Research Paper on the Banning of Marijuana

Introduction

The association of substances and drugs with harmful physiological effects has led to the action by the NCAA to ban the use of such substances, and their possession can attract legal charges. One of such substances is marijuana, a plant which has been widely applied for recreational and medical purposes. Cannabis has been associated with adverse effects such as paranoia, red eyes, and impaired judgment. Other effects include reduced mental ability, addiction, and behavioral problems. Objections have been voiced on the banning of cannabis as many argue the plant acts as a drug for medicinal purposes, spiritual aspects and also for recreation. Besides, legalization has been viewed as a way of easing the economic pressure among the unemployed individuals. When the benefits and negative impacts are weighed, marijuana poses adverse effects which have led to banning amidst the legalization campaigns.

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Health Benefits

One of the claims made for the legalization of marijuana is that it leads to health benefits. For example, the use of marijuana has been associated with aiding users to regulate body weight (Sansone & Sansone, 2014). Currently, high obesity levels have been observed among the population in the USA due to the high intake of junk foods. In this case, the claim that marijuana can reduce weight has been one of the reasons explained by individuals who seek legalization. Another health benefit associated with cannabis is the ability to minimize nausea. Medical practitioners for chemotherapy report that most of the cancer patients report nausea as one of the side effects. Claims that marijuana relieves nausea have been used to advocate for the legalization of marijuana. It is also evident that ailing individuals experience loss of appetite. Since marijuana increases the urge for taking large quantities of meals, it has been suggested as one of the cheap ways of helping such patients gain appetite.

Although marijuana has been associated with health benefits, the adverse effects associated with its intake validates my position of supporting the ban. For example, the use of cannabis is associated with anxiety disorders which can trigger stress (Kedzior & Laeber, 2014). Other short-term effects include impaired attention which can lead to accidents when the user abuses marijuana while operating automotive. Continued use is associated with grave health repercussions which further present a clear explanation for its banning. For instance, long-term usage results in liver diseases such as hepatitis B and is also associated with disorders of heart, lungs, and vasculature. Besides, its benefits on minimizing nausea has been contradicted by the reports that long-term use leads to cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome which causes vomiting and nausea episodes. On the respiratory system, heavy intake of marijuana initiates coughing, wheezing and septum production leading to chronic bronchitis. Such negative health repercussions surpass the health benefits, confirming the dangerous nature of marijuana and why it should remain as a banned substance.

Economic Advantages

Another claim behind the campaign for the legalization of marijuana is its ability to create jobs and generate revenue (Hajizadeh, 2016). Although marijuana remains banned in most of the stares in the USA, cartels have been present who plant, import or distribute marijuana in major cities. Marijuana sales attract a lot of profit as there is no legal fees in the process of importing or taxes charged to the users. Besides, the industry offers job opportunities as it creates positions such as distributors, peddlers, and workers involved in packaging. When the employment is analyzed, most of the young population is unemployed or assume jobs with minimum wages. Legalization of marijuana is seen as a way of creating legal jobs, helping in the reduction of the number of unemployed people. Besides, imposing a tax on marijuana activities is viewed as one of the ways of creating revenue for states. Therefore, legalizing marijuana is seen as a way of improving the present economic situation by introducing a new wave of employment schemes.

Although marijuana presents a perfect scheme towards self-actualization, the health of citizens should always be taken as a priority, necessitating the continuation of its ban. Engaging in such employment would impact negatively on health leading to increased medical attention as the rate of abuse will increase (Leyton, 2016). Also, the issue of tax will lead to the reduced income after the economic privileges have been affected by the tax. The black market will still exist as the high taxes currently witnessed will scare dealers from legalizing their activities. Episodes of tax evasion will be present reducing the amount of the achieved tax. Another factor which contributes to the possibility of the continued presence of the black market is the personality of most of the people in marijuana schemes. Currently, the schemes are filled with gangsters and other people with tainted personalities. If they have succeeded in operating illegally, chances are that they will continue operating underground leading to low tax contrary to the expectations.

Risk Assessment

Also, marijuana is considered less harmful compared to other drugs which are legal. For example, alcohol and tobacco are claimed to cause a high level of harm to users and other members of the public. With such claims, the banning of marijuana has been attributed to the negative attributes connected to its users. Research carried out by Lachenmeir and Rehm (2015) on the risk posed by tobacco, alcohol, and cannabis confirmed the presence of low risks on the usage of marijuana while tobacco and alcohol showed high risk. From the results, it has been concluded that the effects of tobacco and alcohol have been underrated because they are on the list of legalized substances. Marijuana users cite stigmatization schemes associated with cannabis use while tobacco and alcohol users are exempted from the demeaning sentiments although they pose high adverse health risks even to the surrounding people.

Although research has confirmed that cannabis is safer than alcohol, marijuana has the more damaging effect to groups such as the youth, an aspect which supports my position of a continued ban. For example, the teenagers who are abuse marijuana display a substantial possibility of dropping out of educational facilities compared to students who take alcohol (McCaffrey, Pacula, Han, & Ellickson, 2010). Although marijuana is not a gateway drug, the youths who abuse cannabis display a high likelihood of overdosing other drugs such as cocaine and heroin. It should also be noted that marijuana shows a more extended stay in the systems compared to alcohol which means that flashbacks can occur to chronic users when in delicate positions like when driving, posing a threat to lives of other road users. Thus, marijuana has more adverse effects when vulnerable youths are considered validating banning action.

Conclusion

From the analysis, there are valid claims which have been made supporting the lifting of the ban on marijuana by NCAA. For example, marijuana has been associated with health benefits such as minimizing nausea, increasing appetite among patients and its ability to help reduce weight. Besides, legalization of marijuana is seen as one way of creating job opportunities to counteract the high rate of unemployment. When compared with tobacco and alcohol which are legal, cannabis has been found to pose minimal health risks. However, contradictory information has been provided validating the illegal position of marijuana in the society. For example, its abuse has been associated with the development of heart and respiratory diseases. Although legalization can ease the economic pressure, chances are the current dealers will continue with their underground deals evading tax. Since the negative impacts surpass the claimed benefits, marijuana should remain illegal as termed by NCAA.

References

Hajizadeh, M. (2016). Legalizing and Regulating Marijuana in Canada: A Review of Potential Economic, Social, and Health Impacts. International Journal of Health Policy and Management, 5(8), 453-456.

Kedzior, K., & Laeber, L. (2014). A Positive Association Between Anxiety Disorders and Cannabis Use or Cannabis Use Disorders in The General Population-A Meta-Analysis of 31 Studies. BMC Psychiatry, 14, 136.

Lachenmeir, D., & Rehm, J. (2015). Comparative Risk Assessment of Alcohol, Tobacco, Cannabis and Other Illicit Drugs Using the Margin of Exposure Approach. Scientific Reports, 5, 8126.

Leyton, M. 2016. Legalizing Marijuana. Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, 41(2), 75-76.

McCaffrey, D., Pacula, R., Han, B., & Ellickson, P. (2010). Marijuana Use and High School Dropout: The Influence of Unobservables. Health Econ, 19(11), 1281-1299.

Sansone, R., & Sansone, L. (2014). Marijuana and Body Weight. Innov Clin Neurosci, 11(7-8), 50-54.