History and Growth of Marijuana

Addiction has become one of the most important and burning issues in this modern day scenario. Marijuana is one such means of addiction that is in a large controversy these days. Marijuana has been used by people over the years for many purposes. It has been used for different religious purposes and spiritual uses. Apart from this marijuana has also been used for different medicinal uses. So, it can be said that marihuana has been used worldwide as a seductive or as a drug. Marijuana is also used as a light addictive material during the festivities. It is used as a recreational means as well. However, efforts are to be made to make sure that marijuana is not being misused or overused. This report is mainly will mainly talk about the probable effect of marijuana on human health. This report analyzes the issues of the concerned stakeholders, their opinions on whether to legalize or illegalize the issue. I will also be adding my own opinion on this particular aspect.

The history of Marijuana dates back to the primitive times of human civilization. The trances about the origin and growth of Marijuana can be seen from the Chinese civilization in 2737 BC (Narconon, 2018). With the passage of time, the use of Marijuana has started spreading all over the world. The purchase and consumption of Marijuana were free until 1900. In the year 1913, there was the imposition of the law over the free consumption of marijuana. This law was imposed for the first time in California (Anon, 2018).

It has to be noted that the rate of consumption of marijuana has been increasing day by day. The amount of people that use marijuana all over the world is around 183 million. This amounts to 3.8% of the adult population of the world. Many of the people are already started claiming the legalization of Marijuana but there are also protests seen in some places. Many people still revolt against the legalization of marijuana consumption.

As per the information of the UN Medical Journal, The Lancet, in Australia has amounted up to 16% of marijuana users and New Zealand is also no less. Both these places have contributed in making the largest amount of cannabis users. It is also seen that at the start of 2017, the Australian Government has also detected some serious illness among Cannabis users. It is seen that apart from Australia, many other countries like Uruguay, Canada, Netherlands, and many other nations are demanding for the legalization of marijuana (Kalvapalle 2017).

Current Use and Consumption of Marijuana

Stakeholders:

Stakeholders	Stakeholders Stance	My opinion on the stance
Recreational consumers	Cannabis usually does not make any addiction. There are other addictive materials like alcohol, tobacco. There is, however, no ban on those items.  These items have many negative health impacts but they are legal.	I agree that marijuana is harmless but they can cause some serious impacts if consumed at unchecked way.
Government/ Constituent council	Marijuana is addictive and can cause serious damages in cases of unchecked consumption. So, it must be supplied only under the proper legal jurisdiction	It is true that marihuana causes addiction but at the same time, it is less harmful than alcohol and tobacco. So, the laws are to be imposed only for extensive or incorrect uses.
Illegalization activists	Marijuana is addictive and is likely to have harmful impacts on health. So, it has to be outlawed.	Marijuana is addictive but t has no record of causing death. So, the laws must be flexible in need.
Pharmaceutical Body	Marijuana must be supplied for the medicinal values that are present within it. However, it must be supplied from well-reputed places only.	Both the pharmacies and the farmers farming marijuana must be given license.
Cultivator or farmer	Marijuana farming must be made legal as it will benefit the farmers financially.	Marijuana farming must be legalized as it gives a boost to the financial condition of farmers.
Medicinal users	Marijuana has medicinal values and it acts as a pain relief.	Patients who have some severe chronic illness must be given proper prescription from the doctor.

Marijuana is used for many recreational purposes. Some of these recreational stakeholders are of the opinion that marijuana must be legalized

• Marijuana is not an addictive drug. It is a medicinal herb
• It does not cause any serious health impact rather it can be used for many medical purposes.
• There is also no records that talks about death being caused by marijuana.  

• The rate of addiction by Marijuana is 9% (Barclay 2016)
• In many of the religious sects like Buddhism, Greek, and Hinduism, marijuana was used as religious offerings (Royal seeds, 2017)
• As per a research conducted by Columbia University, the biggest risk that is caused to health is by alcohol consumption. This is a graphical representation of the harmful effects on the health of the people of California in the year 2015. It shows that marijuana has the least or the no accidental effects (Lopez 2015).   

