Let's Legalize Marijuana

I first heard about marijuana in middle school. I had seen pictures of the plant on the binder of one of my classmates. Then a student named Ben did a report on it. I remembered him presenting pictures of marijuana and giving a speech talking about how users said the drug made them feel happy, but the drug was always a mystery because I had never tried it.

It wasn’t until my freshman year of college that I tried marijuana with some classmates. We smoked out of a bong in one of the suites of the dormitory. The best memory I had was laughing profusely and laughing so much that I fell to the ground in the hallway along with my friend Kareem. It was a type of hilarity that was tough to match.

Later on Twitter and Facebook through people like Joe Rogan and Amber Lyon, I learned how peaceful and healthy marijuana could be. Like Joe Rogan said, “Anything can be abused, cheeseburgers can be abused, but they don’t go around closing Burger King.”

I learned that marijuana was a less dangerous drug than the legal drugs of alcohol, tobacco and many others like heroine and cocaine. I became more and more an advocate for the legalization of marijuana on the federal level the more that I heard about it. I even came across Republicans that agreed it could be legalized, like my sister-in-law. Later Colorado legalized marijuana recreationally and the state of Minnesota did medicinally—a state I had lived in. It will be a good thing when marijuana becomes legalized federally because Americans will have another method to cope with the complexities and stressors of life. If Americans can drive automobiles and own guns, then why can’t they smoke a plant? If this is a free country, then Americans should be able to have the responsibility to smoke marijuana.

I also know of successful people that smoke marijuana. I know of doctors that are successful and smoke marijuana and I definitely know some successful celebrities who smoke.

One time when I was smoking cannabis and I came up with a theory of life, that God created the world to test his power. He created humans with an equal amount of good and evil power, and he wanted to see which would prevail. Life is like a barometer for God’s power then. If a drug can facilitate these types of revelations then I think it is a good thing.

Marijuana is a peaceful drug. Research has shown again and again that it is a more peaceful drug than alcohol, causing less disturbances to society and less aggression. I feel the only reason it is illegal is because it would put a dent in the pharmaceutical company’s pocket books and that the government has an interest in keeping it on the black market. We should end the war on drugs, and treat drug addictions as illnesses instead of crimes. Colorado has shown after raking in millions that regulated marijuana can be a success. Marijuana should be legalized and taxed on the federal level, and we will benefit.