization is a polarizing issue in America due to the loud public opinion on the matter. While public opinion has changed over the past decades, there is still a large part of the population against the drug's legalization. A survey estimates 53% in favor of the legal use of marijuana, while 44% are opposed. This essay analyzes the marijuana debate by using my perspective on the issue as a guide.
My opinion on marijuana legalization is that we should be open to explore new information brought forth by science. There is enough evidence to suggest that the medicinal use of marijuana outweighs any possible risks and disadvantages. For instance, the drug can be helpful for children and adults in dealing with health conditions such as cancer, epilepsy, and Alzheimer's. The same sentiments are shared among my age groups making up 68% to legalize marijuana CITATION PEW15 \l 1033 (CENTER, 2015). Millennials are at the forefront of advocating for marijuana legalization, making the highest percentage of any age cohort. However, over the past decades, the support for legalization is rising thanks to new scientific information that backs the claim.
One of the pros of marijuana legalization is its benefit to the economy. It is estimated that legalizing marijuana will help the federal government save $13.7 billion in costs that come from prohibition enforcement. Apart from saving, tax revenues will increase in states that decide to legalize the drug. For instance, the states of Colorado and Washington have received buoyant tax revenues over the years since legalizing the drug. According to Arcview Market Research and BDS Analytics, n 2019, sales in the US were $12.2 billion and projected to rise to $31.1 billion by 2024. Therefore, it makes sense for states to contemplate making marijuana legal to help get extra support for their economies CITATION MRI21 \l 1033 (KRISHNA & BOYLE, 2021).
Medicinal use of marijuana is the second reason for my support of legalization. The most common use of marijuana is for pain control for patients dealing with certain health conditions. Patients with conditions such as anxiety and insomnia report the benefit of using marijuana to reduce the uneasy feeling that comes from the conditions. However, marijuana is not potent enough to deal with severe pain, such as post-surgical pain or a broken bone CITATION Pet20 \l 1033 (Grinspoon, 2020). Its effectiveness lies in muscle relaxing and relieving pain from fibromyalgia, endometriosis, interstitial cystitis. Patients can also use it to relieve distress such as nausea, glaucoma, and weight loss journey. I chose this reason because I believe there is a huge potential to use marijuana in medicine.
Marijuana is a much safer drug than the prescribed medications for certain conditions. It is less addictive and nearly impossible to overdose on it. Therefore, there is an argument that its use will help to combat the opioid crisis in the US by becoming a safer alternative. This reason argues that someone who seeks opioid painkillers might as well try medical marijuana instead. In a study from 1999 through 2010, 10 States were observed since they establ...