“Why is marijuana against the law?
969411
I don't know man....puff puff pass
1024917
It is a crime. Why deny it. And it does cause damage. And willfully breaking a law is bad.
580102
Bad argument, as there are probably ample numbers of  accidents by people driving while high.\n\nThe better argument is why did the country decide that it needed to be illegal in the first place? Is there anything in the Constitution that gives them this power? [no]\n\nThis is what happens when you let do-gooders make laws that limit your freedoms, for your own good, of course. Like making it illegal to smoke tobacco in 'public' places. These are areas that no level of government in the US has the authority to go, yet they do it, because enough people have given those corrupt idiots the power.\n\nI don't smoke it, I don't want to smoke it, but by god, the Constitution as written gave me the freedom to choose to if I did want to. \n\nThat's what the real problem is. Our government's abandoning of the principles of the Constitution.
512143
Because they cannot arrest everyone.  And the only reason marijuana is illegal anyway is to keep kids from smoking it.  It's really better for you than alcohol.  Most people I know smoke it, and those who don't are cool with it.  I know a bunch of cops that smoke too.
194897
Why WOULDN'T pot be legal?  Lets talk about what is legal and what is not legal... Alcohol is legal - People can get drunk all they want.  The fact is when people get drunk, they often get violent, and alcohol is a leading cause of family violence.  With weed, the worst thing people do is get the giggles and crave fast food.  Pot is not like other drugs (IE coke or other chemical drugs).  Pot is not physically addictive.  Its a natural plant from the earth, not processed in any way.  How can a PLANT from God be illegal?
753109
The cotton industry used its power via lobbyists to pressure congress to make hemp/cannabis illegal. This was done years and years ago. \n\nAlso, you will notice that alcohol is enjoyed by the wealthy. Attend any high class function and the expensive liquor will be flowing! \n\nThat my friend is why Marijuana is illegal.
394152
Because in the 1920's, paper was cheaper to make from Hemp, which also grows faster than trees. This threatened the Hearst Empire, which owned a lot of tree covered acres that were being harvested to make paper. They petitioned the Gov't about the medicinal qualities of marijuana and convinced them it is bad & should be illegal.
1086965
I think the punishments should fit the crime. You are correct that there has been stiffer sentences handed out for drugs than for violent crimes. Different states have their own interpretations of what a small amount of marijuana is, and have their own laws regarding it. For some less than an ounce for recreational use with no distribution intent charge is a petty misdemeanor while other states are quite stringent.  Bottom line though, as long as no one else was affected by their use, make the punishment fit the crime and focus on reducing violence by handing out stiffer penalties for that.
383638
Marijuana was outlawed due to the American Cotton Industry. The cotton industry wanted hemp to be outlawed because hemp was cheaper to grow and made a better fabric when compared to cotton. So the launched a PR campaign saying that marijuana/hemp made people crazy and was harmful thereby making the growing of marijuana and hemp illegal.
1116397
The federal government is all about making money. If they could control the potency of marijuana, they would tax the crap out of it like cigarettes and legalize it. The problem lies in the regulation of the strains of marijuana. Personally, I am tired of my tax dollars paying for pot-heads in prison.
1024841
Keeping Marijuana illegal is all profit to the government\nand paper, petro-chemical, drug, and chemical companies. They all profit from keeping citizens criminal and a Little  bit poorer.
