Legalization, however, will not affect addiction and its effects on propensity to violence. Instead of legalizing drugs, better treatment, education and research are needed to curb drug dependence and the adverse health and societal effects of drug use. The government, including the Clinton administration, has done little to improve the debate. Although it has consistently rejected any withdrawal of the ban, its position has evidently not been based on a thorough investigation of the potential costs and benefits.
The belief that legalization would lead to an instantaneous and dramatic increase in drug use is considered so evident that it does not warrant any further study. But if this is indeed the likely conclusion of any study, what is there to fear other than criticism that relatively small amounts of taxpayer money have been wasted to prove what everyone had believed in the beginning? Would such an outcome not in any case help to justify the continuation of existing policies and would it convincingly silence those who, undoubtedly, never more than a small minority calling for legalization? Legal or not, people can develop a dependence on anything classified as a drug. Just because a legalized drug is socially acceptable doesn't mean there's no danger. Usual use drags on without warning.
There is evidence that in states where cannabis has been legalized, drug use among adolescents has declined or remained the same. Dutch youth have a higher average level of marijuana use than young people in other European countries, however, their levels of use are below those of the United States, the United Kingdom and France, where (until recently) legal cannabis was not allowed. This report focuses on the first four states to legalize recreational marijuana, as they have several years of trend data. First, the Netherlands never legalized marijuana, but instead developed a “no criminalization” policy, which is different from the current approach of the United States, which has resulted in full legalization in two states.
Supporters also argue that legalizing and regulating drugs would make marijuana and other drugs safer for consumers. With a growing number of states legalizing marijuana and other drugs, debate continues over whether the negative effects of drug decriminalization outweigh the positive ones. Let's take a closer look at the drug legalization debate, the pros and cons of drug legalization, and what research says about how drug decriminalization will affect young adults in particular. The main lessons of the Dutch experience for the United States are that marijuana control policies are likely to evolve, however, large-scale legalization, as is now the case in two states (Colorado and Washington), is a phenomenon that differs from the Dutch experience.
Legalization of medical marijuana is linked to reduced drunk driving and safer roads, study suggests Legalization of marijuana for adult use is associated with lower use of prescription drugs for the treatment of conditions such as anxiety, sleep, pain and seizures, according to a new research paper. A number of previous studies have identified associations with the enactment of statewide legalization of medical cannabis and the reduction of pharmaceutical prescriptions, but this latest article published in the journal Health Economics focuses on the potential impact of recreational legalization in more than 10 states Washington, D. While the four states with legal marijuana have not escaped this trend, these states have not suffered from the dizzying mortality rates that have affected other regions of the country. Senate Marijuana Legalization Bill “Could Come” Next Week, But Congressional Sources Reject Timeline Report.
Marijuana Legalization Presents Need for New Health Education Strategies to Discourage Drug Abuse, Especially for Minors. They also believe that marijuana is an entry drug and, consequently, an increase in marijuana use would lead to an increase in the use of harder drugs. .
