Everything has its risk. Guess what “bad habit” caused over 88,000 deaths per year in the United States from 2006-2010? What “bad habit” has over 16 million people in the United States suffering from chronic diseases? What everyday thing kills 33,000 people in the United States? Which “bad habit” has too few deaths to even report?

Take a guess…Ponder hard. Over 88,000 people die per year from alcohol. Alcohol use is one of the leading causes of death in the United States. Whether it’s driving under the influence or an over dosage, alcohol has the ability to harm the user seriously. If it doesn’t kill you it can lead to serious diseases that over time can eventually kill you. The same can be said about the answer to question number two. Sixteen million people in the United States suffer from TOBACCO related illnesses. Much of which cause deaths eventually. Finally 33,000 people die per year in the United States from what?….car accidents. Car “accidents” are called such because no one intends to smash their car into another car or into a tree. The other two are choices people make, bad choices that take years off your life and could put you in a coffin (or a furnace if you choose to be cremated.) Cue the drum roll please… The last answer which causes too few deaths to even report (if there are any at all) is marijuana use. The illegal narcotic that is criminalized on the federal level across the country.

Now you tell me what’s worse. We need to drive. It’s a necessity to travel from point A to point B. Is it a necessity to buy a pack of Marlboro and smoke every single last cigarette in the box. No! Is it a necessity to buy a pint of Jack Daniels or 1800 and drink until your inhibitions are gone? No! So why are these legal while the most harmless and natural substance is deemed illegal? Marijuana is less deadly (if deadly at all) than both tobacco and alcohol. Yet, alcohol is served in most establishments and cigarettes can be found any and everywhere. Why is marijuana the red-headed step-child?

Honestly, looking at all the statistics and facts for tobacco and alcohol makes you want to reconsider your use of the two. Marijuana is illegal. Jobs test for drug abuse through many different methods, most commonly the urine test. Marijuana latches onto the fat cells and stays there for a period of time. Illicit drugs, such as cocaine, heroin and over-the-counter drugs stay in a person’s system for days. An abuser of those illicit drugs can easily ready themselves for a drug exam. A few days of neglecting to sniff, smoke, or inject and they are clean and ready to go. Even though they are drug users of very serious and dangerous drugs they can easily pass drug exams. Marijuana users, on the other hand, have to wait days, weeks, and maybe even months depending on the user’s habit to rid themselves of THC.

Marijuana is not a dangerous drug. Some say it’s the “gateway drug” and causes people to act crazy. Users of marijuana are usually the most subtle and calm people you’d ever meet. Their main intent is to find something to eat (mind you that helps local restaurants, convenience stores, grocery stores, and gas stations) and relax. Where is the crazy actions occurring? People have been brainwashed by the biased media and the corrupt government to condemn those who use marijuana. They want to emphasize the crimes caused by people who may use the drugs. How many people who use alcohol or cigarettes during, before, or after a crime does the media address? None. It’s no big deal that Outlaw Jimmy smokes a pack of menthol before deciding it is a good idea to rob a bank. It’s also no big deal that Kim Doe drinks a few beers and throws down a few shots of vodka before getting behind the wheel and hitting a family of four. Yeah, the media may say alcohol played a factor but does that stop the government from initiating a second wave of prohibition? Not at all!!

More and more people are put behind bars for their use of marijuana than drunken drivers. Cigarette users are exempt from the law since it’s legal to smoke a cigarette. It’s ridiculous that people are penalized for “calming their nerves” with an occasional toke of Mary J. The government is the most crooked and corrupt organization that has ever existed. Why is it okay for Senator Al Doe, to beat his wife, have relations with a person of the same-sex behind the back of their spouse, receive kickbacks from governmental contracts to receive a lifetime of free healthcare and salary. Many Americans struggle to pay bills and keep up in life while these decrepit individuals live off the blood and sweat of Americans.

Many jobs require the administration of a drug screen. Crack heads, cocaine heads, heroin addicts, alcoholics, chain smokers, wife abusers, child abusers, pedophiles, Satanist, etc. are able to bypass the drug screening while honest hard-working Americans who occasionally take a puff of the herb are subjugated to discrimination and are turned away from jobs. How is this a fair assessment of a person’s work ethic?

Over-the-counter drugs are prescribed to people everyday for their ailments. Many of these drugs have commercials to promote the drug. Along with the promotion comes a long list of side effects. Swelling, risk of heart disease, suicidal thoughts, drowsiness, high blood pressure, impairment of motor skills, death, etc. etc. are all included (quickly said) in these pharmaceutical drug ads. Why are these legal while a drug, whose only side effects are sleepy, hungry, and relaxed illegal.

Population control? Is the government allowing deadly drugs to be legal because it may control the population? Jobs are lost due to the use of marijuana while Crack Head Dan is allowed to keep his job because the drug last in their system for a few days. It’s totally unfair and unjust. Why should an honest worker be subjugated to the scrutiny of the law and workplace? People are fixated on the stereotype more than anything. A user of marijuana is commonly referred to as a “pothead” or “stoner”. These users typically are hippies and dangerous and out of touch with the world…blah, blah, blah. That’s like saying all blacks are criminals or all white people like hummus and mayonnaise. Common stereotypes which are constantly refuted and proved wrong. Don’t get me started with the whole stereotype ordeal.

It’s upsetting that marijuana users are condemned for their use of a harmless drug while a serious drug abuser is able to skate under the radar. That’s like a person guilty of disorderly conduct receiving 20 to life in jail and a child murderer receiving probation. It’s totally unfair and unjust. Drug test are a way to weed (no pun intended) out candidates that use drugs. Which often times leads to inefficiency in the workplace. Why punish those who use a drug (mind you, marijuana is used to treat chronic diseases) and let those who abuse more serious drugs possibly escape without prosecution. The mayor of Toronto smokes crack. He’s admitted he does!  Where is he now? Still reigning over one of Canada’s largest cities. Yeah he’s a politician and for some reason politicians are held to a “godly” like standard so it’s remarkably okay for them to abuse harsh drugs.

Why is THC tested in a urine test? Let’s be real here, marijuana isn’t the one killing all these people and harming the bodies of its users the way some LEGAL drugs are. If I hated my life and wanted to commit suicide I wouldn’t buy an ounce of bud and smoke it one sitting. The worst thing that would probably happen is, I’d eat the whole pantry dry and fall asleep. On the other hand if I wanted to do some serious bodily harm I’d grab a fifth of Ciroc and some Oxycondone and do myself in.

There needs to be something about the drug testing for these companies. If we are going to allow alcoholics, chain smokers, and users of illicit narcotics the ability to easily pass drug examines and gain employment we need to stop criminalizing and condemning marijuana users of a harmless recreational drug that has caused a very LOW (to low to even calculate) number of deaths. Canada has even made drug testing for employment unlawful. Is the United States that archaic that we cannot look at alternatives? The United States and its higher education system already rapes the pockets of students and puts the hard earner meager earnings of graduates into these college presidents pockets. That’s a whole another topic though. America needs to follow after Canada and rid of the drug testing process employers utilize. It’s an unfair way to select potential job candidates . We are in the 21st century, there must be another way. Until that day we must follow the rules and abide by the unfair and unjust practices the government allows these employers to administer. What do you think?