In an attempt to alleviate some of this massive public debt, the State of California is now debating the legalization of marijuana, a drug that the DEA classifies as a Schedule 1 narcotic. Schedule 1 narcotics include LSD, heroin, ecstasy, GHB, several amphetamines, peyote, and mushrooms.

The actions of the State would equate to a bankrupt person deciding to supplement his overspending by dealing drugs. It isn’t exactly the model of government that children should be taught. The Department of Justice claims “The citizens who vote in these referendums too often have to rely on the information—or rather, misinformation— being presented by the sponsors of these expensive campaigns to legalize drugs.”

Those in favor of marijuana legalization claim that the drug is not dangerous and that the revenue resulting from taxing the drug would generate over a billion dollars in taxes. Marijuana advocacy groups, like the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), have been setting out rigorous advertising campaigns that intentionally diminish the dangers of the drug.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse asserts the short term effects include “euphoria, slowed thinking and reaction time, confusion, impaired balance and coordination/cough, frequent respiratory infections; impaired memory and learning; increased heart rate, anxiety; panic attacks; tolerance, addiction.”

Very few, if any, of these effects are beneficial.

The US Department of Justice claims “Someone who smokes marijuana regularly may have many of the same respiratory problems that tobacco smokers do, such as daily cough and phlegm production, more frequent acute chest illnesses, a heightened risk of lung infections, and a greater tendency toward obstructed airways. Cancer of the respiratory tract and lungs may also be promoted by marijuana smoke. Marijuana has the potential to promote cancer of the lungs and other parts of the respiratory tract because marijuana smoke contains 50 percent to 70 percent more carcinogenic hydrocarbons than does tobacco smoke.”          

The Drug Enforcement Agency has published a book called Speaking Out Against Drug Legalization that puts all the rumors and myths to rest. The DEA issued, on their website, these ten facts about illegal drugs. The facts are listed, verbatim, as they appear on the website:

CBS News reports that since 2001, teen marijuana use has dropped by over 25%. Illicit drug use has dropped by 24%. Amphetamine use has dropped by over 60%.

The ultimate goal should always be a reduction in the number of people who are using drugs, not making money off the failing health of marijuana smokers.

The Department of Health and Human Services reports that over 200,000 people enter treatment every year due to marijuana use alone. How many people have to enter rehab for the legalization argument to not make sense?

Virtually every doctor in the entire country asserts that smoking marijuana leads to nearly all of the same illnesses that are associated with smoked tobacco, which takes over 400,000 lives every single year.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse asserts that drug abuse costs society around $100 billion every year. Alcohol Abuse costs society over $250 billion every year.

Alaska was the first state to ever try to legalize marijuana for personal use. This only led to the recriminalization of the drug later.

MSNBC reports that there are over 75,000 alcohol related deaths in the country every year, which according to one government study make alcohol the third leading cause of mortality in the country. How many lives have to be taken due to drug use before the people at NORML realize that legalizing drugs is not a good idea?

According to sources published in Amsterdam, the chances of a person having used marijuana once in their lives in 1987 were only 23%. By 2001, the number had grown to 38%. The chance of having used in the last year grew from 9.5% to 13.1%; the last month from 5.6% to 7.8%. Paired with this was an increase in cocaine and ecstasy use. The DOJ asserts that since Amsterdam legalized marijuana, heroin addiction has risen more than three fold. How many people become heroin or crack addicts without first using marijuana as a bridge to harder drugs?

The DEA claims “only about 5 percent of inmates in federal prison are there because of simple possession.”

 

As of right now, nearly half a million Americans die every year due to tobacco related illness- most of which comes from smoked cigarettes. Marijuana has been shown to have over 50% more carcinogens than tobacco, which will only lead to more cancer, more emphysema, and more coffins. The Federal Government has raised taxes on cigarettes twice in the past year to help stop the deaths of so many. Why should anyone consider legalizing another drug that leads to the same horrible effects?

According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, MADD, almost 12,000 people died in alcohol related crashes in 2008. There is no telling how many more people will die in marijuana related crashes if the drug is legalized. Right now, about three out of every ten people will be involved in an alcohol related car crash at some point in their lives. Legalizing marijuana, a drug that has been proven to lower reaction time, will undoubtedly lead to more traffic fatalities. How many people have to be killed in drunk driving accidents before legalizing marijuana seems unreasonable?

If someone is suspected of driving under the influence of marijuana, there is currently no scientific way to determine if the person is actually under the influence. Because marijuana stays in the body for up to six weeks after use, there could be countless accidents caused by stoned drivers, and every one of those stoned drivers will have the ability to walk away without fear of prosecution.

While a drug test can only determine if marijuana has been used within the past month, there is no way to measure the difference between a stoned driver and a sober driver. Even if an officer of the law asks the suspect to take a blood, urine, or hair test, he test results will only say whether or not the person consumed marijuana within the last month. It could have been four weeks before the accident occurred, or four minutes before the accident occurred.

California wants to make up 1 billion of its 60 billion dollar debt by legalizing marijuana. There is no telling how much money they could make if they legalized heroin, cocaine, and ecstasy. Perhaps that is the next step in alleviating the debt.

The problem is that California is not paying attention to what caused the massive debts in the first place. The Napa Valley Register reported that in the year 2000, there was “a tremendous increase in the pension and compensation of state and local government employees” and that “state worker pay has increased from 20 percent to 45 percent in less than five years”. Courts recently ordered an $8 billion increase for prisons. According to the Wall Street Journal, total spending in California has risen 40% in the last five years. It is easy to see what caused the crisis, and also easy to see what has to be undone to fix the crisis.