Marijuana should be legalized

Thank you, instigator, for your argumentsMy opponent and I agreed on the debate structure in the comments. However, I must object to some of the points made in the structure of the debate. I think it will be more effective and conventional for both of us if we could list our sources beforehand and have the final round waived, rather than cited sources in the end. How else am I supposed to be convinced of the validity of your sources and that you haven't plagiarized, I believe this will save us a lot of time and will organize our debate for the better. I hope you consider my offer, but since this is your debate, I'll go along with your flow. Anyway, let's begin! =Preface=I'll begin my debate with a couple of observations and definition of terms. I'll as well explain the (counter)plan of my debate. Now, I'll note that I'm for the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes, but I'm against it recreationally. Though, I still agree that they should limit it as a medical substance.=Observation= Obs1: Since this is not a normative resolution because Pro affirms a change in the status quo, the burden will be on Pro to show the beneficial impact on the recreational / and or medicinal use of marijuana in the U.S. In order for Con to win, Con must successfully negate most of Pro's contentions, this is Con's main duty in this debate. Con must also provide evidence to substantiate marijuana's negative side-effects and the consequences of those side effects; therefore, this will prove that the complete legalization will hurt the U.S. instead of helping it. =Framework= My framework will focus on the premises that the legalization of recreational marijuana will not deter the crime rate and will not mitigate the trade of marijuana on the black market. Also, marijuana and its effects on the body will also be an important argument. DefinitionsCrime rate (ucradatatool.gov) - "An offense rate, or crime rate, defined as the number of offenses per 100,000 population, is derived by first dividing a jurisdiction's population by 100,000 and then dividing the number of offenses by the resulting figure."Deter (dictionary.com)- "discourage (someone) from doing something by instilling doubt or fear of the consequences." To be more explicit, I'm going to provide evidence to deduce that the legalization of marijuana will increase the crime rate of America and will not stop the black market from dealing it. Also, since my opponent hasn't specified the type of use--medicinal or recreational--I'll be focusing more on recreational, since it's not part of the legal status quo of the US.Rebuttals/Contentions: C1 - Health Impacts: Even though marijuana has lesser dramatic effects than other drugs listed in schedule I, marijuana can devastatingly affect the human brain. Firstly, let's start off easy. Marijuana is undeniably a heavily addictive substance. People who smoke it (particularly underage groups who have higher risks and are more inclined to abusing the drug) find it difficult to focus and concentrate, that's the essence / softer side effects of the substance. Studies also show that marijuana can cause memory loss and deteriorate one's learning abilities as well (this is the consequence of cognitive decline marijuana leads to). Due to marijuana's increase in its THC dosage over the past decade, habitual smokers are more inclined to developing psychosis or schizophrenia. Currently, an average THC dosage you'll be able to find in marijuana will be around 9% or higher, however, 25% is the highest you'll be able to find. It's usually smuggled from Canada or Mexico. This is an incredibly high dosage, taking into consideration that it used to be only 3% (1).Aside from the mental effects, marijuana can also deteriorate the physical state of the body. For example, chronic bronchitis is usually the most common illnesses marijuana can cause, and that's because it impairs the airways and cell linings. However, aspergillus--a mold leading to lung impairment--is also the lead cause of chronic marijuana use, that is if you have a weak immune system. But aside from the lungs, studies show that the immune system is also under threat because of the substance (2). Even though the research on this topic is limited, researchers still have reasons to believe that marijuana causes cancer. Frankly, it doesn't come as a surprise since marijuana has over 50 ingredients (some of which are carcinogenic), and many of them are yet to be thoroughly evaluated. One carcinogen that researchers have studied is benzpyrene and THC; benzpyrene is also found in cigarettes. Now, these ingredients are known to alter a certain kind of gene (p53-'tumor suppressor gene'), which when altered, may inhibit cancer. 