My Thoughts on Marijuana

I had to write a short speech concerning a debatable topic recently, and I wanted to share it with you guys. So there.

Inscribed on the stone of the temple of Apollo in the city of Delphi are the words “nothing in excess” and “know thyself.” While being applicable to pretty much anyone in any situation, I think in the modern world, with currently 15 states having legalized marijuana, it is suited perfectly for the growing availability of addictive drugs.

Former Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders calls for it's legilazation on CNN, saying "It's not a toxic substance." She wasn't necessarily saying that it has no side-effects, but that the ones that do exist aren't typically life threatening. It's nearly impossible to overdose on marijuana. It would take over 8000 joints (marijuana cigarettes) to overdose on marijuana, and even if someone was trying, they would pass out before they got there. According to a study done by the U.S. Government, a grand total of zero people died from marijuana in 2007. The CDC has reported that marijuana, as an underlying cause, caused 26 deaths between 1999 and 2007.

According to the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids, approximately 400,000 people die annualy from their own smoking, with another 50,000 from second hand smoke. That's over 1000 deaths daily, related directly to smoking tobacco.

The reason there is such a drastic difference between the death toll for tobacco and marijuana is actually due to chemicals used to grow the plants. Both are natural substances, but while tobacco is typically grown with pesticides, herbicides, and other chemicals to help with crop production, high quality marijuana is typically grown chemical free. After harvesting, tobacco is mixed with even more harmful substances such as tar and other fillers that cause cancer when burned and inhaled. Marijuana is left in it's natural state after being picked and smoked as is.

Marijuana is also known to have medicinal properties. It is used to treat chronic illnesses, arthritis, headaches and migraines, etc. throughout the United States and many countries world wide.

I believe that due to the aforementioned reasons and statistics, marijuana should be legalized in all States for medicinal purposes.