Marijuana Legalization

1. Marijuana Legalization Eric Liston

2. What is Marijuana? • Marijuana is currently a highly illegal Schedule I drug, and accounts for over 44% of drug-related arrests. • Overall health effects deemed less harmful than alcohol use. • Has been growing around the world for thousandsof years, and hemp has been extracted from it for use in fibers, ropes, fabrics, etc.

3. History of Marijuana • Around the world, marijuana has been growing for thousands of years. • Has been used mostly for the hemp that can be harvested from the Cannabis genus, useful for food, clothing, fabrics, and rope. • Introduced and well known in The United States since the 1600s. • In 1850, The United States Census counted 8,327 hemp “plantations” (defined as minimum of 2,000 acre farms) growing cannabis hemp for cloth and canvas. • Cannabis was deemed so useful that in the early 1600s, the government encouraged growing of hemp; so much so that Virginia enacted a few “must grow” laws involving the growth of hemp; If you did not grow hemp during that time, you could be jailed.

4. A Change In Attitude • Public sentiment to marijuana began to change around the early 1910s, when the Mexican revolution spilled over the border into California, bringing with it Mexican people fond of smoking marijuana. • Tensions began to form between small farms and large farms employing Mexican labor. • California enacted the first state prohibition law in 1913, prohibiting “the preparation of hemp, or loco weed.” • Many states followed suit, including Oregon, Wyoming, Texas, Iowa, and Nevada.

5. Beginning of Widespread Prohibition • Prohibition expanded into the 1930s with the passage of the fifth version of the “uniform state narcotic act” in 1932. • By the mid-1930s, every state had some kind of marijuana regulation law. • In 1937, the “Marihuana Tax Act” made it illegal to possess or transfer cannabis, making marijuana illegal except for medical and industrial uses. • Marijuana now officially illegal.

6. The “War On Drugs” • On October 27, 1970, The United States Congress enacted the “Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act.” • Includes the Controlled Substances Act; Title II of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control act.” • Title II divided drugs into five different schedule. Schedule I drugs had to meet these three requirements • (A) The drug or other substance has a high potential for abuse. • (B) The drug or other substance has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States. • (C) There is a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug or other substance under medical supervision.

7. Marijuana Illegality • Marijuana was placed into Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, along with ecstasy, LSD, and various opiates and amphetamines. • Marijuana is more strictly controlled than cocaine, which is now considered a schedule II drug. • Possession of large amounts of marijuana often punished by mandatory 5 year prison sentences.

8. Some Facts About Marijuana • Marijuana is not addictive • Side effects are mild, much less harsh than those of cigarettes or alcohol abuse, which are both completely legal. • Marijuana-related arrests count for an incredible 44% of total drug-related arrests • Marijuana has been determined to have positive effects on individuals with illnesses such as depression, anxiety, and glaucoma.

9. So Why Is It Illegal? • Marijuana’s status as an illegal drug can be traced back to one main argument; the gateway drug theory • The gateway drug theory posits that users of marijuana and other low side-effect, non-addictive drugs (LSD, Ecstasy, etc.) have a higher probability of getting involved with other, “harder” drugs, such as cocaine, methamphetamine, or heroin.

10. Gateway Drug Theory Studies • An Australian study tracked 2,000 Victorian high school students for ten years. • The study found the individuals who smoked cannabis in their teens were fifteen times as likely to be using amphetamines in their 20s. • However, a 2002 study by RAND about Gateway Drug produced a differing result • RAND created a mathematical model simulating teen drug use, and found that Gateway Drug Theory was not consistent with their findings, that the simple pattern of drug use seen in this country was a more consistent explanation than marijuana leading to use of harder drugs.

11. Arguments for Marijuana Legalization • The main argument for marijuana legalization is the fiscal argument. • In California, the cost of law enforcement, incarceration, and the loss of potential tax revenue from legalizing and taxing marijuana have been estimated at about 10-14 billion dollars. • Legalization of marijuana countrywide could help fight the recession.

12. Medical Marijuana and Decriminalization by state

13. State Laws and Federal Prohibition of Marijuana • Though there are many states with medical marijuana laws and decriminalization laws, cannabis is still illegal at a federal level.

14. Proposition 19 and Public Attitude to Marijuana Legalization • California proposition 19 was a proposition to legalize, regulate, and tax marijuana in the state of California, and was defeated with a vote of 53.6% against, and 46.4% in favor. • This proposition, though it failed, still set a precedent for future propositions, such as the Oregon Cannabis Tax Act (OCTA), the Oregon legalization movement for 2012.

15. Closing Statement • Marijuana is a relatively harmless drug, and it is ridiculous that it is a schedule I drug. • Many states already have decriminalization and medical marijuana laws. • Marijuana has legitimate medical uses, and the cannabis plant can also be used for other things, such as harvesting hemp. • Far too much money is spent arresting relatively minor offenders of marijuana laws. • Legalization and regulation would take money out of drug cartel’s pocket, make marijuana safer, and taxation would be a great boost to the government