75% of people who were diagnosed with lung cancer have a defective p53 gene (3). Another study found that the chemicals in marijuana accelerate the production "myeloid-derived suppressor cells", weakening the immune system. This experiment tested THC on rats. Rats with higher dosages had more of those cells produced. Researchers then deduced that because of this, THC leads to cancer growth, and even weakens the process of cancer therapy. Because instead of the immune system fighting the cancer cells, these suppressors activate cells that interact with marijuana's cannabinoids. Nevertheless, there was a mild concession that THC does have beneficial effects when treating certain types of diseases, but due to the limited research, if 'weed' truly does help treat cancer is still a subject for debate (4). C2 - Crime rate:This contention will be split into 2 sub-arguments. Sub-argument 1 - Crime rate: Let's face it without offending anyone, if you suffer from an addiction to any substance (be it alcohol or marijuana), you'll do anything to acquire that substance. Even though marijuana supporters try to cover this up and twist the story around, Colorado's crime rate has surged ever since a big marijuana conglomerate planted its roots there. However, marijuana sale is strictly regulated. People cannot buy more than an ounce of marijuana unless they have a prescription. Also, all marijuana products' potency is tested, meaning that there are certain THC levels the product must meet before being sold. Even though this company helped create jobs, the police are feeling that people are getting out of hand. More and more people were stopped because of driving under the influence of the drug [Fact: 10 million people reported they drove under the influence of drugs in 2014 - the most common drug that people were influenced by was marijuana (5)]. Dr. Larry Wolk, head of the public health department in Colorado said more and more people are being admitted to hospitals because of nausea triggered by the drug (6). The crime rate in Denver increased by 10% in 2015. The state's district attorney George Brauchler talked about the syllogism between the 2 entities on television, "That's not what you'd expect. You'd expect the harder-core drugs." ... "If cash is the only way to acquire marijuana, crime follows cash". He firmly believed marijuana is the culprit (8). In DC, after the legalization, violence increased by 15% in 2016. Over the year, homicides reached to 54%, all after marijuana was introduced (7). And frankly, it doesn't surprise me a bit. A study done by the University of Cambridge found that marijuana triggers violent behavior. Out of 411 male subjects born in 1953, 22% of them developed violent behavior after becoming chronic smokers (9). Sub-argument 3 - Prohibition: My opponent compares marijuana prohibition to the prohibition era. Now, to address this, marijuana and alcohol are two separate substances that are in no way comparable with each other. Firstly, alcohol and marijuana differ in the way they affect the human body and the brain, the symptoms are very dissimilar. Surely, marijuana may be healthier, but people who smoke it are more inclined to committing crime; it's a drug that has greater ties to crime (12). Excluding tax being placed on 'legalized marijuana', people are still satisfied, thinking that this might help end the War on Drugs. The truth is it is no different than before, dealers are still dealing. In fact, it's safe to assume that most of them might have products with higher potency and cheaper prices. The writer of the article put it well: "The same faces standing on the same corners. The same neighborhoods cruised by the same cops. The same cautious side-to-side look before a thickly flowered stem is removed from a backpack, peered at closely, maybe smelled and rolled between the fingers, and, in a quick change of hands, finally sold" (11).=Fruther refutations and conclusion=People used to use psychedelic drugs, cocaine, and heroin as medicine. Cocaine was used to treat headaches and used as an anesthetic during surgeries (10). Hell, cocaine used to be once legal, but this doesn't act as an excuse to relegalize it, doesn't it? Surely, you could argue that it's much safer to smoke marijuana than cocaine, I concur. But, look at the psychological effects these two drugs have on the brain. Alcohol, just like marijuana is regulated very strictly. Where I come from, you can't drink alcohol on the streets or buy it after 10 PM. In Netherlands, smoking marijuana is disallowed in public areas, only in cafe shops and other special areas permitting it. Essentially, smoking marijuana on the streets is illegal in Netherlands. However in the US, since people are deceived into thinking that marijuana is safer, they start committing traffic offenses, like driving under the influence of the drug. More people drive drunk than under the influence of alcohol. -Challenge answer next roundSources:[1]:http://bit.ly...;[2]:http://bit.ly...;[3]:http://bit.ly...;[4]:http://bit.ly...;[5]:http://bit.ly...;[6]:http://bit.ly...;[7]:http://bit.ly... [8]:http://bit.ly...;[9]:http://bit.ly...;[10]:http://bit.ly...;[11]:http://theatln.tc...;[12]:http://bit.ly...;