The Societal Effects Of Marijuana Legalization

You’ve understandably waded through a lot of articles that tout the health benefits of marijuana. It’s pretty predictable at this point in time. You cannot really blame the lobbyists and pro-legalization groups. The fastest way to garner support and sympathy for your cause is to address issues on a personal level. That is why articles that debunk marijuana myths are a dime a dozen. Being a very popular drug even before the battle for legalization began, marijuana use has been a hotbed of controversy for years before the present day. But blowing the trumpet on what marijuana can do for you and only you has its own pitfalls. One might even say it makes the driving force behind marijuana legalization a tad selfish. Thankfully, there are states within the United States that have already passed a local judgment and have legalized the use, growth, and sale of marijuana, albeit this comes in small and much regulated doses. Because of these forward-thinking states, we are able to gauge the possible long-term effects of marijuana legalization not just as individual consumers, but as a society as a whole.

More Jobs

The myth of marijuana being a gateway drug is a pretty popular one. It has also been disproved pretty recently as well. However, marijuana can still be called a gateway; though one for an entirely different purpose. Legalizing commercial activity on marijuana will inadvertently lead to more job openings for many individuals. And though the medical field has a particularly high level of entry, you don’t need a PhD in Biochemistry just to participate in the fast-growing marijuana industry. From sales representatives to suppliers, having the entire supply chain of providing marijuana for consumers legalized opens up countless opportunities in areas of agriculture, transportation, and even advertising. Who knows, we might even come up with the cannabis equivalent of Budweiser one day!

Less Crime

Though many anti-marijuana organizations are quick to jump on the criminal statistics related to marijuana possession, consumption, and sale, the fact that these activities are criminally prohibited are the sole contribution to the very statistics they propagate. Violent and civil crimes related to marijuana are few and far between. Cases such as murder, domestic abuse, theft, assault, and even sexual crimes like rape and harassment rarely state marijuana use as the main culprit behind the criminal action. Legalizing marijuana will virtually eradicate what crime rate there used to be due to criminal prohibition. Aside from that, drug cartels and syndicates that make the bulk of their revenue via the illegal sale of drugs will find a major cash flow substantially cut down due to open and legal channels of acquiring marijuana.

Increased Tax Revenue

The most obvious societal benefit of legalizing marijuana is by far the most useful one. Having a legalized process for selling a very famous product such as marijuana creates an opportunity for taxation. With the proper tax system set in place and by following basic concepts of supply and demand, tax revenue will unavoidably rise in direct relation to marijuana sales. In fact, several of the states that have legalized marijuana have already reported record tax incomes for the quarter in which the legalization took place. These same taxes can be used to fund numerous government projects that will benefit its citizens in areas of education, healthcare, and the maintenance of public infrastructure.