LEGALIZING MARIJUANA: ETHICAL?

This paper aims to provide ethical perspective /insights on the legalization of Marijuana for
medicinal purposes, specifically in an Utilitarian view. 

INTRODUCTION.

In today's society, many ethical concerns emerged regarding the legalization of the use of
marijuana. For many years, many people have relied on the fact that marijuana was illegal and
the use of it is unethical. However, many studies have shown that the effects of marijuana are not
as detrimental as they were once made out to be. Legalizing marijuana can be an extremely
controversial topic because several people have strong beliefs concerning why it should not be
legalized, while a significant number of people have stronger arguments, as to why it should be
legalized (Phdessay, 2016) 

For so many years, marijuana has been generally described as a depressant with stimulant and
hallucinogenic properties. However, it is not simply a depressant, a hallucinogen or a stimulant.
Marijuana affects people in various ways. The medication can trigger anxiety in some people.
Others can experience feelings of contentment or drowsiness as a result. Cannabis can trigger
delusions if used long-term. The way a person's body reacts to cannabis is determined by his or
her age, genetics, and marijuana usage background. (Gonzales, nd). What makes marijuana a
drug and illegal is its effects upon ingestion or inhalation of the plant, which consist of a feeling
of euphoria (feeling really good), oh no we wouldn’t want that now would we, relaxation,
increase in appetite (munchies), this is at a low dose. Higher doses “can cause intensified
feelings of the lower dose feelings, some hallucinogenic effects, short term memory loss, short
attention span, and image distortion”(Spinella, M., 2001). 

LEGALIZING MARIJUANA 

After being considered illegal for decades, marjiuana in today's time is being reevaluated on a
cultural and legal level. Legalizing marijuana for medicinal and recreational use would be
beneficial for large amounts of people for many reasons. The theory of utilitarianism implies that
the proper course of action should be the one, which benefits the greatest number of people.
When deciding if the benefits of legalizing marijuana outweigh the costs, several factors should
be considered. Several states have enacted legislation governing the medical use of marijuana. In
fact, laws governing the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes have been passed in over
twenty states, as well as the District of Columbia. The increasing number of physicians implying
that they would use marijuana medicinally for their patients shows that there are many benefits,
which could derive from using the substance. 
In the Philippines, The House of Representatives Committee on Health approved a bill in
September 2017 that would legalize and control medical marijuana use in the country. This is a
big move forward, as cannabis has been listed illegal since the passage of the Comprehensive
Dangerous Drugs Act in 2002. Despite the fact that Bill 180, or the Philippine Compassionate
Medical Cannabis Act, still has a long way to go, this is fantastic news for patients in the
Philippines who can benefit from medical marijuana to relieve pain and discomfort. 
Several factors have been accompanied as to why marijuana should be legalized and this include
the following: 

1. Medicinal Purposes. Marijuana, as proven by many studies, can be used as : 

 Anti nausea and appetite stimulant which helps people with nausea due to
anorexia, chemotherapy, AIDS/HIV, and weight loss due to hepatitis C, to name a
few.
 Antispasmodic which is effective in reducing spasms and relieving pain from
spinal cord injuries (Gieringer & Et Al., 2008). It is also effective in reducing the
effects of multiple sclerosis, spinal injuries, epilepsy, and many other conditions. 
 Analgesic which helps as a pain reliever; it is especially useful for chronic pain
and migraines. “Using marijuana in place of acetaminophen which carries a
substantial risk of fatal liver damage in excess dosage” (Geiringer & Et Al.,
2008).
 Neuropathic effects, “Recent scientific studies have shown that the cannabinoids
in marijuana are actually neuro protective, and can be used to prevent and treat
toxic damage and inflammation of the nerves” (Geiringer & Et Al., 2008). 
2. Marijuana is that it is less noxious than other legal substances. According to research,
marijuana is the least harmful drug among the many legal drugs existent in the world
today (Owen, 2014). There are millions of campaigns every year cautioning people
against smoking cigarettes, but there has been none seeking to warn people about
marijuana consumption (Owen, 2014). Lobby groups have even been making efforts to
push for legalization of marijuana. If marijuana had severe health effects as many
purport, state governments would be investing heavily in campaigns aimed at
discouraging its consumption (Owen, 2014)

UTILITARIAN VIEW POINT

When it comes to looking at the ethical standpoint of legalizing marijuana, everyone has a
different interpretation as to why marijuana should or should not be legalized. This is because
everyone’s sense of morals and values differ from one another. Utilitarianism is the moral
doctrine that we should always act to produce the greatest possible balance of good over bad for
everyone affected by our actions (Shaw & Barry, 62). This moral theory is based on the
elucidation that a consequence of an action justifies the moral acceptability of means to reach an
end, and the results of the action outweigh any other considerations. (Prasana, 2021). 

In a utilitarian viewpoint, which I support, the legalization of marijuana is beneficial to the

greatest number of people thus is considered good. Given all the uses marijuana has on the
medical field, the benefits outweigh the risk. Utilitarianism argues that, given a set of choices,
the act we should choose is that which produces the best results for the greatest number affected
by that choice (Mosser, K., 2010). That choice should be for the medicinal value of marijuana, to
help the people in pain to not be in pain. We all know that many people suffer from illnesses
which medical marijuana can treat, such as cancer, glaucoma, epilepsy and seizures, chronic
pain, insomnia, multiple sclerosis, and etc., legalizing marijuana can help these number of people
who suffer everyday. Also, if marijuana is to be legalized for medical purposes, it can help
doctors in their research for further usage of marijuana which in the future will greatly help not
just those who are sick with the current conditions the marijuana can only treat, but also to those
illnesses that are yet to arise.