Ward 1

Ryan Ward
Duffy
Classical Argument Paper
January 6, 2016
The Not So Miracle Drug
Youve seen a green, leafy plant on the internet and news. Its popping up everywhere.
Social media, news stories, magazines, even on the voting ballots. What is this plant you say?
This is marijuana. The New Drug, the Miracle Cure, the Plant of the Future. These are all
names which have been given to marijuana. Recently, it has become more and more available to
the general public. Drug cartels are smuggling it and farms are growing it. Marijuana has been
inducted into the American culture whether we like it or not. In the past, marijuana has been
illegal, but now the status of this drug is being questioned. Although marijuana has some
medical advantages, the risks are too great. The status of marijuana should stay the same, illegal.
History has a tendency to repeat itself because we, as human beings, are slow to learn
from the past. Every time a new drug comes into society, we go through the same thing. Take
alcohol for example. In the 1940s, society saw alcohol as a bad influence upon itself. In order
to counteract this, prohibition was born. They outlawed alcohol and worked against its evils.
But eventually people got tired of working to thwart the outlaws. Sure society had more thinkers
and fewer citizens who were under the dangerous influence of alcohol, but they were tired of
fighting it. So prohibition was repealed and alcohol was welcomed back with open arms to
negatively influence and cloud citizens minds. Marijuana is taking the same steps through the
societal mind. The people saw marijuana as evil. The American view of marijuana was strong
prohibition. Prohibition describes current federal policy toward marijuana use, which seeks to
minimize or prevent the use of marijuana with strong legal sanctions and aggressive interdiction
of supply routes (Joffe 633). However, this is not the American view anymore. The new

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societal thinking is leaning toward legalization [Which] is an acknowledgement that the

government has no fundamental interest in an individuals use of a drug (Joffe 633).
But this needs to change. The legalization of marijuana would greatly impact our young
generations; only none of the impact would be good. Using the example of alcohol, we can see
this. Even though alcohol is illegal for persons under 21, the alcoholic-beverage industry
continues to appeal to young people these portrayals are extremely enticing to adolescents,
who are in the process of developing their own identities as well as refining their social skills
(Joffe 635). This creates an atmosphere in young people that alcohol will help them be part of
the group. It will be their way in. With the societal views of marijuana shifting, it too, is
becoming a way into the supposed cool crowd. The greatest danger of the gradual acceptance
of marijuana nationwide is that the lies of its proponents are taking root in a younger
generation [many] students believe the drug is safe, non-addictive and even healthy
(Bowmer 2). This is something that must not happen. It must be prevented. Because of its
increased use and the views that marijuana is something cool to do, it is a dangerous gateway
drug. The gateway effect of marijuana is well established in research. Use of alcohol,
tobacco, and marijuana are major risk factors for subsequent addiction and more extensive drug
use (Voth 4). As views about alcohol and tobacco changed, people became more relaxed around
them; which made it easier to take one more step to even more dangerous drugs. It is imperative
that this doesnt happen with marijuana. If it does, there will be one more thing to poison the
minds of adolescents and society.
Proponents argue that marijuana is shown to be much less addictive than cigarettes and
tobacco, yet they are legal and marijuana is not (Subramani 6). However, this isnt true.
Marijuana is addictive. It changes the brain chemistry in people so they feel good inside. We

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shouldnt have to rely on dangerous chemicals to get happiness. A common argument heard is
that marijuana isnt that dangerous, however a major research study reported that a single
cannabis joint could cause as much damage to the lungs as up to five regular cigarettes smoked
one after another ( Ramdas 6). I dont know if its just me, but that sounds pretty dangerous.
There has been a huge uproar in the past about cigarettes and how they cause cancer. If
marijuana is five times worse than cigarettes, how can it possibly be safe? Marijuana is anything
but safe and legalization will probably result in as many as 250,000 to over two million new
addicts (Voth 2). Currently, marijuana remains the most frequently used illegal drug [and]
use of marijuana has now been demonstrated to lead to higher utilization of the health-care
system (Voth 4). This makes it very taxing for medical staff who take care of marijuana related
incidents. These emergencies usually happen at night when people are illegally using marijuana.
One example is automobile accidents. Researchers at Columbia University found that drugs are
playing an increasing role in fatal auto accidents-28% of those in 2010, with marijuana
specifically contributing to 12% of that number, up from only 4% in 1999 (Ramdas). Examples
like this lead to longer hours which, in turn, give physically taxed and mentally worn down
medical professionals. When an emergency occurs and doctors are called upon, they need to be
able to address the situation with the sharpest of minds. They cant do that with all of the late
calls they get that rush them to the hospital to take care of another victim of marijuana. If the
legalization of marijuana becomes a reality, our overburdened medical system will not be able
to handle the drastic increase in the number of addicts (Voth 2).
Advocates of marijuana question what the health risks are. They say that these risks
dont really exist and that opponents of marijuana make them up. However, they are completely
wrong. Mental, affective, and behavioral changes are the most easily recognized consequences