1. Farmers and Economy:

As per the opinion of (Claughton 2017) about 25 applications have been received in Australia that demands the production of marijuana for medicinal purposes. It is also seen that cannabis farming in Australia is contributing to a huge growth in the agro-based economy. It is about $100 million dollars. Australia along with other countries like Canada, Israel, Netherlands have agreed to work for making a “Fast-growing legal global marijuana market”. They have predicted that they will be getting about $63.5 billion worth by 2024 (Smyth, 2018). Similarly, it has also been seen that research conducted by Archie, cannabis venture group in United State marijuana worth in 2016 was $4.8 billion which is projected to hit $ 7.4 billion by 2021. Hence marijuana can be an economic crop. 

It has been seen that about 3000 people in Australia have a chance of getting benefitted by the medicinal values of Marijuana. It is for this reason that they are demanding for the legalization of farming and consumption of marijuana. Some of the diseases that can be benefitted from this are an epileptic seizure, HIV and also many other such harmful ailments. In US 2016, 260,407,9 populations out of 323,086,798 used legal medicinal marijuana. . It was also seen that nearly 90% of the US doctors have supported legalization of marijuana (Ingraham 2016). Hence medical users strongly support the legalization of marijuana.

1. It is true that Government and many other councils are trying to make the farming and supply of marijuana legal However at the same time they cannot really ignore some of the ill effects that marijuana is likely to cause. The key debating points are:  

• Marijuana is, after all, an addictive material so it is likely to cause many harmful impacts on health.
• Legislation and legalization will increase the chances of addiction even to a greater extent.
• The number of disadvantages is more than the fewer advantages that it has.
• Marijuana consumption causes some problems in the brain functions and thus it can cause many other serious problems. 

As per the Australian Government is concerned, it has given permission for using marijuana as a medicine in cases of chronic diseases(Killalea, 2017).  According to data collected by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2014, marijuana users are basically of 15-19 age groups. So, it can be said that teenagers are usually addicted to the use of marijuana. The consumption of marijuana has increased from19% in 2007 to 21% in 2010 (Refers to Fig. 2). As per the Moreover, according to Australian Bureau 2008, 7% users of 25 and over and 18%of 15-24 age group. This is evident of the fact that marijuana consumption is maximum within the youngsters.  

As per the opinion of (Casavant, 2001), many illegal activities have taken place due to the usage of marijuana. Marijuana has been used for committing many criminal activities. In Canada 2000, among 87,945 illicit drugs offense, 66,171 was the marijuana offenders. It has also been seen from A record presented by the insurance company, Institute for Highways Safety, that most of the car crashes that took place in 2012 to 2016 in Colorado, Oregon, Washington are the outcome of marijuana addiction. The drivers were under the effect of marijuana and it was about 35 higher than the normal level (Ingraham, 2017).

Stakeholders: Recreational Consumers

As per the opinion of (Lavin, 2017), the pharmaceutical companies are fearing that they will be suffering a huge loss of the marijuana production is legalized. This will lower the sale of other medicines like painkillers or nausea pills. So, their overall sales will be lower as marijuana medicines will take over the market. Figure 3 represents that there has been a reduction in the sale of normal traditional medicines. Apart from this,

the Medicare has been spending about $174 million budget per year for marijuana legalization in the US. So, it is evident that they have already lost a huge amount of money (Ashley and Bradford 2016).

• The demand for marijuana in the Global market is 36 billion (Zhang, 2017)
• The amount spent by law enforcement is $10.7 billion per year for the prohibition where more than $42 billion costs taxpayers per year (Armentano 2017). 

• The marijuana market in Australia 100 million (Brooks and Wynn, 2017) 

• Addiction rate is 9% which is less than other illicit drugs and alcohol
• It has been seen that patients with serious diseases like HIV, Epilepsy, cancer are usually benefited from the usage of the medicines made from marijuana (Brooks and Wynn, 2017).  

