Rhetoric & Writing

HOELLER CLAIRE SOPHIE. “I went to a marijuana dispensary in Colorado and it felt just like visiting a wine store”. Businessinsider.com. 14 July 2015. Web. 15 July 2015.

Business insider

Sophie Claire Hoeller is a traveler and a journalist who received her master’s degree in journalism from New York University and a bachelors from Boston University. Hoeller writes “I went to a marijuana dispensary in Colorado and it felt just like visiting a wine store “published in businessinder.com. Hoeller describes her personal experience in one of Colorado’s marijuana dispensaries, in which she states she found pleasant and ordinary. In her writing Hoeller includes the increase of tourism and economy in Colorado, suggesting that the reason behind this profit is due to the legalization of marijuana shops.

As we all know Colorado allowed the growth of the cannabis plant for adults aged 21 and older in November 2012, following the Colorado Amendment 64 which set standards for this legalization. The first marijuana stores were officially opened on January 1, 2014. According to Hoeller dispensaries are estimated to have brought in $295 million in sales as well as $51 million in tax revenue in 2014. Hoeller also adds the fact that Colorado is ranked one of the fastest growing economies in the world and that its employment rate has been the biggest drop in the U.S., suggesting that the United States should increase their economy as Colorado did. Hoeller argues that the sale of marijuana has brought profit to Colorado, and that it is just like purchasing alcohol in which you have to be 21 years old or older to purchase marijuana, arguing that there is not a difference between both of the products as much people believe. “A line formed behind us as we pepped the budtender with questions”, as the author points out the sell for marijuana is high, there is no loss of money in the market for investing in these shops.

Hoeller includes her point of view on the selling of the product, “While definitely in the hippie side, the experience of visiting a marijuana dispensary was straight forward and pleasant-not at all sketchy as I has anticipated”. In other words, the author is expressing her emotions before and after visiting the shop, at the beginning she was doubtful and insecure but after the experience she felt more comfortable. Hoeller juxtaposes her pleasant experience to the visiting of a fancy shop, Hoeller suggest that there is no reason to feel indifferent about marijuana when it is just as normal as alcohol. “Really it reminded me of a fancy wine shop, where customers refer to a connoisseur who knows the products well and can recommend something to each person’s liking”. Once again Hoeller indicates the similarity between any alcohol and marijuana, there is nothing out of the imaginary like we all believe.

Hoeller believes that marijuana can help a country become financially stable by bringing in people to explore as herself. That tourism and marijuana shops can help a countries economy rise and unemployment drop. The author also suggests that marijuana is not as different from other substances such as alcohol, and that our insecurity of marijuana might be a false emotion.

Nemko, Marty. “Legalize Pot? You must be high”. Time.com. Time, 7 November 2014. Web. 15 July 2015.

http://time.com/3573394/legalize-pot-you-must-be-high/

Today Marijuana is a controversial topic because there is an upside in the medicinal aspect, however it can cause a negative impact towards society. Marty Nemko, who is the author of “Legalize Pot? You must be high” and a PhD graduate from Berkley, disapproves for the legalization of Marijuana. Throughout the article Nemko portrays an argumentative tone and hopes people come into their senses about the horrible things Marijuana does to society. He emphasizes Marijuana will cause destruction in society and it will do the opposite of producing tax money.

The youth of America is the future and Nemko begins his argument by ensuring that children need to be safe. The unwanted and cruel things that Marijuana is capable of needs to be nowhere close to the youth. He repeatedly explains how Marijuana makes one imperative “in the two key brain regions that are important in emotion and motivation”. Marijuana use during adolescent has long-term consequences because it can “permanently impair cognition and increase the risk for diseases. Also Nemko asserts that U.S should not feel pride about their students’ achievements because it “finished below average among OECD nations”. Compared to other countries U.S is not prestigious and it is far from reaching its apex. Further Nemko highlights another part of society that will be negatively impacted, which is the workforce. Although Marijuana would stabilize the pain for the people in stress from finance, it won’t help the person find a solution. Massive amount of families would be affected and thus families would become psychologically dysfunctional. As a whole, Nemko believes society in general would deteriorate if Marijuana were legalized.

