Legalization of recreational marajuana

Smoking pot is a victimless crime; that is it does not infringe upon anybody else's rights. Instead people have the right to exercise their personal freedom to smoke. It is not the government's responsibility to legislate morality. The government exists to protect people's rights. Adults of sound mind should be able to make the legal decision to smoke - especially on their own property. Con argues that marijuana poses some danger. In fact the harms of smoking pot are negligible. Weed is safer than alcohol, tobacco, sugar, vehicle exhaust and many chemicals that we put in our food [1]. Ibuprofen kills almost 50,000 people per year. Diaper cream and toothpaste also kill tens of thousands [2]. Prohibition of marijuana is based on manipulative and exaggerated propaganda. Plus, it would be unrealistic and unproductive to criminalize anything that could be potentially harmful. While Con says that people once didn't know tobacco was harmful, people know now, and yet we allow tobacco to remain legal along with a plethora of other harmful substances. In this debate, Con will have to prove that criminalizing pot is more just, fair and reasonable than legalizing it. One reason the government permits cigarettes to remain legal is because it's so profitable. The government collects huge amounts of revenue from cigarette taxes. Similarly, where they have legalized pot, the government has raked in a ton of money to put toward schools and other positive social programs. So far Colorado has raised over $100 million from taxes in legal pot sales [3]. Not only would pot allow us to collect tax revenue, but economists say that pot legalization could SAVE us more than 13.7 billion dollars per year [4]. Legalizing pot would also boost the economy by creating a lot of jobs [5]. Moreover, legalization would save smokers a ton of legal fees. More than 1/2 of all drug arrests are for pot. More than 8.2 million people are arrested for smoking every year [6] even though those people do not harm anyone but (maybe) themselves. These people should not have to spend thousands of dollars per person paying off fines and other expenses related to arrest. It's also ridiculous and unfair to give someone a criminal record for smoking weed. Criminal records make it significantly harder to get jobs [7] and may inhibit people's rights [8] yet Con wants to penalize smokers in this way, while not penalizing other people in society (like drinkers) even though their behavior is more dangerous and more harmful. Prohibition has failed to control the use and domestic production of marijuana. More than 25 million Americans smoke pot annually, and weed is the largest cash crop on the planet [9]. These people are peaceful and should not be considered criminals if they do not offend other people's rights. Furthermore, keep in mind that pot criminalization disproportionately targets minorities [10]. This perpetuates racism and problematic barriers for people of color. A regulated, legal market in marijuana would reduce marijuana sales and use among teenagers, as well as reduce their exposure to other drugs in the illegal market. It would also reduce the flow of money from the American economy to international criminal gangs. Last but not least, pot has a handful of positive attributes, such as its undeniable medical value and use as a recreational drug with relatively mild side effects. Science has discovered more than 23 medicinal uses for pot [11]. There are also positive mental, emotional and social impacts such as elevated mood and less social anxiety [12]. "Marijuana provides relief from pain, nausea, spasticity, and other symptoms for many individuals who have not been treated successfully with conventional medications. Many American adults prefer marijuana to the use of alcohol as a mild and moderate way to relax. Americans use marijuana because they choose to, and one of the reasons for that choice is their personal observation that the drug has a relatively low dependence liability and easy-to-manage side effects. Most marijuana users develop tolerance to many of marijuana"s side effects" [9]. In conclusion, the criminalization of marijuana is unnecessary, harmful and too expensive for our justice system. Instead it should be legalized and taxed to support beneficial government programs. This would benefit society by alleviating the tax payer burden, and providing people freedom of choice. Since pot has many benefits (including medicinal), people should be able to make the smartest, safest decisions for themselves. Only people who infringe on other people's rights should be punished. Smoking pot does not impede on other people's rights and should not be punished. SOURCES: http://www.debate.org...