Review and Critic my Essay Please.

im only 15 and i need this essay to be an A. Im looking for all the help i can get. its about the leaglization of marijuana. 

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872,720 U.S. citizens were arrested in America for marijuana possession in 2007. (NORML 6.) As of March 31 2009, almost 6 billion federal dollars has been spent on the War on Drugs this year. (Drug Sense) Is it worth it? Does marijuana actually have a medical use? Is the United States making criminals of innocence people? Is it worst then tobacco & alcohol? Does it matter? For years there has been a battle, involving the legalization of marijuana; in order to avoid being prejudice, one most fully educate himself in the history of marijuana, its medical benefactors, the pros & cons of its legalization and its “ability” to stimulate the economy before forming an opinion on the subject at hand.

“Almost two pounds of dried cannabis was founded in a old grave in the Gobi Desert; the cannabis appeared to be 2,700 years. It is said to be the oldest stash of marijuana ever found. Researchers say it was cultivated for psychoactive purposes.” (Viegas) Even though 2,700 years may seem like a long time cannabis, also known as marijuana, has actually been around for more the 8,000 years. The first use of marijuana dates back to 6000 BC where its seeds were used for food in China. Skip ahead a good 7,000 years, and it’s the 13^th century, and Arab traders are bringing cannabis to the coast of Africa. 400 years later, marijuana has becomes a major trade item between Central Asia and South Asia. Cannabis has many purposes, other then the most common one, which is smoking it. Hemp, which is cannabis in its industrial form, can be used as fibers, fuel, medicine and for many materials and that’s why former U.S President George Washington said in 1794 “Make the most you can of the Indian Hemp seed and sow it everywhere.”
This brings us to the topic of the hour: the history of marijuana in America. It is now the 1800’s in America, and marijuana can be purchased in pharmacies. Marijuana was being sold for all type of conditions, including migraine headaches, asthma, epilepsy, insomnia and chronic bronchitis. By the 1900’s marijuana was being use recreationally, meaning people were smoking it to get high. The term high refers to the feeling marijuana gives to its consumers when used. By 1931 nearly twenty-nine States had enforced that marijuana be banned due the suspicion of its negative effects during the Great Depression. In 1932, research was conducted which resulted in a concern with marijuana since it was being linked to crimes and other social problems. “The Federal Government passed it own law, the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937. This Law put such a steep tax on marijuana that it essentially ended the production and legal sale of the plant in the United States.”(Schliechert 16). For a few years marijuana wasn’t the talk of the town until in 1944, the New York Academy of Medicine issued reports that contradicted the previous research. The previous research suggested that marijuana had association with increase crime rates, insanity and was the leading cause to other drugs. Due to the changing of political and cultural climate in the 1960’s, the use of marijuana became more popular. Therefore the penalties for being caught with possession of marijuana became harsh. National Organization for the Reform Of Marijuana Laws (NORML) was formed to convince the government to lessen the penalties on the American people. By 1989, President George Bush had declared a war on drugs. The War on Drugs cost Americans taxpayers at least 7. 5 Billion annually. In 1996, California voters passed a proposition allowing marijuana to be used medicinally for people with cancer, AIDS and other painful diseases. This law caused a lot of tension between California and the federal government because marijuana is a Schedule 1 Drug. A Schedule 1 drug means that the substance has a high potential for abuse and shouldn’t be accepted for medical use in treatment in the United States. Since California went against federal laws, many states are starting to follow their own regulations for marijuana. Now more then fourteen states in America support the use of marijuana for medicine (NORML), which brings up the question whether or not marijuana has medical purposes.
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What does marijuana offers when it comes to the medical world? Well, there isn’t much doubt whether or not marijuana has medicinal use, it has been pretty much agreed upon that it does serves a purpose for multiple diseases. One of the benefits marijuana offers to medicine, is the relief it give to cancer patients. Many people who suffer from cancer usually always experience nausea and vomiting from the chemotherapy and radiation treatment. Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer using anticancer drugs. While other approved drugs offer aid to these symptoms, doctors must prescribe medicine based on age, the drug used in chemotherapy, and the individual’s need. Therefore some doctors have resulted in using marijuana since it has been shown to help relieve the nausea and vomiting involved in chemotherapy. The marijuana is smoked, because is it absorbed more quickly into the body providing relief almost instantly compared to the rates of other drugs. Marijuana has also been proved beneficial in helping increase the appetites in cancer patients and also in people who suffer from HIV. HIV is a virus that invades the cell in the immunes system making that person more vulnerable to infectious disease. People with HIV experience chronic neuropathic pain, which is when damaged nerves send incorrect pain signals to the brain.

University of California's Pain Clinical Research Center reported in the journal Neurology that inhaling cannabis significantly reduced HIV-associated neuropathy compared to placebo. Researchers reported that inhaling cannabis three times daily reduced patients' pain by 34 percent.” (NORML 5.)



Therefore people who have HIV can get marijuana to help decrease pain. Medical marijuana is also commonly used for people who suffer from glaucoma; Glaucoma is a disease that damages the eyes optic nerve causing high pressures within the eye, which can result in blindness. Marijuana has been proven to help lower the pressure around the eye making the condition less painful for patients. Next is multiple sclerosis, which is a chronic disease that weakens muscle and causes loss of motor coordination. Fortunately for people, who are diagnosed with multiple sclerosis studies have shown that chemicals released into the body when smoking marijuana, has the ability to reduce the symptoms of multiple scleroses. Symptoms like pain, depression, spasticity, and fatigue are drastically reduced with the help of marijuana. The following new article describes a women, who is looking for marijuana to be legal to help her sick father who suffers from Parkinson disease:

A self described stay-at-home mom from Orlando who wants better treatment options for her ailing father is launching a drive to put medical marijuana on the 2010 ballot.

Kim Russell, a third-generation Floridian and founder of People United for Medical Marijuana, (PUFMM,) said she is not a marijuana user and is not trying to get pot legalized in Florida. She just wants her 62-year-old father to get the most effective drug for his Parkinson's disease. ??

"It breaks my heart that he could not get medicine that could help him avoid brain surgery," she said. ?



So why is marijuana not legal? Ever since marijuana arrived in America there has been a lot of controversy surrounding it. As times progressed so did the issues with marijuana being legal. While some of these issues were resolved, there are still many issues that are preventing marijuana from being legal. 
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