Furthermore Nemko discusses how Marijuana will have an effect towards the economy and in medicine. As many Marijuana supporters say pot will produce an additional amount of tax revenue. However Nemko proves the exact opposite of that because he states, “the percentage of vehicle accidents in Washington rose 40 percent” after Marijuana was legalized in Washington. Since accidents and diseases are more frequent due to the consumption of Marijuana, treating those accidents will cost an ample amount of tax money. Even though Nemko does not approve for the recreational use for Marijuana, he approves for the medicinal use for it. He believes Marijuana should “be treated like any other prescription medicine”, but not something that is sold over the counter.

All in all Nemko portrays his thoughts effectively and I think his arguments make absolute sense. This article was really interesting because it altered some of my knowledge about Marijuana. As I’m a Texan who is confused about the legalization of Marijuana, I now have a better feel for the topic.

Venosa, Ali. “The High Road: A Marijuana Breathalyzer May Soon Catch People Driving Under The Influence By Detecting THC.” medicaldaily.com, 15 Jul 2015 Web. 15 Jul 2015.

http://www.medicaldaily.com/high-road-marijuana-breathalyzer-may-soon-catch-people-driving-under-influence-343124

Majoring in Journalism and Science Writing, Ali Venosa, writer for Luxos Magazine and The Brown and White Newspaper, has set out to her next topic, marijuana breathalyzers. Confused, Ali questions its urgency since, much is still needed to learn about marijuana’s affect on humans. Comparing it to alcohol breathalyzers, she also challenges its accuracy in terms of marijuana’s long lasting effect within our bodies. Going forth, within her doubt, she tries to discern common sense amongst entrepreneurs who feel the urgency to come out with the first model.

Initially, the author talks about marijuana breathalyzers inevitability due to the rising popularities of smoking marijuana, and the concerns that come with it.  Humorously, Ali mentions the entrepreneurs that seek to be the first to patent the device. “ Other hopefuls in the race to create a THC breathalyzer include Lifeloc Technologies Inc …” Many companies seek the opportunity, however marijuana poses lots of complications that prolongs manufacturing and even doubt others,  like Ali. “… The science and reasoning behind how cannabis affects driving is far from being established.” Since marijuana can remain in our bodies systems for weeks, even months,  Ali questions the breathalyzers accuracy.

Later within the article, the author differentiates the differences of being under the influence with alcohol compared to marijuana. “The consequences of driving under the influence of alcohol have been publicized- and is well known to the populace…” This introduces her view on how marijuana isn’t recognized, and wonders “ what it means to be ‘under the influence…’” Many states have indeed already set different laws on driving while high, however they vary drastically depending on how intoxicated you are. Therefore, another concern of Ali’s is, if there was a marijuana breathalyzer, shouldn’t it be able to dictate how high a person is at that moment and not from two weeks ago.

At last, Ali sums up  her article with an analogy to alcohol. “ A breathalyzer that was unable to tell the difference between a driver that had one beer and a driver that had eight would be rather useless in law enforcement today…” Law enforcement dictates a driver’s sentence depending on how intoxicated one was at the time being. If alcohol breathalyzers read one and eight beers as the same, then law enforcement would have a difficult time during trial. With this said, the author finishes with the article convinced of her own belief. “…It remains to be seen how a THC breathalyzer will fit into the picture.”

This source is valuable in my research for I got to learn about the uprising marijuana breathalyzer, and got to read a contradicting view on it. This article has shown me how marijuana is going to become as broad and popular as beer is, and with that comes consequences that need to be resolved. My peers can find this article useful if they want to learn about the upcoming marijuana breathalyzer and the controversies it brings.

Boeri, Miriam. “Is Marijuana a Gateway Drug?” Newsweek.com. Newsweek, 4 April 2015 web, 15 July 2105

Society has evolved the idea of marijuana being the gateway to other addictive and dangerous narcotics. According to Miriam Boeri, a journalist for Newsweek,  argues that marijuana is not a gateway drug like we’ve come to believe with her article “Marijuana is not, I Repeat, not a Gateway Drug”. Boeri points out how marijuana is not the cause of gradual drug addiction when she writes “Research shows that the vast majority of marijuana users do not go on to hard drugs.” Boeri explains the different factors that do not make marijuana the portal to heroine, cocaine, and other drugs.

