What are the potential risks and benfits of the legalization of marijuana?

Benefits: fewer people in jail for victimless crimes (America jails a higher percentage of their population than any other country in the world, our jails are overcrowded and we spend billions of dollars a year taking care of inmates for people who should be allowed to live a normal life), job creation (legalization would provide the need for growers, transporters, vendors, people to make and sell paraphernalia, and countless other jobs), a boost to the economy (legalization would create an entire new industry in the American economy, creating lots of capital and providing jobs which introduces new capital into the system), more tax revenue for the federal government (if it becomes legal, the gov't WILL tax it, which is not a big deal for the consumer since prices will drop considerably if it becomes legal), wasting less money on the war on drugs (the war on drugs has been highly ineffective in the past and requires lots of federal funding), widespread use of marijuana medicinally (marijuana can be used to treat chronic pain, anxiety, low appetite, it is a bronchial dilator which can treat asthma, some studies have shown that THC reduces the size of cancerous tumors, etc), allows citizens the liberty to use a recreational drug that is far less harmful and intoxicating than alcohol and less addictive than caffeine. I along with everyone (literally 100%) of the people I know who consumes cannabis can drive a car perfectly normally under its effects. Cannabis could be regulated by the FDA to ensure safety for consumers, consumers would no longer have to buy from drug dealers which can sometimes lead to dangerous or negative situations.

Also, marijuana is extremely easy to grow and will grow in essentially any arable land in our country (its called "weed" for a reason, its that easy to grow), this could create agricultural jobs in areas where other plants do not grow as well. Legalization of marijuana would allow the government to focus on the punishment and/or rehabilitation (preferably just rehabilitation, since jail time has proven to do very little for drug users) of drugs that are actually dangerous and harmful to the human body. Ahh the list goes on and on risks: less federal revenue from marijuana related fees (this money is an extremely negligible amount in the federal budget), a loss of jobs for some DEA employees and others who are employed in the arresting and prosecution of marijuana related criminals (this would be greatly overshadowed by the jobs created by legalization).

I can't think of much more beyond this, I'm sure there are more risks, but they are few and far between and do not pose any serious threat.

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.