cannabis should be legalized.

To debate whether cannabis should be legalized, we must first discover the purpose of laws and the type of government that we are currently addressing. I will assume that we are debating the legalization of cannabis in the representative democratic government of the United States. So let us figure out the purpose of laws in a representative democratic society. A democracy is defined as a "government by the people," and a representative democracy is defined as a government by people elected by people. The power of a representative democracy comes from the people and is used to benefit the people. And as it seems, the purpose of laws in a representative democracy is to benefit the people while keeping harm away. So if it turns out that keeping cannabis illegal will benefit the people more than harm them, then it would be logical to assume that the law that forbids cannabis is a good law and, therefore, should stay. Also, let's keep in mind that not everyone has the same opinions in a free society. So if keeping cannabis illegal benefits most (51%) of the population more than harm it, then cannabis should stay illegal. In summary, if cannabis does more harm than good to the people of a representative democracy then it should stay illegal. The Negative Effects of Cannabis: 1. Using marijuana is known to cause hallucinations, delusions, impaired memory, disorientation, and paranoia. So far, none of these would benefit anybody. 2. If marijuana is smoked, it heavily increased the chance of getting cancer. Marijuana smokers tend to hold in the smoke longer than cigarette smokers, so users have an increased chance of getting cancer in the areas around the lung and neck. Basically put, non-marijuana users will be healthier than marijuana users. 3. As a past marijuana user, I have noticed that smoking marijuana made me less motivated in school and in other academic areas. For what it worth, after quitting marijuana my high school G. P. A increased from a 2.7 to a 4.5. It is obvious to see how performing well in school would benefit a person. The person does well in school is more likely to get accepted to a better university than the person who did poorly in school. Ideally, the person who did well in school would end up with a better occupation than the person who did worse in school. Better occupation means more money, and more money means a more comfortable life. And of course, let us not forget that the person who did well in school would excel in what makes humans humans, reasoning and knowledge. 4. Although marijuana does not cause physical addiction, it is well known to cause mental addiction. As the number of marijuana users grow, more and more people are going into marijuana rehabilitation. And addictions do more harm than good because they enslave the people against their will. 5. "A number of studies have shown an association between chronic marijuana use and increased rates of anxiety, depression, and schizophrenia. " If marijuana was not present, people would not have to risk being diagnosed with these mental disorders. Why purposely take this risk? If marijuana did not exist, this risk would not even be present. Therefore, it benefits the people of society more to keep marijuana illegal. From what I have stated, it clearly seems like the people of a representative democracy would benefit more if marijuana was illegal than if marijuana was legal. I take this upon the fact that if marijuana was illegal, people would use it less. Although it may seem like people should be left alone to use marijuana because they want to and it makes them happy, this is not so. What someone thinks is the best for them might actually not be best for them. For example, a mad man may think that a gun would be best for his current situation, however, this does not mean that you give him the gun. Remember, laws are made to benefit the majority, and not to make everyone happy. Also, just because one is benefited does not mean that he is happy. A cigarette addict who is benefiting from quitting may not be so happy. Would society benefit more with or without marijuana? Having said all this, it is clear that marijuana will harm more than benefit the majority of a representative democracy. I look forward to my opponent's reply. Sources:. http://www.drugabuse.gov...http://dictionary.reference.com...http://alcoholism.about.com...