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of marijuana use. Concentration, motor coordination, and memory are adversely impacted
The association of marijuana use with trauma and intoxicated motor vehicle operation is also
well established just as the statistic above has shown (Voth 4). In addition, smoked marijuana
contains double to triple the concentrations of tar, carbon monoxide, and carcinogens found in
cigarette smoke. Marijuana adversely impairs lung function [and] has been linked to head and
neck cancer (Voth 5). Marijuana has been found to cause all of these terrible health detriments
as well as an impaired ability to fight infection (Voth 5). The health risks of marijuana are no
mystery and those that say otherwise choose to ignore the information right in front of their face.
Those for marijuana argue that medical marijuana has made a lot of good in the world.
They show story after story about how medical marijuana has saved lives. While medical
marijuana has done some good in the United States, the risks involved with it are too great. The
federal government reports there still have not been enough clinic trials to demonstrate that its
benefit outweigh the risks; nor is it a medicine in the sense that it can be measured and
consistently ingested in a dosage that could be prescribed (Bowmer 1). The fact is marijuana is
addictive. And different people react differently to addictive substances. It might take some
people weeks of hard use to become addicted to a substance, while others can become addicted
on the first try. There are infinite possibilities within these two extremes. Doctors dont have
enough addiction training to be able to prescribe a dosage of medical marijuana without
significant risk. A medical professional could inadvertently give a patient an addiction to
marijuana; which consists of both a physical dependence and a psychological habituation
(Voth 4). Giving a patient a drug that has [such] a high potential for abuse is not a good idea
for our medical field (Voth 4).

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We cannot fall to the enticing words of the proponents of marijuana. We must stay strong
with our laws. We must not allow this evil to spread any deeper into our world. Because that is
what it is - evil. It is a substance that alters the chemistry of the brain and body. Something that
tears down the hard work we have done to build ourselves up. It brings cancers, tumors, blood
clots, and many more illnesses.

Marijuana is responsible for more and more automobile

accidents. The statistics on marijuana continue to increase, however, they do not show benefits
from the drug. They are full of detriments that marijuana is bringing into our society; and we
need to stop it. The legalization of marijuana wouldnt make the problems disappear; it would
make them grow exponentially. It wouldnt create a safer society, but a society that is controlled
by harmful substances. Society does not want this. We are trying to create a society that people
want to live in. A friendly, safe, caring place. Marijuana doesnt fit into that society. And so it
must be done away with. Marijuana must stay illegal.

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Works Cited
Bowmer, Rick. "In Our Opinion: Marijuana Should Not Be Made Legal." Deseret News 11 Oct.
2013, Editorials sec. Deseret News. Web. 4 Dec. 2015.
Ghosh, Palash. "The Pros and Cons of Drug Legalization in the U.S." International Business
Times. IBT Media Inc., 19 Oct. 2010. Web. 6 Nov. 2015.
Joffe, Alain, and W. Samuel Yancy. "Legalization Of Marijuana: Potential Impact On Youth."
Pediatrics 113.6 (2004): e632-e638. Academic Search Premier. Web. 4 Nov. 2015.
Ramdas, Rameysh. "Should Marijuana Be Legalized?." India Currents 28.5 (2014): 6.
MasterFILE Complete. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.
Subramani, Mani. "Should Marijuana Be Legalized?." India Currents 28.5 (2014): 6.
MasterFILE Complete. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.
Voth, Eric A. "Should Marijuana Be Legalized As A Medicine? No, It's Dangerous And
Addictive." World & I 9.6 (1994): 93. MasterFILE Complete. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.