Legalizing Marijuana

In an article recently written by one of my classmates, labeled As the Machine Turns (http://americanperceptions.blogspot.com/), she addresses the issue of legalizing marijuana. This has been an issue for as long as I can remember, being debated in high school classrooms, and now in college as well. I also am not a pot smoker, but I do agree with many of the points that she brings up. First of all, a lot of people smoke marijuana anyway, and I know that’s not a good reason to legalize it (we can make killing people legal right just because a lot of people do it), but it definitely would open a door. That could be good or bad; bad in the sense that if we are legalizing marijuana, why can’t we legalize other drugs? It could be good because it is already used for some medical purposes


My mother always used to say that if you get into marijuana, it is a gateway to all the other drugs that are worse. My peer also addresses this issue and I agree; marijuana itself is not the gateway, it’s the market where it is sold. Some of the drugs in the medical market that are already legal seem like maybe they should be the ones illegal! There are a lot more addictions to prescribed drugs than I think a lot of people realize.


Like she said, “Hundreds of thousands of Americans die every year from tobacco, prescription drugs, and alcohol, yet there has never been 1 single death EVER from consuming marijuana.” I also agree that, when I grow up and have kids, if they’re going to be out doing whatever they want, I would rather have them smoke a joint and chill on a couch all night long instead of getting completely drunk and trying to drive, or drive with someone drunk and end up killing themselves or someone else. Times are changing and I think it’s time for a change on legalizing marijuana.