Week 9 EOC: Wall Street Journal Opinion

President Obama decriminalizing the personal use of marijuana opens up legal questions on the front of those who have been incarcerated because of it. What will happen to them? There will be appeals everywhere by those busted for marijuana use because hey, The President said it was ok.

This controversial act is corresponding with the release of a documentary deemphasizing the harmful effects of marijuana by Dr. Sanjay Gupta that aired on CNN. Dr. Gupta states that “it [marijuana] doesn't have a high potential for abuse, and there are very legitimate medical applications” (http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/08/health/gupta-changed-mind-marijuana). Can such a statement by a respected medical professional help make the general sentiment public enough to persuade the President to decriminalize the possession of weed? Absolutely. There have been public polls regarding this very issue and Gallup reports that “a record-high 50% of Americans now say the use of marijuana should be made legal, up from 46% last year. Forty-six percent say marijuana use should remain illegal (http://www.gallup.com/poll/150149/record-high-americans-favor-legalizing-marijuana.aspx).” If the president is elected by the people then he should listen to what the people has to say. I believe that it is no more harmful than drinking liquor or smoking something else less dubious- cigarettes. I do not use marijuana but do not see the reason why it is still considered a schedule 1 substance. If we legalize it then tax it, it would become like liquor or cigarettes. “We now know that while estimates vary, marijuana leads to dependence in around 9 to 10% of its adult users. By comparison, cocaine, a schedule 2 substance "with less abuse potential than schedule 1 drugs" hooks 20% of those who use it. Around 25% of heroin users become addicted. The worst is tobacco, where the number is closer to 30% of smokers, many of whom go on to die because of their addiction. I think we should legalize then tax it” (http://www.cnn.com/2013/08/08/health/gupta-changed-mind-marijuana).

Not everyone takes the stance I do, however. An editor for the Wall Street Journal writes, “Not since Nixon have we seen a Presidency so disdainful of the law, but at least Nixon had enough respect for legal appearances to break the law on the sly. This Administration simply declares it won't enforce the laws it doesn't like and calls it virtue. The media then give this a pass because Mr. Obama's decisions mesh with their own policy preferences” (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323324904579044771286022400.html?mod=wsj_share_tweet). The president shouldn’t have gone ahead and made up his own rule. There are procedures needed to make reform happen and President Obama did not adhere to the law. Simply decriminalizing a criminal act does not make the law magically change. The war on drugs is over. An all-time high percentage of people want to legalize marijuana, so give the people what they want.