The war against the use and possession of marijuana either for medical use or recreational purposes has been a major national controversial issue. This is a controversial issue, considering the fact that for all these years of the fight against the use, there have always been two sides or views concerning the law and fight. While some see the economic benefit of legalizing marijuana, others see the problems such as the violence and crimes that could be associated with overuse of marijuana. Whether such problems will overwhelm the economic benefits of legalizing marijuana remains to be seen.
Opponents believe that legalizing recreational marijuana can create host of social problems such as psychological, psycho-social problems, or inability to perform the social behaviors. It could also create health issues such as affecting the brain functioning, cancer causing contents and affecting the immune system. The major issues are that of the violence and crimes. The perception as regards to this issue is that social impact from the legalization of the recreational marijuana will still outweigh the economic benefits. Will this be true? This is the question we need to ask again. This is simply because of the facts that as the government enforce laws that prevent the illegal use of the marijuana, if we evaluate the cost of enforcing such laws which is about 20 billion per annum for government (Sledge, 2013), wouldn't it cost so much hence creating economic losses?
If marijuana is legalized and controlled, there are several benefits that will be associated from both the medical, social and economic perspective. The medical use for chronic pain management is an important aspect and benefit marijuana could provide, but this is based more on physician's written certification before a patient can be directed to use it. The problem with this is that if marijuana is legalized, some patients might not conform to the required laws or regulation which involves written certification from the physician for the use.
The problem with this legalization issue is that marijuana use might turn out to be an excessive or addiction for some patients especially those that are with chronic pain. We also need to consider the aspect of easy and fast 'addiction to use' by marijuana users. The social consideration as regards to the use of marijuana relates more to the abuse people get involved in hence creating the risk of various forms of social issues such as violence and crimes (Johns, 2001).
One fact we have to understand as regards to the social effects of marijuana is that we are all humans with basic dignity and freedoms. We should be able to use our senses appropriately to make important decision as regards to how to use marijuana. It is proper for us as humans to understand that marijuana is just like alcohol and must be used correctly and appropriately to prevent any form of abuse.
The economic point of view still supports the point stated earlier as regards to the fact that the government spends more on enforcing the state's marijuana policy (Sledge, 2013). An example of such money spending on enforcing law is of incarcerating drug offenders (Cate, Long). All these contribute to associated losses regarding illegalizing marijuana. Seeing it from the aspect of job availability, a non-violent offender released from prison might find it difficult to get employment simply because of such that is caused by marijuana policy (Cate, Long). The effect of this on the economy is lost productivity (Cate, Long). The other reason why legalizing recreational marijuana is important is for the fact that this could help the government to generate rather than lose more money. Federal, state and local government tax revenue has been estimated to be about 8.7 billion dollar per month if allowed the legalization of the recreational marijuana.
States like Washington and Colorado that have legalized the use of marijuana recreationally have been found to generate about $1.9 billion per month from marijuana taxing (From the State of Washington). If States are able to generate funds from this marijuana market, It is a plus considering the aspect of what has been lost on enforcing the law against the marijuana use. Another merit this could provide is that it will let the government to have the understanding of the marijuana market simply because such acts on cannabis will help create a legal market for it. None will be afraid of growing and legally like what we see in the picture above.
As a result of such act, the government can impose taxes on each stage of the cannabis production and ensuring that laws are being enforced to prevent it from getting to the underage. This act of creating a legal marijuana market has an economic effect of creating employment for people that will be there to monitor and perform all processes in the market.
Conclusion
Legalizing the use of marijuana for recreational purposes is a long awaited wish for several proponents of legal marijuana use while opponents still argue against this simply because of the social impacts such believed to be associated with the use of such. After looking at both sides, I strongly believed that there is an urgent need for the legalization of marijuana for the recreational purposes and the government should ensure that there are strict regulations guiding the use.
Work Cited
Alison Vekshin. Legal-marijuana trend spreads in West as more states weigh votes. Bloomberg News. The Columbian. October 8, 2013. Web. 20 October, 2013.
Caroline, Fairchild. Legalizing marijuana would generate billions in additional tax revenue annually. The Huffington post. Huff Post Business. 20 April, 2013. Web. 21 October, 2013.
Cate, Long. Decriminalize the marijuana business. MuniLand. REUTERS. October 17, 2013. Web. 20 October, 2013.
Sledge, Matt. Marijuana Prohibition Now Costs The Government $20 Billion A Year: Economist. Politics. 20 April, 2013. Web. 4 November, 2013.
Shadee Ashtari. Majority of Texas Voters Want to legalize marijuana. The Huffington Post. HUFF POST. Politics. 08 October, 2013. Web. 2O October, 2013.
Tony Nitti. Understanding the impact of legalized recreational marijuana on state tax revenue. Taxes. Forbes. September 24, 2013. Web. 21 October, 2013.