180920
Apparently we didn't learn.  Marijuana is illegal because it might compete with standard cigarettes, and the tabacco companies won't allow it.  That and people have been brought up to believe that it's bad so they get to feel morally superior for not using.  Then they turn around and use tabacco and alcohol, both of with are more harmful than marijuana, and FAR more dangerous for innocent by-standers (how many people each year are killed in stoned-driving accidents?).  Incidently, both cigarettes and alcohol can cause birth defects and other problems for an unborn fetus, whereas infants whose mother used marijuana during pregancy are shown to be calmer and actually preform slightly better on congative testing (although the effects disappear after the first few months of life).  Also, both cigarettes and alcohol are more addictive than marijuana.  And cigarette smoke contains more carcinogens than marijuana smoke.\n\n\n>>> Criminalizing Marijuana reduces crime and keeps the bad elements locked up.<<<\n\nNot true at all.  Marijuana use is in no way associated with crime.  All crimilizing marijuana does broaden the definition of crime, thereby creating more crime.  Do you have ANY idea how much crime (the kind that has victims - assault, murder, theft, etc.) is associated with the sale and purchase of illegal drugs simply BECAUSE they are illegal?  If illegal drugs weren't illegal people wouldn't have to buy them from shady dealers, which would but the drug dealers (and the gangs that go with them) out of business.  It's not the drugs themselves but their illegality that creates crime.\n\n>>>people who use it tend to stay stoned and unambitious<<<\n\nThat's funny, half the kids at my school smoke pot, and yet we have, I think it's the 3rd highest rate of graduates go on to earn PhDs of any school in the country.  I know a LOT of very sucessful people who smoked pot in college.\n\n>>>marajuana is a gateway dru<<\n\nBecause it's illegal, and, in many circles, taboo.  If we banned tabacco you'd see that turning into a "gateway drug" pretty fast.  A LOT of people smoke marijuana and don't move on to "hard" drugs.  And you know what, if people want to throw their lives away that's really their own concern.  We don't ban alcohol even though people drink and drive, and, unlike cocain, drunk driving kills other people too.
72317
"Making Marijuana against the law is like saying God made a mistake"\n-Bill Hicks\n\n\nit's only illegal because the government doesn't have the control over it like they do on every other substance that is legal.\nAlcohol is much worse for you than marijuana, yet it's legal. you do the math.\nIt has nothing to do with the harm that marijuana may have, yet that is what all the propaganda is based on.  Otherwise, how would you have propaganda being at all useful if it was just simply "the government cant control it, so don't use it". No, they want to lie and preach that it's actually harmful to you. That's the only way they get it to stay illegal, too many people think it's actually harmful so there's not enough to overturn the rule.\n\nIt's also not a matter of IF it can harm you at all. You can get harmed by anything taken beyond moderation. The fact is it has less harm than something that is legal. Therefore being nothing short of total hypocrisy and lies by the government.\n\nP.S.\nI'm not a pothead or a hippy, etc.. I don't use it and I never have. I know enough people and have seen enough information that I don't need to be a pothead to have a strong view on the matter.
310667
Alcohol is more harmful to the human body. Marijuana is illegal because it is a drug and the government can't make any money off of it. If it were legalized, the revenue from it would be the releif that this country has been in need of for too many years. We have many legal drugs that are way more harmful and yet they are used every day. Pot makes you mello. I think it should be legalized, and sold like cigarettes. This would eliminate the drug dealers and make things safer. The gov must be in with the drug dealers... we go to jail and they are at fault for allowing this to happen.  Any body think this is true?
365424
It is against the law.
861746
Why should we decriminalize or legalize marijuana?\nAs President Jimmy Carter acknowledged: "Penalties against drug use should not be more damaging to an individual than the use of the drug itself. Nowhere is this more clear than in the laws against the possession of marijuana in private for personal use."\n\nMarijuana prohibition needlessly destroys the lives and careers of literally hundreds of thousands of good, hard-working, productive citizens each year in this country. More than 700,000 Americans were arrested on marijuana charges last year, and more than 5 million Americans have been arrested for marijuana offenses in the past decade. Almost 90 percent of these arrests are for simple possession, not trafficking or sale. This is a misapplication of the criminal sanction that invites government into areas of our private lives that are inappropriate and wastes valuable law enforcement resources that should be focused on serious and violent crime.
683151
Because law enforcement makes allot of money off of it. In my state for example, if you get caught with just one joint, it's like a 1200 dollar fine. That's allot of money for the corrupt law enforcement and politicians around. That's the only reason, because they make more than if they tax it. And people say you can't tax it because it's so easy to grow your own. Well, tomatoes are easy to grow too, but I'd rather just go buy them at the store, much less hassle, and potheads would do the same.