Marijuana: Positive Medicinal and Economic Effects

Introduction

The use of marijuana, in small quantities, for recreational purposes has existed for many hundreds of years. It has been used for everything from pain relief to a food ingredient creating a feeling of euphoria. Throughout the ages, it has served many purposes and to this day has not wavered in its popularity. In fact, its popularity is growing with the increasing amount of legalization around the world. So we ask ourselves, why is marijuana still illegal for personal use in most states throughout Australia? Canberra, our capital city, and home of Parliament House has recently legalized the possession and personal use of this substance. Why then is the rest of Australia lagging behind? If we look at the positive reasons for legalizing the personal use of marijuana, we discover three very convincing arguments. Not only would the government benefit from revenue raising by taxing the drug, but we would also be equipping professionals with the ability to produce the substance in a safe and controlled environment. Add to that the removal of minor offenses affecting the credibility and criminal records of small-time users, and there is no doubt that the remaining states of Australia should follow suit.

Economic Benefits of Legalization

To begin, a major positive towards legalizing marijuana is the fact that the government will be able to tax the sale of the drug. With the additional tax revenue, the government would be able to better fund multiple drug addiction helplines all around Australia. Considering that drugs and alcohol are major issues, our community surrounding these substances could use as much help as possible. In 2017, there were 5,731 registered drug-induced deaths; this is almost 16 deaths a day throughout all of Australia (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2022). Of those deaths, only 2.7% or 158 throughout the year were marijuana-related. The amount of tax revenue from the sale of this drug is high; for example, the state of Colorado in the United States has generated $1.2 billion since retail marijuana sales began in February 2014 (Colorado Department of Revenue, 2023). This kind of income could fundamentally help our community, even with only gaining a percentage of that amount. Seeing that marijuana is the most widely used illicit drug in Australia but is responsible for less than 3% of drug-induced deaths, it is clear that legalizing this drug and gaining more funds for drug addiction helplines will overall better our community.

Health and Safety Considerations

Furthermore, another crucial reason to legalize marijuana is the fact that it will be able to be produced and grown in a controlled environment. As stated earlier, marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug throughout Australia, but at the moment, the majority of people that use the drug are buying it illegally or growing it in their own homes. The truth is that most people who are buying it illegally don’t know what they are potentially exposing their bodies to, with there being a higher risk of the drug being laced with unknown substances or grown with numerous dangerous chemicals. With 33% of Australians admittedly using or having tried the drug (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, n.d.), there is an extremely low chance that people will use the drug less, and it is even continually gaining usage throughout Australia each year. If we cannot stop people from using it, why should we not make it as safe as possible and limit the amount of accidental harms that come from the drug not being produced in a controlled environment? It is evident that marijuana is a widely accepted drug that has a lot of potential, and unnecessary risks go along with it, but by legalizing it, there will universally be fewer risks associated with the narcotic.

Legal Implications

One of the biggest harms from the illicit drug, marijuana, is purely that it is illegal. The criminal record that comes with it is ruining some people’s lives. For having a small amount of marijuana that is only for personal use, which can affect getting certain jobs for them and make life considerably more difficult. In 2017-18, there were 66,600 consumer arrests made in Australia, meaning that all of these arrests were of people that had the drug for personal use and had no intention to distribute it (Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, 2019). This amount was 92% of the total arrests for marijuana-related crimes in those years. The criminalization of marijuana primarily impacts the people that have the drug for their own consumption, suggesting that the problem isn’t with people possessing the drug but rather distributing it. So why not decriminalize possession of marijuana for personal use and prohibit the illegal distribution of the drug? This will have considerable positive effects on our community and overall minimize harm for a massive amount of people throughout Australia.

Conclusion

So what can we do to resolve this issue and have the rest of Australia moving in the same direction? We need to help people to realize the positive effects this will have for the country, like the tax revenue it will bring in, the number of people who will not be criminalized for possessing it, along with the pressure it will take off of the court systems, and finally, the safer it will be to use with it being grown in a controlled environment. This is the kind of change that will start to help our country move in the right direction.