Should Marijuana be Legalized for Recreational Purposes?

Should Marijuana be legalized for Recreational Use?
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Should Marijuana be legalized for Recreational Use?
According to United States poll results of 2017, about 45% of American adults occasionally use marijuana (Goode, 2017). For the past years, cannabis was used for various reasons like a medicine, herb, and also used by many as recreational drug. In the last century, recreational marijuana is believed to have been introduced into the United States by Mexican Immigrants. However, in 1936, several types of research linked the use of marijuana to an increased level of madness, violence, and crime (Goode, 2017). I think marijuana should be legalized for social recreation but with rules to regulate its use.
Marijuana is harmless to human health and should be legalized. Both tobacco and alcohol are harmful to human health, yet they are legal. Instead of banning the use of marijuana, the government through Food and Drug regulation should set standards of use. In the field of health, marijuana has shown to be an effective medicine for patients suffering from various diseases like cancer and AID which are a killer disease (Goode, 2017). Why should the government legalize harmful substances like alcohol and at the same time illegalize substances like marijuana which are of medicinal value?
Legalizing marijuana will solve most social costs we experience today. Banning marijuana will result in wastage of resources as well as ruining lives. Our police force instead of concentrating on other severe crimes in the society like fighting, terrorism and robbery, they devote most of their time in battle marijuana users.

Research shows that the majority of marijuana prisoners have spent more than a decade in jail for a petty crime of possessing marijuana for personal use (Goode, 2017). Legalizing marijuana would not increase its usage but rather decrease its usage and save resources used in controlling its use.
References
Goode, E. (2017). Marijuana. Milton: Taylor and Francis.