The Desire for Intoxication Leads to Destruction Essay -- Marijuana Dr

The Desire for Intoxication Leads to DestructionThrough time, people all over the population have looked for ways to feel intoxicated and alter their consciousness for contrary reasons. One of the most(prenominal) ancient ways people have reached this state of drunkenness has been through the popular marijuana plant. Today this plant has become so widely accepted that it has been legalized in a few states and will most belike be legalized in other states, such as California and Maine, even though it is prohibited by federal law. Advocates claim it has medicinal properties, and that the drug whitethorn actually be beneficial to peoples health. But even though many people argue that feeling intoxicated relaxes them and alleviates their pain, research and medieval incidents have proven that the desire to be intoxicated has more damaging effects than positive ones.In his book The Botany of Desire, Michael Pollan looks at four different desires beauty, control, intoxication, and s weetness, each represented by a plant . Each plant has either evolved or has been modified to fulfill a desire craved by human beings. Pollan shows us how the desire for sweetness is represented by the apple, beauty by the tulip, control by the potato, and the desire for intoxication by marijuana. In this book, Pollan explains how marijuana became modified through time to fit the different needs and expectations of consumers worldwide. Putting it in Pollans own words, cannabis had to do two things it had to prove it could baby a human desire so brilliantly that people would take extraordinary risks to cultivate it, and it had to find the right combination of genes to adapt to a most peculiar and thoroughly artificial new environment( 130). Marijuana was here to stay... ... A. Kallen. San Diego Greenhaven Press, 2006. At Issue. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 26 Nov. 2010.Pollan, Michael. The Botany of Desire. New York Random kin Trade Paperbacks, 2002. Print.Works C itedHadly, Scott. CHP Officer remains in critical condition. Ventura County Star. 21 Dec. 2007. Web. 29 Oct. 2010Huff, Charlotte. A risky decision with marijuana, your good judgment may go up in smoke. Current Health 2, a Weekly Reader publication Feb. 2010 20+. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 29 Oct. 2010. Marijuana Policy Project. medical checkup Marijuana Should Be Legalized. Legalizing Drugs. Ed. Stuart A. Kallen. San Diego Greenhaven Press, 2006. At Issue. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 26 Nov. 2010.Pollan, Michael. The Botany of Desire. New York Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2002. Print.