Legalize Marijuana

An Inconvenient Truth: It Is Time to Go Green, Ganja-Green

            The words “Marijuana is bad” echo throughout my memories of the publicly provided K-12 education I received.  It seemed as if guidance counselors were kept on staff (and paid a salary) merely to repeat that message to anyone within listening distance.  In elementary school those words were immediately followed by the childish question, “why?”  With the “why” having been thoroughly answered numerous times, a different question has taken its place, “Is marijuana bad, and should It be legal?” Countless economists, none more prominent than Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman, have argued for the legalization of not just marijuana, but all illicit drugs.

            The most commonly used recreational and illicit drug in the United States is marijuana (NIDA, 2005).  Currently, marijuana use is illegal in the United States.  However, some states and cities have passed laws either decriminalizing or legalizing marijuana, as is the case in Denver, Colorado,  “where adults 21 and older may possess up to an ounce of marijuana without penalty in the city,” (Usatoday.com, 2005).  The arguments for the legalization, or decriminalization (at the very least) of marijuana are far stronger than the arguments offered up against them.

            Unfortunately, those in power disagree.  A significant portion of anti-marijuana sentiment can be traced back to the public’s perception that marijuana is a “gateway drug.”  The “Gateway Drug Theory” states, “the use of marijuana by young people causes some to graduate to harder drugs, often called the ‘gateway effect’,” (RAND, 2002).  Subscribers to the “Gateway Drug Theory” base their claims off of reports done by the Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) which concluded that marijuana users were many times more likely than non-marijuana users to try cocaine (Morgan and Zimmer, 1995).  However, these results are very misleading:

The primary basis for this “gateway hypothesis” is a recent report by the center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA), claiming that marijuana users are 85 times more likely than non-marijuana users to try cocaine.  This figure, using data from NIDA’s 1991 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, is close to meaningless.  It was calculated by dividing the proportion of marijuana users who have ever used cocaine (17%) by the proportion of cocaine users who have never used marijuana (.2%).  The high risk factor obtained is a product not of the fact that so many marijuana users use cocaine but that so many cocaine users used marijuana previously.  (Morgan and Zimmer, pg 1)

The same CASA study found that 83% of marijuana users never use cocaine (Morgan and Zimmer, pg 1).  Further discrediting the “Gateway Drug Theory” are results from a study done in Holland where marijuana, although technically not legal, is available for purchase in quantities up to 30 grams from government-regulated coffee shops, “However, Dutch officials consider their policy a success because the increase in marijuana use has not been accompanied by an increase in the use of other drugs. (Morgan and Zimmer, pg 1).

Economists, such as Friedman, look at the revenue opportunities marijuana presents.  Currently, $7.7 billion is spent on marijuana regulation (Miron, 2005).  Of the $7.7 billion spent on marijuana regulation, the federal government pays $2.4 billion of it while state and local governments pay for $5.3 billion (Miron, 2005).  If marijuana were legalized, this $7.7 billion could be saved and used elsewhere.  Along with the money saved, tax revenues could be levied following the legalization of marijuana, “Revenue from [the] taxation of marijuana sales would range from $2.4 billion per year if marijuana were taxed like ordinary consumer goods to $6.2 billion if it were taxed like alcohol or tobacco,’’ (Miron, 2005).  This money could be put to good use!

Based on the above analysis, the argument for the criminalization of marijuana is very weak.  The legalization or decriminalization of marijuana does not appear to have pervasive negative effects.  The economic benefits of the legalization or decriminalization of marijuana far outweigh even the most overly misstated potential societal harms that could result.  

Bibliography

1)    Miron, Jeffrey A. The Budgetary Implications of Marijuana Prohibition. Harvard University. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University, 2005. 21 Apr. 2008 .

2)    Morgan, John P., and Lynn Zimmer. "The Myth of Marijuana's Gateway Effect." NORML 7 Feb. 1997. Drug Library. Oxford.

3)    Morral, Andrew. "News Release." Rand Corporation. 2 Dec. 2002. RAND Corporation. 24 Apr. 2008 .

4)    "Research Report Series - Marijuana Abuse." National Institute on Drug Abuse. 1 July 2005. National Institute on Drug Abuse. 7 Apr. 2008 .

5)    "USATODAY.com - Denver votes to legalize marijuana possession." News, Travel, Weather, Entertainment, Sports, Technology, U.S. & World - USATODAY.com. 29 Jan. 2009 .