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Marijuana. Yeah we all know about it and most of us have tried it. A lot of Americans even use it regularly even though it is illegal. Illegal is the key word, but why is it illegal? I mean if you think about it, pot is really no more harmful for you than somking cigarettes. Granted marijuana does have some harmful effects on the body like sterility and some short term memory loss, and even that is debatable. Honestly, the most dangerous effects of marijuana are paranoia accompanied by the consumption of large quantities of food. Face it, marijuana is really no worse for you than drinking beer and that is legal. You never hear of anyone getting behind the wheel of a car stoned and killing people. Most people that smoke pot are too lazy to even get up off the couch, let alone drive a car. Even if they do get a crazy notion to leave the safety of the La-z-boy, the stoners actually drive well because they are concentrating so hard on the road. Also, potheads really never even think about doing anything reckless because the only thing that is on their minds is well- nothing. So, in all essence, we need to rethink the prohibition of marijuana.

Now, don't get me wrong, I am not just some lazy pothead lobbying for the legalization of marijuana because I want to sit around on my porch and take bong hits everyday. I just think that prohibiting the use of marijuana is ridiculous. The governor of New Mexico, Gary Johnson, also shares my viewpoint. This man had enough balls to call for the full legalization of all drugs in New Mexico. He called the war on drugs a complete and utter failure. I do agree the that the government is spending countless numbers of tax dollars on a cause that is going nowhere. However, I do not agree that every drug should be legalized. I dread the day that I go to the store and find a bag of crack next to a case of beer; but, I see no harm in being able to walk up to the counter and purchase a pack of joints.

From a legal standpoint, marijuana has been an issue of controversy for quite some time. The government first prohibited the hemp plant under the Harrison Act of 1914, but that did not stop the American people from lighting up. In fact, the number of people smoking herb has risen sharply following the hippie-love era. It just seems that everyone is smoking pot and most people are having no substantial negative effects from this recreational activity, except for chronic bronchitis and a bad case of weight gain. On the contrary, smoking maryjane actually shows beneficial consequences. Doctors have recently stated that marijuana does have some medicinal purposes. Cancer patients often toke up to help cope with the symptoms of their disease, but the government still calls the use of marijuana illegal. This leaves me dumbfounded; do either cigarettes or alcohol show any beneficial results? Cigarettes, no. But, a glass of wine a day does show proof for helping the heart. So, if alcohol is legal and it does show some positive attributes, then marijuana should be also. When comparing cannabis to cigarettes, the prohibition of hemp becomes even more ridiculous. Face it, the Marlboro Man rides off into the sunset each day with many lives. You do not hear of MaryJane killing people, but cigarettes are legal. It just seems that the government is contradicting themselves by legalizing a damaging substance while hurting those who use something that is basically harmless.

In ending, I feel that until the government decides to legalize marijuana, we should treat it as the illegal substance that it is.

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