Legalization Of Marijuana

3 Pages 656 Words

One day about eight years ago, Judge James P. Gray held a press conference on the steps of the Santa Ana courthouse where he served and still serves as a California superior-court trial judge. He spoke out that day against U.S. drug policy, referring to the war on drugs as "our biggest failure" and calling for the legalization of marijuana. Many in his community, from the sheriff to the deputy district attorney expressed outrage. Some questioned the judge's integrity, and Gray admitted that his speaking out would probably keep him from being considered for future judicial positions. But he had seen too much; he felt compelled to take a stand. Judge James P. Gray is only one of the many citizens of the United States that believes Americas “War On Marijuana” is a loosing battle that is both immoral and dangerous.
Those who favor the criminalization of marijuana have been telling the public the same story for over 60 years of prohibition. Marijuana is harmful and a gateway to every other substance known to man. Alcohol and tobacco use already cause enough damage to society, so why legalize another intoxicant? Furthermore, critics of the medical use of marijuana say there are enough traditional medications to help patients and that permitting the medical use of marijuana sends the wrong message to the public. Well America, you are being lied to!
Marijuana is far less dangerous than alcohol or tobacco. It fails to inflict the types of serious health consequences these two legal drugs cause. Around 50,000 people die each year from alcohol poisoning and more than 400,000 deaths each year are attributed to tobacco smoking. By comparison, marijuana is nontoxic and cannot cause death by overdose. According to the European medical journal, The Lancet, "The smoking of cannabis, even long-term, is not harmful to health. It would be reasonable to judge cannabis as less of a threat than alcohol or tobacco.” Additionally, for a si...