Unit 7: Cannabis Legalization (Text)

Class Text 3: Recreational Cannabis Legalization:

Good or Bad for Society?
Research indicates that making cannabis legal for recreational use may
do more harm than good. Therefore, such laws ought to be legislated
with caution.

Introduction

1. In November 2020, the Israeli Minister of Justice announced a proposal to

legalize, or permit, cannabis for non-medical use in Israel. Indeed, many Israelis
are in favor of such a law. Cannabis, or marijuana, is a drug used for medical,
spiritual, and recreational (i.e. enjoyment) intents. It affects the brain and
alters its users’ thoughts, feelings, and behavior (Vij, 2012). If passed, the new
Israeli law would allow adults to use the drug for personal enjoyment rather
than only for health purposes (Globes, 2020). Other countries have also
recently considered legalizing recreational cannabis use. However, not
everyone supports such a law. In October 2020, the citizens of New Zealand
voted against a government proposal allowing its use for recreation. The
German parliament has also recently rejected a bill legalizing non-medical
cannabis (Lamers, 2020).

2. Cannabis is the most widely used drug, even though it remains illegal in
most countries (Degenhardt et al., 2018). In 2018, over 190 million people
globally reported using the drug (World Drug Report, 2020). Since 2012, many
U.S. states have legalized its use, despite the fact that cannabis is an illegal
drug at the national level. In 2018, Canada became the second country (after
Uruguay) to legally permit its recreational use (Bahji & Stephenson, 2019).

3. The topic of cannabis legalization is controversial. Supporters of such a

law argue that permitting its sale and use will help defeat the black market and
reduce crime. They also claim that the drug is not as dangerous as other legal
substances, like alcohol. In contrast, opponents are concerned about addiction
and other harmful mental and physical health issues. They also fear the risks it
has on public safety. Given these opposing views, it is important to explore
how cannabis legalization affects society in terms of health, public safety, and
crime. Thus, before Israel eases its laws, this article aims to do just that.

Rates of Legal Cannabis Use

4. In order to understand how cannabis legalization impacts society, it is

important to examine the percentage of the population that actually uses the
drug, i.e., use rates. Following its legalization, cannabis use increased in legal
cannabis states compared to states that prohibit cannabis use. Goodman and
colleagues (2020) compared the rates of cannabis use in “legal states” (i.e.,
states that legalized cannabis) and “illegal states” (i.e., states where cannabis
use remains illegal). The results showed that the rate of daily cannabis use was
3.9% higher in legal states than in illegal ones. The rate of weekly use was
6.6% higher, and monthly use rate was 8.2% higher in the legal states. Not
only did consumers in legal cannabis states use the drug more often, they also
used stronger products, like concentrates, oils, edibles, and drinks (Goodman
et. al., 2020).

5. In another study, Dragone and colleagues (2019) compared recreational

cannabis use rates before and after the drug became legal. They found that
cannabis use increased following the laws allowing its use. However, a
decrease in alcohol consumption was also discovered. A study by Alley, Karr,
and Bae (2020) revealed similar results among college students. Their study
showed a rise in use after states legalized recreational cannabis and a drop in
heavy alcohol drinking.

6. The rise in cannabis use, after the law changed, might not be surprising.
In fact, it may even be expected. Once legal, the drug becomes more available.
Furthermore, threats of criminal punishment for using the drug are minimized.
If these were the only reasons for the increase in use, then cannabis use rates
would rise after the first year of legalization and then remain steady. However,
this is not the case. An Oregon State University study (2020) found that
cannabis use is continuing to increase years after it became legal. Moreover, it
is growing at a much faster pace in legal cannabis states than in states that
prohibit cannabis use. Particularly, between the years 2012 to 2018, use rates
in the latter rose only 3% while in the former they increased 13%. This
suggests a continuous upward trend of cannabis use, rather than just a
temporary phase in states that permit the use of this drug (Alley et al., 2020).

Impact on Health
Physical Health

7. Much is unknown about the effects of frequent and long-term cannabis

use on various illnesses, like cancer and heart disease (Hall et al., 2016). In
part, this results from the fact that laws prohibiting cannabis have widely
limited the use of this drug. Any long-term negative health effects are unclear
for this reason (Degenhardt et al., 2018). It has been estimated, however, that
cannabis is less harmful than alcohol, tobacco, heroin, and cocaine (Imtiaz et
al., 2016).

