Legalization Of Marijuana In British Columbia (BC) Essay Sample

The debate about legalizing recreational marijuana in British Columbia continues. Marijuana is one of the main exports of the province, even though it is illegal. It is estimated that annual sales of the drug amount to billions of dollars. In the US states of Colorado and Washington, marijuana was recently legalized. Many think that this will also happen in BC. The effect of marijuana being legalized in other places is already being felt in BC. Dealers – seeing that legalization in BC is likely in the not too distant future – are reportedly already lowering their prices, making sure they are still securing sales as prices elsewhere are falling. This drop in prices is a foretaste of what will happen when it is legalized. Dealers will see that the trade is no longer bringing in the former profits and will eventually cease to operate.
Medical marijuana is already legal in BC, and benefits people with cancer. The use of medical marijuana is not contentious in the same way that recreational marijuana appears to be, but does show that marijuana cannot be that bad if it is approved for helping sick people.
Conversely, there are concerns about the recreational use of marijuana. Possible side effects include lung damage, memory loss, addiction, and users driving while under the influence. Today’s marijuana trade is controlled by criminals, drug dealers, and gangs. As a result of marijuana being illegal, and because people are therefore obliged to deal with the criminal fraternity to secure their supplies of the drug, it is highly probable that users might end up using other (harder) drugs because the people who supply them will encourage that progression, and marijuana users could easily move on to other drugs, with more serious and possibly fatal consequences. The harder drugs, such as cocaine and heroin, are much more addictive and far more damaging to the health of the users (often fatal). Because those drugs are so addictive (and expensive) many users turn to crime to fund their addiction. In contrast, as far as I can determine, there has not been a single fatality from people smoking marijuana. In fact it is said that for the chemicals in a marijuana “joint” to be fatal, a user would have to smoke between 20,000 and 40,000 joints to even be at risk. However, the authorities do point out that driving whilst under the effects of marijuana could be dangerous, but that is still nowhere near the level of faculty impairment that being high on harder drugs could cause.
Marijuana legalization would have several effects on society in British Columbia, some negative, some positive; in general though, legalization would in my sincere view bring an overall positive change. And the idea of legalization appears to have growing support. One recent report found that the outcome of a survey was that two thirds of Canadians surveyed supported either making marijuana completely legal, or at least making it legal to possess just a small amount for personal use. Only about a sixth wanted things to stay as they are, and even fewer wanted penalties for possession to be increased, Even an organisation like the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is for legalization, rather than continuing with the present policy which seems only to line the pockets of the criminals and causes waves of gang violence, but does not stem the use of marijuana.
The main positive impact of legalization would be to push criminal suppliers out of business, thereby reducing crime connected with the trade. That would also make marijuana easier to keep away from youth. Right now, it is easier for youngsters to obtain marijuana than either alcohol or cigarettes. For example, under-age individuals cannot buy alcohol without showing ID. Drug dealers do not ask for ID! When it becomes legalized, licensed suppliers will request ID, which will curb its use by minors. Also, just as happened when alcohol was prohibited in the United States, the prohibition of marijuana has resulted in an upsurge of criminal suppliers. It should be remembered that making something illegal does not remove the demand. In some ways it can make obtaining it more of a challenge and more daring or exciting.
Just because something is bad for you does not mean it should be illegal, and use may actually increase when it is illegal. For example, when alcohol was made illegal in the United States in 1920, the rates of consumption measured in proof gallons actually increased. From 1910-1914 the annual drinking rate per capita was 1.46, and then during prohibition it increased to 1.63. That is an almost 12 percent increase. Furthermore, people often tried to make their own beer and spirits, sometimes with dangerous consequences. Also, prohibition appeared to cause young people to start drinking at an even earlier age – symptomatic of the excitement and challenge of doing something that was perceived as more thrilling, simply because it was against the law.
Legalization of marijuana would reduce the fiscal burden on taxpayers by reducing police expenditures, as well as giving police more time to investigate serious crimes. In addition, crime rates would fall, because citizens would not be charged with possession of marijuana. Furthermore, savings in police time and costs would be only part of the savings. Prosecution of offenders involves not only the police but the full justice system including the courts and – in some cases – the prisons too. All of that costs the taxpayers huge amounts of money – money which would be spent elsewhere in society
An important aspect of marijuana legalization is that it would dramatically reduce the “gateway drug effect”, because users will not have to buy marijuana from the criminal fraternity, which will lessen the possibility of its use leading to harder drugs. There is a concern that legalizing marijuana could lead to many more people using it. However, in the Netherlands, where marijuana has been legal for many years, the user rates are lower than in the United States, where marijuana is still illegal in most States. Specifically, in 2009, more than 11 percent of USA citizens over the age of 12 years used marijuana, compared to just seven percent in the Netherlands (“Netherlands Compared With The United States” 2014).
There is also a view that legalization of marijuana would be bad, because smoking marijuana has many health-related side effects. However, alcohol and cigarettes have been shown to be strongly harmful to the body, even fatal in a considerable number of instances, yet they are legally available virtually everywhere.
A solid financial reason for the government of British Columbia to legalize marijuana is the likely tax revenues that legalization will bring. In Colorado for example, the Governor is estimating sales in the legal marijuana stores will total around $1 billion. It is reported that in the first quarter alone, tax revenues amount to $11 million. Those dollars can be put to much better use than funding police efforts to fight the illegal use of the drug. Imagine the benefits to government programs like health and education that those much-needed additional funds could bring. At the moment, those “lost” dollars are merely supporting the criminal gangs and cartels, which the judicial system seems incapable of defeating.
In conclusion, keeping the possession and use of marijuana illegal has failed as a law, because it is nonetheless used by many in Canadian society. It is now time to re-think this law and thereby allow police to focus on serious crimes, while stopping the criminal fraternity making a living from it. Even though there could be some (lesser) negative aspects to legalization, the overall outcome would be beneficial to society. Many of the negative aspects we see today are specifically attributable to marijuana possession and use being illegal. The likely positive outcomes are far, far greater. Not only can those tax dollars be used for everyone’s benefit (not just the legal marijuana users), but outcomes from other states and nations which have already legalized marijuana have demonstrated that its use does not increase with legalization. It is far more likely that the reverse is true.