Drug and alcohol abuse is one of the hottest topics in America.

Marijuana use is the biggest conflict and it’s more common in many teenagers. Many use marijuana for medical reasons, but others just abuse the fact that it’s legal in some states. The U.S. needs to safely recognize the people who need the drug and those who just abuse it.

Cannabis can affect the central nervous system. There are many drug addicts in this country. Statistics show that 15 percent of 8th graders use marijuana; 33 percent use marijuana in the 10th grade. Many of them are failing, too.

It’s imperative for state laws to tighten up on some people who have been using the substance or in possession of such.

People should use marijuana the right way, the medical way. If laws get passed about medical marijuana, there are many people who would fake a condition that allows marijuana to be used. That is where it is important for those laws to come in.

What we are trying to get at is that cannabis can affect your life. The U.S. needs to improve identification of the people who need the plant and those people who don’t have any medical conditions that need the use of marijuana.

For state laws, it should be that they should be on the lookout for any juveniles who are in possession, or using such drugs.

Abdisalan Farah,

Abdirasaq Yonis