8. How have the new cannabis laws affected physical health? Following
legalization, in several U.S. states, significant rises in cardiac death rates have
been reported (Abouk & Adams, 2018). It should be noted that in these states,
there was also an increase in tobacco sales (Giovenco et al., 2018). This may
(in part) explain these death rates. On the other hand, there was a decline in
the rate of prescriptions for opioids (i.e., dangerous pain medication),
particularly in areas where cannabis stores are legal. This shows that with the
new laws, many patients suffering from chronic pain are using less opioid-
based pain-relief drugs and substituting them with cannabis (Reiman et al.,
2017). Since opioids are highly addictive and their continued use is unsafe,
many view this as an advantage of cannabis legalization (Grinspoon, 2018).

Mental Health

9. Cannabis affects a person's mental state. Particularly, THC, the main

ingredient of the drug, affects areas of the brain that control pleasure and
other emotional experiences (Gates, 2020). People often feel various positive
effects like relaxation and happiness (Carvalho et al., 2019). However, negative
reactions may also be experienced, such as short-term memory loss, impaired
motor coordination, and altered judgment. Moreover, a connection has been
found between cannabis use and mental illnesses, like depression and
addiction. In states that legalized cannabis, past-year cannabis use was linked
to higher prevalence of mental illness than in states that prohibit its use (Dutra
et al., 2018).

10. The potential risks of cannabis on mental health depend on two main
determinants. The first is the age at which cannabis is initially used. This is
especially true if the drug is first used before 18 years old, as the brain is still
developing (Gates, 2020). Evidence indicates that exposure to cannabis during
these years can cause long-term or permanent damage to the brain. The other
determinant is connected to patterns of use in terms of quantity, strength, and
frequency. For example, people who use large amounts of highly potent
(strong) cannabis on a daily basis for many years, are more likely to
experience the negative effects than people who occasionally use weaker
cannabis products (Gates, 2020).

11. Therefore, the frequent use of cannabis, especially at a young age,

increases the risk of addiction. Cerdá and colleagues (2019) studied how the
new laws affect cannabis addiction. Their research showed that addiction rates
increased by 25% among teenagers in legalized states. Among adults,
addiction rates went up by 37%. Because addiction can lead to harmful psycho-
social effects like the use of other illegal drugs, weak educational outcomes,
and violence (Hall, 2020), these results are concerning.

12. Lev-Ran and colleagues (2014) found a link between depression and the
frequent use of high-potency cannabis. Unfortunately, it is not determined
whether the use of the drug causes depression or whether it is connected to
social problems (like school dropout and unemployment) that may lead to
depression (Gates, 2020). Clearly, the relationship between cannabis use and
mental illness is a complex issue that requires further research.

Pregnancy and Child Health

13. A 2019 study found that pregnant women who use cannabis are at risk
for pre-term birth (i.e., when a baby is born too early). In this large-scale study
of 661,617 pregnant women, the rate of pre-term births was significantly
higher among the reported cannabis users (12%) than the non-users (6%).
Other risks to the baby, which are linked to the use of this drug, include low
birth weight and long-term problems connected to attention, behavior, and
learning (Scheyer, 2019).

14. Data suggests that cannabis use among pregnant women is common,
despite the potential harm it causes the baby (Corsi et al., 2019). Gnofam and
colleagues (2020) investigated whether cannabis legalization affects use rates
among pregnant women. Their study included 1,165 pregnant women before
and 1,227 pregnant women after legalization. They found that after the laws
changed, 5.9% more pregnant women used the drug.

15. Why do pregnant women use cannabis? Chang and colleagues (2019)
studied the beliefs and attitudes of pregnant women who reported using the
drug. The most common reasons include reduction of stress, anxiety, morning
sickness, and pain. Since the risks to the baby are well-known, it is alarming
that many legal cannabis stores recommend and sell their products to
pregnant women in order to treat the negative symptoms of pregnancy, like
morning sickness (Dickson et al., 2018).

Effects on Road Safety

16. A major concern with cannabis legalization is the harmful effect it may
have on road safety. Whereas some cannabis users claim that the drug
improves their concentration and therefore their driving skills (Buddy, 2020),
research shows that it interferes with driving ability. In particular, cannabis use
negatively affects the driver's ability to concentrate and interferes with their
perception of time and distance. This leads to poor speed control, fatigue, and
distraction (IIHS, 2018).

