Asbury Park Press

The topic for this month's Asbury Park Press Student Voices essay and video competition couldn't have been any more topical: Should recreational marijuana be legalized in New Jersey? Earlier this week, a joint legislative committee took the first step toward legalization by advancing four bills. A vote in the full Senate and Assembly could take place as early as December. As with the debate in Trenton this week, the sentiments expressed by students were passionate and varied. The contest winners all defended their positions intelligently and clearly. Below is a complete list of the winners, along with the winning first, second and third-place essays and links to the video winners.

GRADES 7-8

First Place

How can governor let N.J. go to pot?

Gov. Phil Murphy says he is going to raise $80 million a year in tax revenue from the sale of recreational marijuana. But at what cost? It is an irresponsible decision, because pot shops will be as common as 7-Elevens, Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts, where people can buy a joint, smoke it, and drive away in a fog. Thinking of all the kids who are going to be exposed to this makes me wonder why after being taught not to drink and drug, this is suddenly OK. I do not think marijuana should be legalized in New Jersey or anywhere else.

Statistics show 30 percent of users will become addicted and won’t be able to get through a day or even a few hours without marijuana. No one knows if they will become addicted until they try it the first time — and then it is too late. Studies also show that marijuana is a gateway drug to something harder like heroin or crystal meth. According to Inhale MD, you would have to smoke 1,500 pounds to overdose on marijuana, but the gateway effect can lead to death. I know people who had close friends that became addicted and overdosed.

Murphy also talks about saving money by not incarcerating those caught with marijuana. But how much will rehab cost? Just because other states have legalized recreational marijuana, doesn’t mean New Jersey should do it too. If legalized, it’s going to spread like wildfire. One way for marijuana to become an uncontrollable phenomenon will be through the power of social media, which many lawmakers may not have considered. It would just take one popular YouTube personality to start a “challenge,” daring viewers to do something, such as smoke 50 joints a week. Even young children will try it just because their peers are doing it.

Legalizing marijuana will make it more available everywhere and then it can more easily fall into the hands of children. It is a very dangerous move. I cannot believe our governor is willing to let our state go to pot.

Shea Franco

The Seashore School

Second Place

Marijuana less harmful than alcohol, tobacco

Have I ever thought about using marijuana when I’m older? No. Do I desire the feeling it may bring? No. Should it be legal? Yes — and here’s why.

When someone is trying to obtain marijuana, they must seek out mysterious dealers who lurk in the shadows of the night. Making contact with these people is a problem in itself. But how can users really know what they are buying? They may be smoking harmful chemicals cut with a small amount of plant, and they would be completely oblivious.

On the other hand, if it is sold by government-monitored corporations, users would be guaranteed to be buying 100 percent pure marijuana, and whatever else is added would have to be clearly stated. People running the companies would also be able to give all proper warnings and information on each type of cannabis.

In addition, there are other drugs that someone older than 21 can walk into a store and buy. Tobacco. Alcohol. These two common drugs, which have been proven to have long-term harmful effects, are completely legal for adults. If they are legal, why shouldn’t weed be? How is it any worse than the cancer-causing cigarette, or the liver-deteriorating beer? Unlike the two former, marijuana use has been proven to have positive medical effects. It is used to treat certain types of epilepsy, to relieve debilitating chronic pain and to help people cope with social/mental issues, like PTSD, anxiety and depression.

Here is one last thing to think about; the very principle of the country we live in. Americans pride themselves in being free. But if we do not have the choice to do what we choose with our bodies, are we really free? I believe it is time We the People are afforded the choice to do as we wish with marijuana. If we will misuse it, so be it. If we will benefit from it, so be it. Legalization will be a learning experience for mankind. It may go one way or the other. No matter which side you stand on, keep this in mind — the only way humanity has ever learned its lesson is by first-hand experience. Classic trial-and-error. There is no true way to tell if the risks outweigh the benefits unless we give it a try.