• According to research conducted by CBS news in the US, Marijuana is about 7 times less harmful than the other additive materials. 

As per the data gathered by the CBC, a majority of people in the US ate actually supporting the legalization of marijuana. we can find that in 1997, 51% people protest legalization but by 2017 it alters and 61% people support legalization of marijuana.  

Why shouldn’t be legalized?

• As per the results and the foundations of the Drug-Free World, there are both short and long-term results of Marijuana.
• Short-term hallucination, issues: panic, lower reaction time, more like to have sexually transmitted diseases, heart attack, cause violent and crime
• Long-term issues: A long-term exposure to marijuana might cause an addiction. This will lead to some unsocial or unaccepted behavior. This might also make people uneducated, unsocial and impaired to get educated or employed.
• According to United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime 2014, the most popular and common drug all over the world is marijuana The given Figure 6 demonstrates the cannabis trafficking country, where cannabis is the topmost trafficking drug in all continents. 

• Fallacy: marijuana is a gateway to drugs

Fact: There have been many experiments done in order to find out the actual effects of marijuana. Doses of marijuana have been given onto the Rhesus monkeys. The doses of marijuana have been followed by the doses of heroin. This has made the monkeys appear less attractive. This is because the concentration of THC presents in marijuana recovered morphine and heroin addiction (Szalavitz 2015). 

• Fallacy: Marijuana cause brain damage

Fact: One of the temporary effects of marijuana is the short term memory loss. Morgan and Zimmer 2015, the Rhesus monkeys that were being used for the experiment purposes were being given about 4 to 5 marijuana joints each day for a year. This did not happen the normal brain functioning’s neither damaged any cell. Instead, there was the improvement of some of the creative brain functions. Also, according to the World Health Organisation, delta-9- tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) contains in cannabis helps to cure Alzheimer’s disease. 

• Fallacy: Marijuana is physically addictive

Fact: Marijuana is not harmful or addictive unlike several other already legalized materials like cigarette and alcohol. As per the data of the National Institute of Drug Abuse, the rate of addiction through marijuana is as less as 9%. Moreover, the concentration of THC presents in marijuana helps to recover morphine and heroin addiction. 

• Fallacy: Marijuana defeats the immune system

Fact: It has been proved that the THC which is present in cannabis will help in activating and strengthening the immune system rather than causing harm to it. (WHO). 

• Fallacy: Marijuana smoking cause cancer

Fact: It is true that some amount of carbon is likely to affect the lungs but at the same time, the presence of THC and CB2 will overpower the same. Marijuana is helpful in curing dangerous ailments like breast cancer. It also acts as a healing agent in case of the painful processes of chemotherapy. (WHO). 

Stakeholders: Government/ Constituent council

I have analyzed all the evidence of this research. It is only after an extensive and in-depth analysis that I have developed my personal view. I think that marijuana must be legalized but there have to be strict legal jurisdictions enforced over it. I have learned that marijuana is much less harmful than the already legalized alcohol and cigarettes. The amount of addiction that is caused by marijuana is very less. It is 9 % only. After the legalization, the amount of crimes committed due to marijuana has also considerable fallen. In 2011, there were 295.6 violent offenses were reported per 100,000 which became 284.4 per 100,000 by 2015 (Ryder, 2017). Local farmers can earn good living cultivating marijuana after the legalization. Its advantages outnumber the fewer disadvantages that it has, So, I would support legalization of marijuana under proper legal procedures.

My viewpoint can be changed if the given points have evidence:

• If more come up with evidence that marijuana has caused death or other injuries.
• If there are proofs that marijuana has caused several problems
• If there is very strong evidence that marijuana is the first step toward other addictions.
• If there is concrete evidence that legalization of marijuana will not make any economic growth and developments
• If there more researches and extensive studies made on the disadvantages of marijuana. 

