Legalize Medical Marijuana

The legalization of medical marijuana would alleviate the suffering of many individuals and produce economic benefits to the United States tied directly to a decreasing crime rate for those convicted of non violent crimes. Medicinal marijuana is so powerful that one such user, Peter McWilliam's, who was diagnosed with AIDS and non Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, describes his experiences in this way, “The smoked marijuana… worked faster than anything else. I would be trembling, sweating, on the verge of vomiting- fully resigned to vomiting, in fact – but within a minute of inhaling the marijuana, the symptoms eased. With a second puff, they disappeared completely. A third puff brought an unexpected sensation, one found with no other anti-nausea medication I tried: hunger. This was a most welcome side effect of marijuana and the sole reason I came out of chemotherapy and radiation therapy weighing more than when I went in.” The relief Peter experienced from medical marijuana is not unusual. Marijuana has been used as a medicinal supplement for thousands of years and was frequently prescribed in the United States in the early 1900s.

The legal issues with medical marijuana began when some considered marijuana a gateway drug, which could lead to the consumption of harder drugs, and banned medicinal marijuana in 1937. However, there is little evidence to support this opinion and medicinal marijuana should once again be legalized in order to stimulate the economy. To explain, medical marijuana has the potential to generate billions of dollars in both taxes and enforcement savings in areas such as crime prevention, imprisonment and police protection, which cost 185 billion dollars in 2003 (Hughes, 2006). What's more is the legalization of medical marijuana would create space in prisons for those who commit violent crimes. This in turn would prevent the incarceration of those prescribing and receiving medical marijuana, such as McWilliam's.

On June 18, 2000, Peter McWilliam's died. He was arrested on a marijuana charge and was denied usage of his medicine as he awaited trial. Unable to control his nausea, he died of asphyxiation. To deny someone of medication is torturous and must end immediately. To prevent more cases like Peter’s it is important to get involved and inform yourself of local laws in order to petition and advertise the legalization of medical marijuana. If you have any questions please call this number 1-888-364-4567.