Discuss the below:
Federal government and state governments should be on the same page with regards to governing marijuana use. While it is easy to say that state governments can handle the legalization of marijuana use, this does not protect citizens from federal prosecution. This outright legalization of the use "and commercial trade in marijuana has joined decriminalization, prosecutorial discretion, conditional discharge, and medical marijuana exemptions in the catalogue of state tactics to opt out of the federal criminalization of marijuana sales and possession and the classification of marijuana as a drug similar to heroin in terms of individual and social harm" (Gettman & Kennedy, 2014, p. 12). This govern of marijuana use is complicated as it has been years of failed organization and control. Proper methods, theories or models should be used in addition to regulatory measures. Because of recognized measures such as "age and identifications for purchase, record-keeping, potential purchase limitations, advertising and marketing restriction, health warning and packaging requirements, and labeling standards" are all weighed against the black market, taxing and ease of growing, it makes it difficult for only the federal government to regulate (Gettman & Kennedy, 2014, p. 18). Each state can use it's own framework for governing marijuana use and adjust it and eventually one model will be proven to work best within the communities.
The state government should govern marijuana use because every state has its own written constitution, budget, and the people living in that state have a say in who governs and they also get to vote on the laws and rules and regulations. The money can also be directly used in that state for whatever budgets are lacking funds. The state government can only have so much control over the laws of marijuana use because there are still federal laws but with the state having so much control it allows people to buy marijuana as long as they have a medical document stating that a person is allowed to have so much. The federal government still sees it as an illegal substance because they believe that people can get addicted and abuse the use of marijuana but that is no different than the controlled substances that legally prescribed and some of those drugs are worse than marijuana. Marijuana can be medically used but it is legally advised but a doctor do have the right to inform their patients of the benefits due to the first amendment. Since there are people who uses marijuana for recreational purposes, the state government gives those people the right to do so but with limits. Marijuana use is kind of like alcohol use, they both are used for recreational purposes and they both have limits, the difference between the two is that marijuana is said to have a healing effect.