Why Marijuana Should Be Legalized

Why Marijuana Should Be Legalized

Thesis Statement: To inform my audience about how the legalization of marijuana will benefit our economy, reduce crime & violence and how marijuana is healthier than both alcohol & tobacco, which are both legal.

Introduction

I. "Prohibition goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control a man’s appetite by legislation and makes a crime of things that are not crimes.” – 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln

II. Marijuana should be legalized because it presents an excellent opportunity for the government to obtain much needed revenue through taxation of it.

III. I’ve done a lot of researching for my topic and I compared marijuana and alcohol to each other and I just don’t get why we won’t legalize marijuana. Our country is a little desperate these days to figure out how to lower our debt and I believe that regulation of marijuana can help lower it.

IV. Today I am going to talk to you about how the legalization of marijuana will be beneficial for our economy, how it will reduce crime & violence and how marijuana is healthier than both alcohol & tobacco, which are both legal.

Body

I. The legalization of marijuana will help save the United States billions of dollars and reduce our debt.

A. The total cost of marijuana prohibition

1. The cost of active law enforcement.

2. Plus the cost of prosecution and defense of accused offenders.

3. Plus the cost of incarceration of convicted offenders.

4. Also add the hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue that would be generated if marijuana were legal and taxed.

B. The New Report projected that $10-14 billion annual savings and revenues would come from marijuana regulation.

5. According to Harvard Economics professor Jeffery Miron, marijuana regulation would create $14 billion in benefits every year.

C. The United States marijuana...