The Boss: May 2009

The decriminalization of marijuana is a controversial topic among the American public, as well as among politicians. The unwavering opposition of the United States government for the last 50 years to marijuana makes many politicians deem supporting decriminalization a risk to their reputation among some of the more closed minded politicians and general public. With the support of reputed health reports, astonishing government funding statistics, some congressmen like Barney Frank (Republican, MA) are taking a stand for the right to light up.
An estimated $14 Billion dollars a year are spent by law enforcement tracking and arrested small “criminals” – pot smokers. The 14 million (Norml) people who smoke regularly (at least once per week) in the privacy of their own homes are not harming our society. Law enforcement seems to be spending its resources inefficiently – marijuana is as popular as ever, despite the “War on Drugs”. Decriminalization of marijuana would allow these citizens to not fear police officers. Decriminalization would also give our government more flexibility with law enforcement budgets, allowing the drug units of the police force to focus on stopping the use of more dangerous drugs such as crack-cocaine, meth, and heroin.
From a health standpoint, marijuana is relatively harmless. No one has overdosed – EVER – on pot, while thousands of overdoses on alcohol and other drugs occur a year. About 50,000 (Norml) people die every year due to alcohol poisoning, and around 400,000 a year from tobacco smoking. This is not to say that marijuana smoke does not harm the lungs, but it is not physically addictive like nicotine, and is significantly more expensive and is commonly smoked in much smaller amounts. Vaporizing marijuana, a technique in which the THC and other cannabioids become vapor and are inhaled, has been developed and has proved to the most efficient and healthy way to consume marijuana. On November 9th, 2008, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, published an article on their website stating “The potential health risks associated with cannabis are less than those associated with alcohol and do not justify the continued criminalization of the plant or its users, according to a report published last week by The Beckley Foundation - an independent British think-tank that analyzes drug use and drug policy.” It is clear that marijuana is as safe as, if not safer than, any of the other drugs you’ll find getting people arrested for. From both a health and social standpoint, marijuana use is socially accepted and should not be treated as a crime.
Marijuana arrests manifest in widespread disrespect for the law, especially among youths.
If a teenage pot smoker can’t see the reason marijuana is illegal, he or she may grow to think that any and all laws do not have real validity. Police officers should be approachable and friendly guidance figures among children, not disrespected bad guys. The decriminalization of marijuana would increase the public respect for the law, especially among teenagers.
Due to marijuana’s growing medical acceptance in America, it will soon be seen by the public as a harmless, normal drug to be using. It, like any other drug, does have potential for abuse however, and this is a problem to be dealt with among families and on a personal level, like with alcohol or other drugs. The government does not need to treat marijuana differently because of history. It is time for a change - decriminalization.