In the April issue of Townhall Magazine , where this article originally appeared, Townhall editors Leah Barkoukis and Christine Rousselle debate whether or not the federal government should pull back on the War on Drugs.

December 31, 2013 was a New Year’s Eve unlike any other for many Coloradans. As the clock struck midnight, partygoers at the 1920s-themed “Prohibition is Over” bash in downtown Denver didn’t just raise their glasses to ring in 2014, they also lit up to celebrate the end of marijuana prohibition in their state. At 8 am, when licensed stores were permitted to begin sales, hundreds waited eagerly in lines that wrapped around buildings and jubilant customers tweeted photos of their receipts. For better or worse, it was a truly historic day in our nation’s history. Although 20 states currently allow medical marijuana, Colorado and Washington became the first to legalize marijuana possession for recreational use, and more than a dozen states are considering following suit. But while the push for liberalizing marijuana laws at the state level is gaining steam, not everyone is celebrating. Against Legalization, by Leah Barkoukis There is no question which direction public opinion is sway- ing on the marijuana legalization front. For the first time, a clear majority of Americans (58 percent) favor legalization, an October Gallup poll found—a drastic increase from the 12 percent who favored it in 1969 when the polling organization first asked the question. But public opinion doesn’t tell the whole story and shouldn’t be the determining factor in the debate.

Marijuana advocates contend that the drug is generally harmless and is no more dangerous than alcohol. President Obama even reinforced those beliefs in a recent interview with the New Yorker when he said that marijuana is “not very different from the cigarettes I smoked” and that he doesn’t “think it is more dangerous than alcohol.” These statements run contrary to his own administration’s position on the issue, however, and what science has found regarding the drug’s effects.

In 2010, R. Gil Kerlikowske, director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, said that “marijuana legalization—for any purpose—is a non-starter in the Obama administration”—and for good reason.

A Dangerous Drug

Marijuana use affects one’s short-term memory, cognitive functions, coordination and balance, and in large doses, users can experience acute psychosis, which can include hallucinations and delusions, according to a National Institute on Drug Abuse report. These acute symptoms are proving to have a disastrous effect on driving, resulting in needless deaths and injuries when users get behind the wheel. Fatal car accidents involving marijuana have tripled in the last decade, a new study from Columbia University found—a problem that will likely escalate with an increased prevalence of marijuana use in society.

Research also shows that the drug’s negative effects on learning, memory, and attention can last for several days or even weeks after smoking. “Consequently,” the NIDA report states, “someone who smokes marijuana daily may be functioning at a reduced intellectual level most or all of the time”—not exactly an ideal outcome for a society already plagued by high unemployment.

In terms of users’ emotional wellbeing, marijuana use also increases the risk of depression and anxiety. Additionally, regular users may experience the same respiratory problems tobacco smokers do including lung infections and a diminished immune system, according to the National Institute of Health.

Many also assume that since marijuana is a ‘medicine’, it cannot possibly be bad for them. But marijuana remains a Schedule I controlled substance because it has “no currently accepted medical use,” a “high potential for abuse”, and a “lack of accepted safety.” The American Medical Association in November reaffirmed its opposition to marijuana legalization, retaining its official position that “cannabis is a dangerous drug and as such is a public health concern.”

Despite the ‘non-addictive’ mantra advocates tout, long- term marijuana use can lead to addiction. Approximately nine percent of users (one in 11) become dependent. The drug is especially addictive for teenagers, increasing the odds to one in six; and for daily users, it ranges from between one in three and one in two. In 2007 alone, more than 110,000 people voluntarily went to treatment facilities reporting marijuana as their primary substance of abuse.

A Threat to Children

Although advocates are pushing legalization for adults, the debate in society cannot exclude the effect legalization will have on youth because, as it stands, roughly 46 percent of teens will have tried marijuana by the time they graduate high school, and according to researchers at the University of Michigan, nearly 5.5 percent of high school seniors smoke marijuana daily.

“We know that from prevention science ... teens are most likely to use things that are A, available and B, for which there is a low perceived harmfulness,” Dr. Christian Thurstone, medical director of a busy adolescent substance abuse treatment program in Denver, said in an interview with NPR. As the drug becomes legal in more places, medicinally or recreationally, availability will undoubtedly increase and the perceived harmfulness will only continue to diminish as public opinion and laws change. And young people are most vulnerable to marijuana’s adverse effects.

Aside from its more addictive nature in adolescents, marijuana is particularly harmful for developing brains, negatively affecting learning and memory, and in turn, one’s ability to successfully function in school, work, and family life. One study discussed in the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s 2013 TEDS Report shows that among regular adult smokers, those who began using marijuana in their youth lost up to eight IQ points, which were not restored in those who quit later in life.

“I see teenagers who choose pot over family, school, friends and health every day,” Thurstone wrote in The Denver Post. “When they’re high, these young people make poor choices that lead to unplanned pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases, school dropouts and car accidents that harm innocent people. When teenagers are withdrawing from marijuana, they can be aggressive and get into fights or instigate conflicts that lead to more trouble.”

Legalization Won't Help

All this aside, advocates say the War on Drugs has failed, the cost of prohibition places a great burden on taxpayers and governments, and that law enforcement should instead use their resources more efficiently. This was one of the rationales given for legalization in Colorado.

The vast majority of people in state or federal prison for marijuana-related crimes are major traffickers and distributors, however. Of the drug defendants sentenced in federal court for marijuana offenses in 2012, only 1.2 percent were sentenced for simple possession, according to the U.S. Sentencing Commission.

Although there are criminal justice costs related to federal, state, and local marijuana laws, those costs will not necessarily be reduced and could possibly be exacerbated by legalization or decriminalization. For example, there were 2.5 million arrests in 2010 for alcohol-related crimes such as violations of liquor laws and driving under the influence—far more than the number of arrests for all illegal drug use. And since alcohol is of course a legal and highly regulated substance, legalizing or decriminalizing marijuana does not necessarily mean then that the burden placed on our justice system and law enforcement will be reduced.

There Are Other Solutions

Managing the use of marijuana through the criminal justice system is important, but admittedly shouldn’t be the only solution going forward. Prevention is critical and good programs in schools and communities are seriously lacking. Only 8 percent of U.S. schools use tested programs, according to a recent Department of Education report, with less than half of those implementing them well. D.A.R.E. is the most popular prevention program in schools even though studies have consistently shown it’s ineffective in reducing alcohol and drug use. Better programs must be created and they need to be implemented well and monitored for effectiveness. If such programs are implemented, RAND research shows that every dollar spent could save taxpayers $18 in avoided costs.

Yes, marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug, but its use and effects would be worse today if it weren’t illegal. Alcohol has already caused so much destruction and dysfunction in society that we must ask ourselves why we’re rushing to expand the use of another substance with its own social and economic costs that will undoubtedly be borne by society.

For Legalization, by Christine Rousselle

Prohibitions on marijuana have existed in some form in the United States since the 1860s, with a wide federal ban on the sale, consumption, transportation, or production of the substance enacted in the 1930s. The War on Drugs began in 1971, and government has spent trillions fighting various substances, including marijuana. A Losing War A pro-marijuana billboard is seen near the Denver Broncos stadium in Denver September 5, 2013.

These prohibitions have failed to prevent people from using marijuana. According to a 2013 Gallup poll, 38 percent of adults in the United States report trying marijuana at least once, with 49 percent of respondents ages 30-49 admitting that they have used the drug at some point. These numbers are a slight increase from 34 percent in 2001.