Vivien Thomas

Legalize It!

Julius McKinley
ECPI



A major issue that many people are facing in America today is the great debate on the legalization of marijuana.   Although many people do not agree with the thought of legalizing what is now becoming one of the more popular drugs, both for medical and recreational use, the number of people jumping on board the legalization train is growing by leaps and bounds.   When people actually sit down and look at how much it will help versus harm things, peoples opinions change.   Not only will it generate revenue on both a state and national level, it will help reduce crime and the over crowding of our jails, take a burden off of our law enforcement officials, and it will also help a vast majority of people who can greatly benefit from all of the medical uses that marijuana has to offer.   The main issue is this, why are people fighting something that will do more good than would cause more harm for the greater masses in our society, when all we have to do is learn more about it and let go of biased opinions and simply do what is right for the greater masses by understanding that it will reduce crime, generate income and produce jobs, as well as help countless people who need it for its many medicinal benefits.
With the growing crime rate that many areas are facing in American today, a great number of people feel that if marijuana were to become legal, the rate of crime would continue to grown at an exponential rate.   However, with two states passing laws that legalize recreational use of marijuana have evidence to disprove that argument.   For example, in Denver, Co, “Data from the Denver Police Department showed that violent crimes, which include homicide, sexual assault, robber, and aggravated assault fell by 6.9% in the first quarter of 2012, compared with the same period in 2013.   As for property crimes such as burglary, larceny, auto theft, theft from motor vehicles and arson, dropped by 11.1% for that same time period.”...