How Many Lives Would Be Saved if the Marijuana Prohibition Was Lifted?

Question by this Mike guy: How many lives would be saved if the marijuana prohibition was lifted?
Marijuana costs 400 dollars a pound to produce, but sells for 2500-3000 a pound. It is such a profitable crop to sell and traffic, simply because it’s illegal. If it were legalized and regulated (no being noticeably high in public, no driving while intoxicated), the profit margins would be much less, and violent drug cartels wouldn’t have nearly as much money from marijuana trafficking and dealing (this absence of profit would NOT be spent on guns, transportation for trafficking other harder drugs, or otherwise furthering their illegal, violent lifestyles.)

Here’s a couple excerpts from an article I just read about what happened when Portugal legalized not just marijuana, but other illegal drugs such as cocaine, meth, and heroine.


Dancing smurf – Marijuana has never been proven to cause cancer of any kind, actually recently, it has been proven to reduce tumor growth:
It also does not lead to suicide, or paranoia, at least not in the long term. People can be paranoid and anxious while high, but this is often because of a subconscious guilt they feel when they smoke.

Best answer:

Answer by Bubuh



Promising result, but the US is not Portugal.

Reduce tumor growth, yes, but an ACTIVE INGREDIENT in Marijuana. Not just Marijuana plant as whole. Study says nothing about other ingredients in it that may be bad or carcinogenic. Unless at home people purify this active ingredient at home, I wouldn’t use weed to cure any cancer.

You can’t claim it is Marijuana that is reducing tumor growth when it is very specific chemical in it. Not combination of every chemical in Marijuana.

Equally you wouldn’t say cigarrette is good for you just because one ingredient in it is beneficial.

Answer by Kemo sabe
Oh, Wow, man… What a good question…

I’ll have to get to it tomorrow…

Right now I’m enjoying my buzz…

What do you think? Answer below!



War on Britain's top drug pushers is long overdue
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It would be fatuous to suggest that we don't need drug treatment at all or that drugs are an unnecessary luxury. They can offer … The companies manufacturing the drugs conduct their own research trials and are under no obligation to publish all their … Read more on Morning Star Online


3 Responses to How Many Lives Would Be Saved if the Marijuana Prohibition Was Lifted?

  • dancing_smurf says:

    I would argue none and I would argue that the amount of lives lost would increase. Reason being marijuana is 20 x more carcinogenic than cigarettes and long term use has been linked to paranoia. Legalization would result in high cancer rates for oral, upper digestive, brain, and lung cancer along with a higher suicide rate. This would result in a higher death rate plus increase in health care costs. Once health care costs increase more people will do without health care and a percentage of people who do not seek health care due to cost would die from not seeking treatment. Overall I feel legalize marijuana is a bad idea.

  • dusty_titus says:

    Portugal is a small isolated (other than Spain)country with no other countries on their borders.
    “The Western Powers” you speak of – have signed treaties w/other countries to keep laws on the books making growing & selling 420 illegal. Personal possession and use of it is legal in certain areas. Making it legal like beer and cigarettes does make some sense, but those treaties come first. Everyone would have to agree and decriminalize the growing and selling. Not going to happen for awhile.

  • The Patriot says:

    None. Unless all drugs were legalised and the production regulated.

    You know the strange thing, the drug cartels would not want that. They make money because it is illegal. Legalise is and you drive them out of business!

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