Boeri explains the biased research indicating how marijuana is the root of drug addiction. In a 2014 article by a neuroscientist named, Dr. Jodi Gilman, he explains how marijuana use can lead to drug addiction. Although, Boeri states how there have been many critics in the article writing “But other researchers were quick to point out the flaws of the Gilman study, such as a lack of careful controls for alcohol and other drug use by those whose brains were studied.” She also informs how researchers and authors don’t include users who have been doing cocaine at a young age and never tried marijuana. Boeri examines other factors that lead to drug addiction that don’t include marijuana such as poverty, poor social environment, bipolar disorder, antisocial personality, and so on.

Most of the research Beori relies on has to be from resources outside of the United States or grassroots within the U.S. She argues that it is difficult to research on the plant,because it is still a Schedule 1 drug, and it is difficult to get research for it approved by the Federal government. On the other hand, when the research is approved politics usually has the say in where the research leans toward when Boeri writes “For decades, scientists who study addiction have received millions of dollars in government and pharmaceutical funding to perpetuate the gateway hypothesis.” Most research for marijuana in the U.S is toward the gateway theory.

The scare method has a huge effect on the gateway theory. In Beori’s view, she states that the scare tactics for marijuana has been modernized used mainly by politicians. Their “drugs scares” are aimed at the youth, saying drug use will increase among them. Beori states “But fears of decriminalization resulting in increased use among youth haven’t been supported by research from countries where drugs were decriminalized.” making their statements invalid. She points out the use of marijuana among the young did not increase in states that had legalized medical marijuana.

This article made me realize that marijuana isn’t the cause for all drug addictions. I always had that in the back of my mind, if marijuana was the “gateway drug” and the main portal to drug addiction. There are many causes which lead to higher norcatic addiction, and the research behind it is very complicated. My opinion for marijuana has shifted a bit since reading this article, because marijuana is not the root of all evil. Like this article stated, there are people who have smoked, but stop after they reach adulthood. Although, marijuana will always be a very opinionated subject no matter what side of the debate I am with.

Roffman, Roger. “Marijuana’s addictive risk shouldn’t be ignored.” washingtonpost.com. The Washington Post, 24. Oct. 2014. Web. 15 July 2015.

Roger Roffman, the author of “Marijuana Nation: One Man’s Chronicle of America Getting High -From Vietnam to Legislation” and a professor emeritus of social work at the University of Washington.  In the mid-1980’s he was the founding director of the Innovative Programs Research Group, retiring in 2009 from the faculty he continues working with the school part-time as a co-investigator at the IPRG.  Roffman agreeing with the world-wide debate on legalizing marijuana, however makes clear, along with the legalizing he also believes there should be an investment in educating the public and preventing and treating those who are addicted.

On October 24, 2014, Roffman shares his thoughts on the legalization while incorporating a personal experience with the substance.  “It’s not as if I’m stoned every day,” he would say, “is it different from having a drink or two?”  Roffman points out how he slowly began losing himself and distancing himself from his wife.  That was when he realized that he was one of the many Americans today that become addicted to marijuana.

After years of successfully quitting, he along with some colleagues, who had also struggled with addiction to marijuana, began a research.  “Today, about 2.7 million Americans over age 12 are dependent on marijuana…the risk of becoming addicted is roughly 9 percent… 17 percent for those who begin in adolescence, and for those who get high daily, the addiction risk is 25 percent to 50 percent.”  Despite the statistics Roffman believes that legalizing marijuana still makes more sense than prohibition.  Prohibiting marijuana would only result in violence and more competition between drug cartels nationally.  While legalizing and taking actions in providing aid to those who are addicted or those who just need to be more educated on the substance would result in a better outcome.

He points out how many people have tended to exaggerate the truth about marijuana and its risks, explaining how others on the flip side of the issue over analyze the situation.  “Those arguing against legalization often exaggerate marijuana’s risks, rarely acknowledging most occasional users are not harmed,” he states, followed by mentioning how legalizing marijuana is the result to a healthier and safer nation.  Taking the right actions in providing for marijuana users will ultimately be much better than completely denying the use of it.

This article helped me in realizing that there is not just one side to this debate.  Some may see it as either “yes legalize it, and everybody can get high” and others might see it as “no, prohibit the use of marijuana, it’s a drug, and it’s dangerous” but what I haven’t seen a lot of is how Roffman sees it.  He sees it in a way that compromises both aspects.  He’s demonstrating how someone could use marijuana however there will be an aid available if it were to get out of hand.  I believe that this article could be useful for those who are in the middle of this debate as I am.  It will allow a slightly different point of view.