Rhetorical Analysis

Rhetorical Analysis
Topic :-  Ron Paul debates with Stephen Baldwin on the topic of legalization of Marijuana

This debate Ron Paul debates with Stephen Baldwin on the topic of legalization of Marijuana on the Larry King live and this took place on 3/13/09. Stephen Baldwin is against the legalization whereas Ron Paul is with the legalization of marijuana. Ron Paul says that “drugs are dangerous but there are many things that are dangerous but who should regulate danger?” On the other hand Stephen Baldwin who has acted in two very popular marijuana films Half Baked and Bio Domed, says its common sense, marijuana leads to doing worse things.

Smoking marijuana at a younger age will lead to alcohol abuse and harder drug. Ron Paul compares marijuana to nicotine, he says that it is the most addictive drug in market and yet nobody talks about it. He also adds that the drug cartel benefits from the government’s action of not legalizing marijuana. Stephen Baldwin argues that by legalizing marijuana the number of accidents will increase. Another point that Ron Paul made was that nonviolent people are caught with marijuana whereas rapist and killer roam free, and most of the time when they come out of prison they have become violent. Ron Paul says that the war on drugs has become hysterical.

I liked the way Ron Paul addressed this issue, because he supported his claim that legalizing marijuana is a good thing but providing good supporting examples. He even compared this issue with the issue of alcohol, nicotine and production of Hemp in USA. On the other hand he was confident in stating his points, his facial expressions were bold. He was straight to the point and gave a broader perspective to the whole issue.