It has become very clear that the US economic system is in need of a major reboot. We currently face the worst recession this country has seen since the Great Depression. With a presidential election just one year away the topic on everyone’s mind is the economy. Campaigns and ideas that promise to get the country back on track. In order to restore our place of glory among the capitalistic super giants of the world is the driving force behind many of these campaigns. While everyone is quick to point fingers and point out the flaws of their oppositions ideas on how to fix this problem, few are coming up with any sort of solution of their own. If we are going to get out of the situation we can’t keep regurgitating the same ideas over and over. It is going to take a new innovative idea to turn things around and get back on track. This radical idea may come in the form of the legalization of marijuana. Through the legalization of marijuana we could increase tax revenue, lower spending on criminalization and create a surplus of jobs. Ultimately marijuana could be the spark the lights up the American economy and puts it back on the high road it was once accustomed to.
-The first thing I will talk about will be what the current economic situation is within the US. It is important for the reader of my essay to have an understanding of the current economic crisis so they can see why we need to fix it. I can go about portraying the situation by using either academic sources or statistics. Topic Sentence: “The US faces a major economic crisis that requires a great deal of concentration, if we do not take this situation seriously our country will certainly suffer.”
-In my second paragraph I can convey to them some of the ideas of current member of the US government. I can also talk about how the government using traditional plans has not really done much for us as of late and why it is time for a new approach. Topic Sentence: “Traditional ideas are what brought us to the place we are in now, we can not afford another one.”
– I can give a basic explanation of all the positives of my plan to legalize marijuana. These advantages include: Tax revenue from the sale and production of marijuana, Less money spent on the criminalization of marijuana, more focus on more dangerous drugs, more government regulation to keep the drug safe, Jobs created through marijuana farms, less drug wars at the Mexican border, funding of US citizens rather than foreign gangs etc. “There are many ways in which Marijuana can positively benefit the US economy and the US as a whole.”
-I can then talk about the Great Depression and the prohibition of alcohol. Mainly how the prohibiting of alcohol lead to gang violence and crime, while the consumption and sale of alcohol was still prominent. This relates to marijuana because its sale is currently affiliated with crime and gangs also its still has a high amount of consumption. “Prohibition has a history of being not only ineffective but dangerous. The prohibition of marijuana is not currently working and should be reversed to help benefit our country .”
-This can lead into a paragraph about drug violence and drug wars at the Mexican American border. Also the amount of revenue that Mexican gangs are acquiring from US citizens. Also there are a lot of other drugs that enter through this method so we could focus more strictly on the smuggling of other drugs since they are more hazardous to US citizens. “The drug wars at the Mexican American border are dangerous to both citizens of the US and Mexico we can help cut down on the frequency of these events by taking marijuana out of the picture.”
-Next I will talk about the potential job market that could be created through the farming, packaging, and sale of Marijuana. This could open many jobs for US citizens helping to lower our unemployment rate and get more money flowing into our economy rather than handing out unemployment checks. “It is no secret that the United States needs to create more jobs. Marijuana would lead to many jobs in many different areas.”
-After this I can talk about the taxation of marijuana. If we tax it like regular things it could bring a decent amount of revenue or if we tax it like alcohol or cigarettes it could bring in a very nice amount of tax revenue to our country. “There is very high possible revenue that could be generated from marijuana , this revenue would certainly boost our economy.”
-Next I can talk about the amount of money we spend on funding police agencies to crack down on the use of marijuana. Also the amount of money that is spent on criminalizing those who are simply possessing or using only a small amount. This also could be used for something more effective or just cuts our nation’s spending. ”We are wasting billions of dollars on attempting to cut down marijuana use in America. This spending is both wasteful and ineffective ; if marijuana is legalized we can save much of this money.”
-I can give a skeptic’s opinion on how marijuana is dangerous and bad for one’s health. Or that consumption will raise by a huge amount leading to a nation focused on drugs. I can also list any other sort of negative ideas. “Not everyone is in favor of legalizing marijuana in the us some concerns from skeptics include….”
– I can then have a rebuttal attempting to show why these things should not be concerns of American citizens. Or why they are not as bad and dangerous as the author makes them out to be. “These are things that should call for attention but do not outweigh the benefits.”
-To cement my argument I will have a paragraph giving examples of what the decriminalization in other countries has led to and how it has affected their country. I will attempt to give both the positives and negatives that these countries have experienced. “In other countries they have legalized marijuana and they’re country has not fallen to pieces , therefore we should be okay too.”
-I will finish with my conclusion that will wrap up all my ideas into one. Attempting to portray to the reader why this idea is a good one and why if they don’t think so we need to figure something else out quick before it is too late for our country.
notbryce 