Why america should legalize marijuana Research Paper

Why america should legalize marijuana - Research Paper Example Following the call of Miron, huge expenditure is incurred on housing of the offenders of these drugs and on preventive measures against this practice. In fact, an expected saving of $7.7 billion on this ground is estimated if the drug is legalized. According to the executive summary of a report submitted by Miron, â€Å"The report estimates that legalizing marijuana would save $7.7 billion per year in government expenditure on enforcement of prohibition. $5.3 billion of this savings would accrue to state and local governments, while $2.4 billion would accrue to the federal government† (Miron). Another estimate shows that the taxpayers of United States incur an excess expenditure of $12 billion, which go into the fund spent for agendas conducted against marijuana intake, research on the drug, prohibiting domestic cultivation of marijuana, imposition of the law, prosecution and arrests of the smokers of marijuana. (â€Å"Should the U.S. Legalize Marijuana?†) Legalizing ma rijuana might save these costs. Also, forcefully trying to stop the sale of marijuana might not simply bring down the number of drug dealers. They might either engage in black marketing or simply deal with other harmful substances. When a certain good is prohibited it opens doors to black market activities and consequently the corruption and crime related to black market activities. If the drug is legalized it will lead to the reallocation of important resources of the nation. For instance, cannabis when legally distributed might be put to various useful purposes apart from drugs, for example it can be used for making paper, rope, soap, lotions, fuel and lubricants. It has found use in several medicines. (â€Å"Should the U.S. Legalize Mariuana?†) In fact the black market price of marijuana in United States is USD 10.4 per gram, higher than the countries of Argentina, Bolivia, Columbia etc. (â€Å"Price of Marijuana in the