Should Marijuana be Legalized?

Marijuana, mary jane, sweet leaf, grass, weed, hemp, or its proper name Cannabis; whatever you want to call it, it has had a colorful past. Cannabis has been used in many practical uses for hundreds of years. Clothes, rope, and paper have all been made out of the cannabis plant. In fact an acre of cannabis can make 4 times as much paper as an acre of trees. George Washington grew and encouraged the growth of cannabis so that Americans could be less dependent on foreign countries' goods. Cannabis was instrumental in producing war supplies in World War II. We must not forget the medicinal uses of cannabis as well. We see the good of cannabis, and it is very good, so the question is why is it illegal?

Cannabis is illegal because of its psychoactive drug THC present in the plant which produces a high. THC is believed to be harmful to users and promote further drug use. Studies have shown this to be untrue. The picture included shows that cannabis is both less harmful and less addictive (dependence) than both alcohol and tobacco. So again, why is it illegal?

The answer is because in the early 20th century the timber industry was able to influence the government to make cannabis illegal. The illegalization of cannabis was of purely economic motives. In light of this, the many practical uses of cannabis, and it being less harmful than alcohol and tobacco, it is my personal belief that cannabis should be legalized as it was before the 1930's and during WWII.