17. Lane and Hall (2019) examined the effects of legal cannabis sales on
traffic mortality rates. They studied data from states that have legal cannabis
laws. The results showed an increase of 1.08 traffic deaths per million residents
followed by a reduction of -0.06 per month. In total, there were approximately
170 additional deaths during the first six months after legalization.
Interestingly, however, the increase in mortality rates was transitory. That is, in
the following year, they returned to their rates prior to legalization.
Influence on Crime

18. One of the major issues in the debate about cannabis legalization is
whether such policies increase or decrease crime rates. Research that studied
the impact of legalizing cannabis in the U.S. has diverse results. On the one
hand, Wu and colleagues (2020) found that since laws permitting cannabis use
were passed in Oregon, there has been an increase of 365.4 cases of property
crime (per 100,000 population) and an increase of 49.4 cases of violent crime.
In addition, Mitchel (2017) found that the crime rate in Colorado increased
eleven times higher than the national crime average since the drug became
legal in that state.

19. On the other hand, an analysis comparing crime data in Washington

State showed reduction rates of various crimes after legalization: rape (15% to
30%), property crimes (10% to 20%), and thefts (13% to 22%). In comparison,
the rates of these crimes occurring in nearby states where cannabis use is
illegal stayed the same (Dragone et al., 2019). In a different study, Lu and
colleagues (2018) found that the new laws and legal sales have had minimal to
no effect on major crimes in Colorado or Washington.

The Black Market

20. Although cannabis legalization was meant to reduce illegal sales, the
black market for cannabis in Canada and the U.S. has actually expanded with
such laws (American Family Physician, 2019). Legal sales of cannabis in
Canada are expected to total $1 billion. This is much smaller than the illegal
market, which is estimated to be between $5 billion to $7 billion (Esfandiari,
2019). According to reports, 79% of cannabis was bought illegally during the
last quarter of 2018 (after the drug became legal). This has occurred largely
because more of the drug is now available from legal sources to sell illegally
(Preuss et al., 2019).

21. In the U.S., the black market in California has also thrived despite
legalizing cannabis in 2016. According to Halperin (2019), as much as 80% of
all its sales in California are linked to illegal sources. Recent economic
estimates suggest that California’s illegal cannabis market is worth
approximately $3.7 billion. This is more than four times the size of the legal
market in the state (Fuller, 2019).

The Israeli Law

22. Israel has one of the highest cannabis use rates in the world and
demonstrates a widespread acceptance of the drug among its citizens. It has
been reported that 27% of Israelis ages 18 to 65 (around 1.5 million people)
used cannabis within the past year (Mualem, 2020), whereas the national
average in the U.S. is 15.5% (Suneson, 2020). In Israel, the drug is allowed for
various medical purposes, and minor offences are often overlooked by law
enforcement. Presently, however, cannabis is not legal for recreational use.

23. In July 2018, the Knesset approved a bill to decriminalize the drug. In
other words, under the current rules, citizens caught using cannabis will not be
arrested if they have no previous criminal drug record. However, they are likely
to receive a fine for using the drug in public. In November 2020, the Israeli
Justice Minister announced that Israel was only nine months away from fully
legalizing and regulating recreational cannabis in Israel. However, a few weeks
later, the government of Israel collapsed (unrelated to the proposed cannabis
bill), and new elections are currently underway. Thus it seems unlikely that the
bill will pass in the near future (Zonshine, 2020).

Conclusion

24. The present article reviewed studies that explored different aspects of
recreational cannabis legalization. Particularly, it focused on how allowing
cannabis use influences various factors like trends in use of the drug, mental
and physical health, road safety, crime, and the black market. In addition, this
article summarized the current legal situation of cannabis use in Israel.

25. Overall, public opinion in Israel, and in other countries, has widely shifted
in favor of recreational cannabis legalization largely because many people
believe that the drug is not very dangerous. However, the research presented
in this article indicates that the possible risks involved with cannabis use
should not be ignored. Clear conclusions regarding the positive and negative
effects of such laws are difficult to reach at this point in time. On the one hand,
legal cannabis laws have led to a positive downward trend in opioid use and
alcohol consumption. On the other hand, increased cannabis use has been
linked to harmful effects on mental health, pregnancy and new-born health,
and adolescent development. In addition, while the available studies are fairly
diverse on how these laws affect crime rates, it is clear that such laws have
not defeated the black cannabis market, but have actually strengthened it. As
more countries move towards legalization, more scientific data is needed to
help shed light on how such laws affect public health and safety. In the
meantime (with the upcoming Israeli elections), Israelis should cautiously
review the existing data so that they can make informed decisions regarding
the legal status of cannabis in Israel for recreational purposes.
Unit 7: Cannabis Legalization (Questions)

Text 5: Recreational Cannabis Legalization:

Good or Bad for Society?
Vocabulary:
¶1
caption legislate (v) depression (n)
2
¶1 concentration
¶2 illegal (adj)
6 (n)
consumer (n)
¶4 ¶2 expand (v)
consumption
¶5 0
(n)
¶2 demonstrate
¶6 minimize (v)
2 (v)
¶2
¶8 substitute (v) collapse (v)
3
¶2
¶10 potential (adj) shift (v)
5

Discussion Questions:
1. In your opinion, should cannabis use for recreational purposes be legal in
Israel?
2. Why or Why not?

