Should you invest in legalized marijuana

But there are limitations because of how the drug is viewed at the federal level. Your Money. Maybe, but it’s important to remember that marijuana remains illegal at the federal level in the United States. Related Articles.

All you need to know to make an informed decision about investing in high-growth — but high-risk — marijuana stocks.

Contrary to the beliefs of those who advocate the legalization of marijuana, the current balanced, restrictive, and bipartisan drug policies of the United States are working reasonably well and they have contributed to reductions in the rate of marijuana use in our nation. The rate of current, past day use of marijuana by Americans aged 12 and older in was In that figure stood at 6. This percent reduction in marijuana use over that year marojuana is a major public health triumph, not a failure. Marijuana is the most commonly abused illegal drug in the U. Those who support its legalization, for medical or for general use, fail to recognize that the greatest costs of marijuana are not related to its prohibition; they are the costs resulting from marijuana use .

What is marijuana?

You might also be aware of predictions about how large the marijuana industry could become, including a projection that the U. If all of these developments have you contemplating the idea of investing in marijuana stocks , you’re not alone. Increasing numbers of investors have bought shares of marijuana stocks in anticipation of making huge returns. But should you invest in marijuana stocks? Here’s what you need to know to make an informed decision.

All you need to know to make an informed decision about investing in high-growth — but high-risk — marijuana stocks.

Contrary to the beliefs of those who advocate the legalization of marijuana, the current balanced, restrictive, and bipartisan drug policies of the United States are working reasonably well and they have contributed to reductions in the rate of marijuana use in our nation.

The rate of current, past day use of marijuana by Americans aged 12 and older in was In that figure stood at 6. This percent reduction in marijuana use over that year period is a major public health triumph, not a failure.

Marijuana is the most commonly abused illegal drug in the U. Those who support its legalization, for medical or for general use, fail to recognize that the greatest costs of marijuana are not related to its prohibition; they are the costs resulting from marijuana use. There is a common misconception that the principle costs of marijuana use are those related to the criminal justice. This is a false premise. An encounter with the criminal justice system through apprehension for a drug-related crime frequently can benefit the offender because the criminal justice system is often a path to treatment.

More than a third, 37 percent, of treatment admissions reported in the Treatment Episode Data Set, TEDS, collected from state-funded programs were referred through the criminal justice. Marijuana was an identified drug of abuse for 57 percent of the individuals referred to treatment from the criminal justice. The future of drug policy is not a choice between using the criminal justice system or treatment. The more appropriate goal is to get these two systems to work together more effectively to improve both public safety and public health.

In the discussion of legalizing marijuana, a useful analogy can be made to gambling. Legalized gambling has not reduced illegal gambling in the United States; rather, it has increased it. This is particularly evident in sports gambling, most of which is illegal. Legal gambling is taxed and regulated and illegal gambling is not.

Legal gambling sets the stage for illegal gambling just the way legal marijuana would set the stage for illegal marijuana trafficking. The gambling precedent suggests strongly that illegal drug suppliers would thrive by selling more potent marijuana products outside of the legal channels that would be taxed and otherwise restricted.

If marijuana were legalized, the only way to eliminate its illegal trade, which is modest in comparison to that of cocaine, would be to sell marijuana untaxed and unregulated to any willing buyer. Marijuana is currently the leading cause of substance dependence other than alcohol in the U.

Inmarijuana use accounted for 4. This means that about two thirds of Americans suffering from any substance use disorder are suffering from marijuana abuse or marijuana dependence.

If the U. Today there are Though the number of marijuana users might not quickly climb to the current numbers for alcohol and tobacco, if marijuana was legalized, the increase in users would be both large and rapid with subsequent increases in addiction. Important lessons can be learned from those two widely-used legal drugs.

While both alcohol and tobacco should you invest in legalized marijuana taxed and regulated, the tax benefits to the public are vastly overshadowed by the adverse consequences of their use. These figures show that the costs of legal alcohol are more than 12 times the total tax revenue collected, and that the costs of legal tobacco are about 8 times the tax revenue collected.