Damian Soubeniotis

Millstone Middle School

Third Place

Why is pot still illegal?

There is no good reason

As a kid, I have constantly been bombarded with the idea that marijuana is a horrible, terrible monster that should never be used ever. Ever since we were introduced to the substances, it was crammed into our skulls that it was detrimental. However, I have formulated my own opinion as to why marijuana should be legalized for recreational use.

The first thing that should be covered is the original banning. Eighty years ago when alcohol was legalized, the Department of Prohibition had nothing to do. The head of the department at the time, Harry Anslinger, did not want to lose his job. Previously he stated that marijuana was not in need of restriction, but now that his department was obsolete, he needed something to demonize. He claimed that using marijuana caused “delirious rage” and insanity. However, these claims have been scientifically disproven. Why is marijuana still illegal if it was banned for a reason like this?

Next, I would like to talk about the health risks of marijuana. Last year cigarettes, which you can find anywhere, killed 480,000 people. There is not a single recorded instance of someone dying from only using marijuana. A Drug Enforcement Administration judge ruled that a lethal dose of THC is 20,000 times what is found in a single joint. Scientific studies also concluded that marijuana does not cause withdrawal symptoms, and as long as the one using the drug is 25 years or older health risks are minimal.

Many people will argue that allowing recreational use of marijuana will cause a huge increase in crime. According to a study by Gil Kerlikowske, the White House director of National Drug Control, 80 percent of people arrested in California in 2014 (when it was only legal medicinally) were under the influence of at least one illegal drug. If marijuana were to be legalized, then how much could this possibly increase? Furthermore, penalties for crimes under the influence could be raised in order to combat the potential rise in crime.

In conclusion, marijuana was banned so someone could keep their job. It is much safer than readily available drugs like tobacco and will have little impact on crime. Why is this drug still illegal? I do not know.

Max Nagel

Spring Lake Heights Elementary



GRADES 9-12

First Place

Making marijuana legal won’t end social injustice

One of the best examples of My idea for a fun Saturday night is sitting on my couch and watching “The Great British Bake Off” with my mom and eating brownies — the normal kind! So naturally, I’m not exactly the preeminent voice in the debate on marijuana legalization. Because of this, I’m mostly apathetic to the whole legalization issue. However, a lot of other people are not as impartial. People argue and argue about this topic, while losing sight of the bigger issue at hand. There are far more important problem in this country that need addressing than whether or not people can smoke week. Too often, this argument overshadows others, blinding people to reality.

this is prison reform. The American prison system is often corrupt and unjust, especially toward people of color. Some people believe that the way to solve these problems is through marijuana legalization, as minorities are far more likely to be charged with a weed-related crime and given longer sentences. However, these aren’t weed problems. These are people problems. By focusing solely on the drug itself, we ignore the root cause: racism.

And believing the solution is as simple as legalizing one drug is like slapping a Band-aid on a bullet hole and claiming that it is all better. We do not want to look deeper and see the inherent flaws in the systems we have created, so we instead look for any other excuse to distance ourselves from the responsibility of solving them. For white people this means searching for any reason besides racism that these unjust conditions exist.

Legalizing marijuana doesn’t fix the criminal justice system. In fact, it only serves to exacerbate the injustices. In states where decriminalization has already occurred, white business owners are growing rich on weed dispensaries while African-American and Latinos are languishing in jail for possessing as little as a gram of weed.

Ultimately, we can’t let the voices of the people that these racist policies have harmed be drowned out in the sea of fallacies and fury. We all need to look deeply at the system we have created, and to recognize when they have failed. But most importantly, we must do our best to right the injustices we have created.

Kelly Beuka

Freehold Township High School

Second Place

Getting drugs from state better than from dealers

Parents want the best things for their children. Don’t they?

Think of your kids. Think of them going through high school and college. You can’t be the parents that say “my kid would never do this,” because chances are, when they’re with other teenagers, they’ll be doing things you never imagined. Growing up, teenagers have exposure to everything, including marijuana.