Conclusion

So, I can be concluded that Marijuana is a medicinal herb that can be used for many purposes. It can be used for religious, medicinal and recreational purposes as well.  So, the issues of major concern are that whether marijuana is legalized or not. This is because there are also some improper uses of marijuana that is seen in different parts of the world. After doing an in-depth research it has been seen that majority of the people are in favor of legalizing marijuana as the number of its advantages outnumber the fewer disadvantages that it has. However, there is still a controversy regarding this issue.

S.N	Feedback	My response
1.	More emphasis is to be given on the analysis rather than a description of the topic.	I have gathered all the necessary feedback from my friends and analyzed them thoroughly. I have also given in all my efforts to do an extensive research and analysis. I have tried to find out all the positive and negative ideas about the matter. I have also done my research based on the Australian concept and made m point clear.
2.	I have to make sure that I am substantiating the stakeholder’s opinions with enough evidence
3.	I have to be careful in separating the Australian data from that of other countries
4.	I have to identify and present my viewpoint in a proper manner.
5.	I have to enrich my work with even more amount of data.
6.	I have to use enough amounts of authentic evidence.
7.	I have to talk about the circumstances that have helped me to change my mind or my opinion.
8.	I will have to be sharp and keen in order to understand the fallacies, if any, made by the stakeholders

References

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Cannabis and Religion: When Spirituality and Marijuana Coincide – RQS Blog 2018, Royalqueenseeds.com. viewed 5 February 2018, https://www.royalqueenseeds.com/blog-a-brief-history-of-cannabis-use-in-world-religions-n624

Claughton, D. 2018, Interest in growing medicinal cannabis is strong, ABC Rural. viewed 13 February 2018, https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2017-02-22/medicinal-cannabis-new-agricultural-opportunity/8287346

Exclusive: U.S. Marijuana Sales Could Rise 35% in 2017, Hit $17B Annually by 2021 2018, Marijuana Business Daily. viewed 8 February 2018, https://mjbizdaily.com/exclusive-u-s-marijuana-sales-rise-35-2017-hit-17b-annually-2021/

https://news.medicalmarijuanainc.com/estimated-183-million-people-use-cannabis-worldwide/

Kalvapalle, R. 2018, Weed around the world: what legal marijuana looks like in other countries, Global News. viewed 4 February 2018, https://globalnews.ca/news/3378603/marijuana-laws-around-the-world/

Marijuana Statistics – Cannabis Use Statistics – Drug-Free World 2018, Foundation for a Drug-Free World. viewed 2 February 2018, https://www.drugfreeworld.org/drugfacts/marijuana/international-statistics.html

Medical marijuana has strong voter support in NSW: Vote Compass 2018, ABC News. viewed 3 February 2018, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-03-16/nsw-election-vote-compass-medical-marijuana-cannabis/6314758

Medicinal marijuana will soon be legal — but how will it work? 2018, ABC News. viewed 2 February 2018, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-10-29/medicinal-marijuana-to-become-legal-explainer/7975194

More and more doctors want to make marijuana legal 2018, Washington Post. viewed 13 February 2018, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/04/15/more-and-more-doctors-want-to-make-marijuana-legal/?utm_term=.1b94d87f3a6a

A number of Legal Medical Marijuana Patients – Medical Marijuana – ProCon.org 2018, Medicalmarijuana.procon.org. viewed 13 February 2018, https://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=005889

Pot Prohibition Costs Taxpayers More Than $40 Billion Per Year, Study Says – NORML.org – Working to Reform Marijuana Laws 2018, Norml.org. viewed 13 February 2018, https://norml.org/news/2007/10/04/pot-prohibition-costs-taxpayers-more-than-40-billion-per-year-study-says

What actually happened to violent crime after Washington legalized marijuana 2018, the news tribune. viewed 10 February 2018, https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/marijuana/article163750293.html 

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Marijuana as Medicine 2018, Drugabuse.gov. viewed 7 February 2018, https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/marijuana-medicine

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Anon, 2018, viewed 13 February 2018, https://healthpsych.psy.vanderbilt.edu/2009/MarijuanaBrain.htm

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