This is an economically disastrous tradeoff. The costs of legalizing marijuana would not only be financial. New marijuana users would not be limited to adults if marijuana were legalized, just as regulations on alcohol and tobacco do not prevent use by youth. Rapidly accumulating new research shows that marijuana use is associated with increases in a range of serious mental and physical problems.

Drug-impaired driving will also increase if marijuana is legalized. Marijuana is already a significant causal factor in highway crashes, injuries and deaths. In a recent national roadside survey of weekend nighttime drivers, 8. In another study of seriously injured drivers admitted to a Level-1 shock trauma center, more than a quarter of all drivers In a study of fatally injured drivers in Washington State, These studies demonstrate the high prevalence of drugged driving as a result of marijuana use.

Many people who want to legalize marijuana are passionate about their perception of the alleged failures of policies aimed at reducing marijuana use but those legalization proponents seldom—if ever—describe their own plan for taxing and regulating marijuana as a legal drug.

There is a reason for this imbalance; they cannot come up with a credible plan for legalization that could deliver on their exaggerated claims for this new policy.

Future drug policies must be smarter and more effective in curbing the demand for illegal drugs including marijuana. Smarter-drug prevention policies should start by reducing illegal drug use among the 5 million criminal offenders who are on parole and probation in the U. Monitoring programs that are linked to swift and certain, but not severe, consequences for any drug use have demonstrated outstanding results including lower recidivism and lower rates of incarceration.

New policies to curb drugged driving will not only make our roads and highways safer and provide an important new path to treatment, but they will also reduce illegal drug use. New policies can greatly improve current performance of prevention strategies which, far from failing, has protected millions of people from the many adverse effects of marijuana use.

Since legalization of marijuana for medical or general use would increase marijuana use rather than reduce it and would lead to increased rates of addiction to marijuana among youth and adults, legalizing marijuana is not a smart public health or public safety strategy for any state or for our nation.

Office of Applied Studies. Rockville, MD. Retrieved March 31, SMA Caulkins, J. How many people does the U. Contemporary Drug Problems, 32 3 : Highlights — MacCoun, R. Drug war heresies: Should you invest in legalized marijuana from other vices, times, and places.

Abt, V. Retrieved April 1, Dunstan, R. Gambling in California. California Research Bureau. Frey, J. Gambling on sports: Policy issues.

Journal of Gambling Studies, 8 4 Sabet, K. The price of legalizing pot is too high. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 9, Kerlikowske, R. Why marijuana legalization would compromise public health and public safetyannotated remarks. California Police Chiefs Association Conference. San Jose, CA. D’Souza, D. European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, 7 Bates, B.

Teen cannabis use predicts depression. Clinical Psychiatry News, 38 2. Boschert, S. Marijuana self-medication might prompt mood disorders, stress. Compton, R. Traffic Safety Facts Research Note. Walsh, J. Epidemiology of alcohol and other drug use among motor vehicle crash victims admitted to a Level-1 trauma center.

Traffic Injury Prevention, 5, Schwilke, E. Changing patterns of drug and alcohol use in fatally injured drivers in Washington State. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 51 5 Institute for Behavior and Health. Institute for Behavior and Health, Inc. Hawken, A. Department of Justice. Award No. Stop Drugged Driving. Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inbox.

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Should I Invest In Cannabis Stocks?

What is marijuana?

Some are pessimistic about the epilepsy drug’s prospects. One of the most important things to do is check out the management team. The company also has operations in multiple international marijuana markets, most notably including Germany. Although that might be enough to convince some investors to get in the game, it’s important to keep should you invest in legalized marijuana mind that company valuations may be largely based on market hype. There are two primary chemicals in the cannabis plant, known as cannabinoids, that investors should especially know. The United States, along with many other countries around the world, prohibit the use of marijuana at the federal level, primarily because of the mind-altering effects and potentially addictive attributes of THC. Investors and companies alike have been excited about the cannabis market. Just like medical marijuana, there are stocks and other investments available in the recreational cannabis sector.