Throughout human history, since 15th century BC in China, Cannabis Sativa has been used throughout nearly every culture as a relaxant, an aphrodisiac, but first and foremost, a medicine. Its first use was for the treatment of diseases such as rheumatism, gout, malaria, and, ironically, absent-mindedness. In India, the drug was used more recreationally, and in the Muslim world its wide use is a result of the Koran’s minimal mention of Cannabis, in contrast to it’s strict prohibition of alcohol consumption. This popularity eventually influenced the spread of the drug to Persia and made its way to western culture in North Africa. Marijuana became known throughout the world as one of the most interesting, medicinally valuable, and least harmful psychoactive drugs. In 1975, the federal government reported that “Cannabis is one of the most ancient healing drugs.” * It’s historical use as a medicine covers a broad spectrum of diseases, including anorexia, asthma, nausea, pain, peptic ulcers, alcoholism, glaucoma, epilepsy, depression, Migraine, anxiety, inflammation, hypertension, insomnia, and cancer. Different uses have originated from different cultures. As mentioned earlier, marijuana was most likely used to treat anxiety, or absent-mindedness, in China, while today in the United Stated it has been widely researched and recommended for glaucoma and nausea. But a serious problem exists in our nation: an attitude of blind hypocrisy. Marijuana is classified as a Schedule I narcotic (and interestingly enough the technical definition of a narcotic is an opiate-based depressant drug, which marijuana is unarguably not), meaning that it has a high potential for abuse with no accepted medicinal value. Access to the drug is intended for research only, and it is stored in a secure vault. Note that this category is the same category that historically dangerous and addictive drugs such as Phencyclidine (PCP) and Heroin.
Marijuana: Menace or Medicine?
Gay Marriage
Ask just about anyone. They'll all tell you they're in favor of equal rights for homosexuals. Just name the situation, and ask. They'll all say, yes, gays should have the same rights in housing, jobs, public accommodations, and should have equal access to government benefits, equal protection of the law, etcetera. Then you get to gay marriage. In this paper I will be talking about the pros and cons of why gay people should be married. I will introduce Aristotle’s idea of virtue ethics and his theory of flourishing. I will also mention Bentham’s is/ought fallacy and his principle of utility. I will briefly talk about Mills idea on Competent Judges. In this paper I may not come a conclusion as to whether a gay person should be married or not, but it will give you a better understanding on the ethics behind the topic.
In opposition of gay marriage you look at the theory of Aristotle’s idea of virtue, what are the characteristics that allow humans to perform their function well? Well if procreation is a characteristic that humans need to do, then that can not happen in a gay marriage. If you are female, it’s the males’ duty to procreate with a female and vise versa, a women’s duty is to have children, that’s what they are made for. If they are not living life like everyone else then they can not go through life doing what they were suppose to do, in regards to everyday living and discrimination, how can they cope with everyday life? This also falls into the Is/Ought fallacy, where just because a person is gay does not mean that that person ought to act upon that and marry as a gay. They can just as easily marry the opposite sex and lead a normal life. The third theory that backs up the idea that gays should not marry is the principle of utility, by maximizing the happiness of everyone. For most people, heterosexual relationships are the norm, both in society and in nature. Homosexual relationships are therefore abnormal and unnatural.