You can’t think that your child is squeaky clean and perfect and that they would never do any type of drugs. It’s high school. Peer pressure exists. Curiosity exists.

But now, as a parent, think of how you want these experiences to be for your child. If marijuana is legalized in New Jersey, that puts weed in the hands of the government instead of some shady old man who’s looking for money to get his own high.

You have to know that your kids are going to try something. It’s almost inevitable. You can yell at them, and ground them, and tell them that they should never smoke because it’s bad for them. What are the chances they listen to you? They’ll just say, “OK, Mom, I promise I won’t smoke,” but that promise might be as good as broken the second it passes their lips.

But the goal of parents is known. You want control. That’s OK, it makes sense, it’s parenthood. So then you should try to get marijuana legalized in your state. Then, all of the cannabis is within the confines of the government, and there is less of a chance of it being laced with anything that is truly bad for your children. If you support this new law, you are making a safer community for your children. You might not think so, but who do you think has the best interest of your children in mind? The government, who will closely monitor what’s going into the weed, or dealers, who lace their weed with deadlier, more addictive drugs in order to make repeat customers?

And yes, teenagers wouldn’t be getting their cannabis straight from the government, but how do they get alcohol? The point still stands. Who’s better for your kids, some questionable guy who also sells heroin or their best friend’s older sister?

You decide.

Jordan Carr

Point Pleasant Borough High School

Third Place

As I put on the perfect amount of cologne and my nicest button down, my friends and I decide we are ready to go to the party of our lives. We Uber over to our friend’s house with over half of the school in attendance. I push my way through half an ocean and get offered a beer, the usual. What wasn’t usual was the snack table. There were new signs labeling all the food. Above a stack of what appeared to be double-fudge brownies was a note that said, “pot brownies,” and in front of my favorite chocolate chip cookies, it read, “not your grandmother’s recipe.” I am taken aback, so I try to find the friends I came with.

I walk up the spiral staircase and come to two rooms. It was like their only purpose was to accommodate potheads. I just stand there trying to figure out who was there through the clouds of bad decisions. Frozen. I have never experienced this before. After a few moments, I regain my composure, and I run into my friends. I could tell they felt just as out of place as I did.

We decide to leave and not go back. The next weekend, we go to a different party in hopes of finding a different atmosphere, but we had the same problem. As soon as we walked through the door, I could have sworn they were trying to suffocate us with that terrible odor.

Weed was suddenly everywhere.

If marijuana was legalized in New Jersey, this is what every single party would look like.

If the law is passed, all those over 21 will be able to legally buy marijuana. Alcohol is already restricted to 21 and up, but more than half the teenage population consumes it every weekend. If pot becomes legal, it would take over the entire population. No longer could I go to parties and just hang out. I would have no idea of what is waiting for me there. Every time I reach for a brownie I would be questioning my safety. What kind of community would we have where teenagers always have to wonder whether or not it is OK to accept a baked good from someone? No one should have to live in constant fear.

Ben Stefan

Point Pleasant Borough High School



Video winners

First Place

Ryleigh Hostinsky of Point Pleasant Borough High School

Second Place

Alexa Rossi, Julia Mertikas, Lauren Ludwig, & Joe Miller, Point Pleasant Borough High School

More:Marijuana legalization: Just say no to pot bills: Editorial

October winners:Ah, summer: Student Voices winners reflect

Honorable mention winners

Grades 7-8

Lily Lyon, Memorial Middle School

Sydney Miller, Millstone Middle School

Abbie Nazario, Millstone Township Middle School

Grades 9-12

Jenna Striffler, Lacey Township High School

Olivia Naum, Freehold Township High School

Sarah Sunderman, Point Pleasant Borough High School

Video

James Huber and Dom Manzo, Christian Brothers Academy

Tanner Crochet and Luke Reid, Christian Brothers Academy

More:Student Voices: 19th annual awards