Global Questions:
1. What are the academic fields of this text? _medication/ healthcare
______________________________________

2. What is meant by the term “recreational cannabis use”?

The term “recreational cannabis use” refers to using the drug for purposes

related to (circle 1) health / religion / legalization / pleasure.

3. What is the purpose of this article?

To examine
______________________________________________________________________

4. According to the conclusion, do the studies in the article support public

opinion on cannabis legalization? YES / NO

5. What is the main idea of the text?

a. Laws allowing cannabis use should be carefully considered due to its
possible risks.
b. Cannabis laws are good for society because they reduce crime and illegal
sales.
c. Cannabis harms both mental and physical health, thus it is bad for
society.
d. Most citizens and politicians in Israel are in favor of recreational cannabis
laws.
Close Reading Questions:
6. What general idea does the research support in ¶4?

____________________________________________________________________________

7. What can be inferred about the connection between cannabis and alcohol?
It can be inferred that…
a. college students prefer alcohol over the recreational use of cannabis.
b. cannabis has become a substitute for alcohol in legalized states.
c. college students drink too much alcohol in states that allow cannabis.
d. college students should not use cannabis nor should they drink
alcohol.

8. According the ¶6, where did the use rates rise more between the years
2012-2018?

The use rates rose more in legal cannabis states

___________________________________________.

9. Why is it hard to understand how cannabis use influences disease?

Because cannabis use has largely been limited __________________ (1 word
only) due to ______ laws prohibiting cannabis __________________ (3 words
only).

10. What is one positive health outcome of new cannabis laws on physical
health?
People do not use as much ______ opioids ______________________ (1 - 3 words
only)

11. One factor of cannabis use that may influence mental health is the amount
of cannabis that is used, its strength, and how often it is used.

What is the other factor that may influence mental health?

__ The first is the age at which cannabis is initially used
______________________________________________________

12. According to the article, what is the connection between depression and
cannabis use?
 a. The frequent use of high-potency cannabis causes depression.
b. Doctors should prescribe cannabis to depressed people.
c. People who use cannabis become happier and less depressed.
d. The connection between cannabis use and depression is not clear.

13. Why is it disturbing that cannabis is being sold to pregnant women?

Because ______________________________________________________

14. Was the rise in traffic deaths due to cannabis legalization temporary?

YES / NO

15. What does the contrast show in ¶18 and ¶19?

The contrast shows that…
a. there is less crime in Washington State than in Oregon and Colorado.
b. cannabis users commit less crimes than people who do not use
cannabis.
c. research findings have mixed outcomes about cannabis laws and
crime.
d. there is an increase in property crime and a decrease in violent crime.

16. How have laws permitting cannabis use affected black market sales of the
drug?

Black market sales have stayed the same / increased /

decreased.

17. Why is there a delay in the newly proposed Israeli cannabis law?

Because the Knesset _____________________________________________________.

Vocabulary Exercise:
A. Match the vocabulary words with their synonyms/definitions.
1. addiction a. psychological
2. affect b. influence
c. worry
3. claim (n/v)
d. people that take an opposite position (as in a
4. concern
debate, contest, or conflict)
5. controversial
 6. evidence
7. harmful
8. legal
9. mental
10. opponents
11. prohibit
12. pros and
cons
e. forbid
13. substance f. a person who supports an idea, a politician, a
14. supporter cause, etc.
g. a compulsive, chronic, physiological, or
psychological need for a habit-forming substance,
behavior, or activity
h. lawful
i. proof
j. arguments for and against

B. Fill in the blanks using the words above.

1. The floor was covered with a white, powdery _________________ that turned out
to be flour.
2. The team's ________________ have not lost a game this season.
3. They sat for hours debating the _________________of setting up their own firm.
4. Some people post _________________ and revolutionary things on Facebook.
5. The new Covid-19 variant is worrisome for being _________________because
this mutation may cause it to be spread more easily.
6. I appreciate your_________________, but there is really nothing you can do to
help.
7. Investigators could find no _________________ linking him to the crime.
8. The amount of alcohol in his blood exceeded the _________________ limit.
9. The police _________________ parties with more than 50 people due to the
recent Corona threat.
10. Drugs and diseases often _________________ different populations in entirely
different ways.