Running head: EVALUATING THE ORGANIZATION NORML

Evaluating the Organization NORML Joshua Baeza UTEP

Running head: EVALUATING THE ORGANIZATION NORML

The Case of Legalizing Marijuana The question was presented in a students class one day asking, Do you guys believe marijuana should be legalized? One student responded, Yes, without a doubt it should. When asked why he believes so, his response was simply, So I can smoke any time I want and not worry about getting in trouble. This ignorant response is only one of many that are stated by unknowledgeable people. What then is a valid argument to the legalization of marijuana? Here we will look at and evaluate a couple of arguments made by the Board of Directors of NORML, a group whose mission is to influence public opinion for the legalization of marijuana. We will do so by first looking at the audiences they intend to target. Then we will look at how they effectively and ineffectively argue through ethos (appealing through use of credibility), pathos (appealing through use of emotion), and logos (appealing through use of logic) respectively. Finally, well look at the strong and weak connections they make between their arguments and images their website NORML.org provides. NORML is a voice for the public so they intend to speak to American citizens supporting the opposition of marijuana prohibition and stopping arrests of responsible marijuana users. NORML targets these citizens by sending newsletters weekly and using many cartoons that are not very hard to understand to the public eye so that it seems very obvious marijuana should be legalized. The goal of these texts and lectures is to get these supporters to become more involved with the issue whether it be by using their public voice, voting, etc. NORML informs these citizens by explaining in simplified texts and images the beginnings of marijuana, its benefits, reasons it should be recreationally legalized, and criticizes the government of their laws against marijuana compared to other laws. The main point of the organization is to

Running head: EVALUATING THE ORGANIZATION NORML

motivate supporters not only to use this evidence to become more knowledgeable of the subject, but also to use this information in making a valid argument themselves to win legalization of marijuana. So what are these arguments they are presenting and are they able to be labeled valid? Argument through the appeal of ethos is appealing to an audience with credibility. A couple arguments through the appeal of ethos are presented in this text that are fairly valid. The first is offered in their introduction tab. When talking about a persons breath being detectable the state they have investigators from the National institute of Health in Baltimore and Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm, Sweden. This is presenting themselves as people who know what theyre talking about. This shows that their expertise and study expands worldwide. Another effective appeal to ethos is their advisory board. These members are composed of people who lend their names to the organization to promote the safety of marijuana through media. (Unknown Author, Advisory tab) A few of these members include Willie Nelson, Tommie Chong, and Woody Harrelson. These examples are given to show the main purpose of the credibility this advisory board is trying to obtain. The advisory board is mainly advertising to the public trying to gain support by showing these famous persons are also in support of this organization. These are a couple of ways NORML used ethos to support their argument, but what other ways do they use rhetoric to convince their audience to take action in the support of marijuana legalization? Using rhetoric through the appeal of pathos is persuading the audience with the use of emotion. The first example of pathos the organization uses is when the y state During the 1970s, NORML led the successful efforts to decriminalize minor marijuana offenses in 11 states

Running head: EVALUATING THE ORGANIZATION NORML

and significantly lower marijuana penalties in all others (Unknown Author, Introduction tab). This is showing how they already have become effective in this fight and are rallying for more supporters. Words like successful, decriminalize, and lower penalties fire up the audience because of the success accomplished, yet this is only the beginning since it states it has only succeeded this way in 11 states. They inadvertently present the question, This is just the beginning. Are you going to hop on board and join this organization full of potential? This organization has been effective in the use of credibility and emotion, but they do lack the validity of argument through logic. The appeal of logos is the use of logic to persuade an audience. This organization actually uses a couple of invalid appeals to logos. The first is stated: Marijuana is the third most popular recreational drug in America (behind only alcohol and tobacco), and has been used by nearly 100 million Americans. According to government surveys, some 25 million Americans have smoked marijuana in the past year, and more than 14 million do so regularly despite harsh laws against its use. Our public policies should reflect this reality, not deny it. (http://norml.org/marijuana) A valid argument would be A=B, C=A, therefore C=B. However, this form of argument doesnt even have a form. Their premise says major amounts of Americans are using the drug and major amounts are doing so without penalty, therefore our policies should accept this. There are no connections in this argument and must be deemed invalid. Throughout the text the organization has presented three arguments through ethos, pathos, and logos. The next and probably most effective form of argument is through the use of an image.

Running head: EVALUATING THE ORGANIZATION NORML

There are many images presented by the organization that demonstrate universally understood arguments. For instance, the organization has a picture of a man blowing out smoke on the home page (http://norml.org/news/2013/10/31/study-thc-detectable-in-breathfor-limited-periods-of-time). This picture is connected to the argument saying THC is detectable in a persons breath for a certain period of time. The image isnt specified for certain cultures or persons. Rather, it is an image understood by all about what it is trying to communicate. Another idea that is universally demonstrated is that marijuana is a peaceful, blissful drug that doesnt harm anyone. This is also seen in the two images on the home page of a palm tree planted on the bay, a seagull perched calmly on a deck, and marijuana buds organized in containers in a brightly lit room (http://norml.org/). This represents marijuana isnt a harmful drug and this is represented for all audiences to interpret. The cartoon presented of Uncle Sam saying a good plant is a polluting factory and a bad plant is marijuana is more of a master narrative targeted for Americans without the ability to legally smoke marijuana (http://norml.org/aboutmarijuana/item/good-plant). This is directly criticizing the law making marijuana seem a very harmless, minor issue compared to the major, harmful effects other lawful acts present to the environment. This representation must be deemed invalid because it is a false appeal to ethos since it attacks the person rather than the argument. After looking at the use of ethos, pathos, logos, and the use of image representation, is one able to say their arguments are valid? They had effective credibility, fair emotion involvement, false logic, and peaceful/criticizing images. Although good credibility is presented, it isnt enough to overcome the false logic and almost false representing images of marijuana. One must note that the pictures presented are showing just a fantasy of the use of marijuana.

Running head: EVALUATING THE ORGANIZATION NORML

No representations show how or if the legalization will overpower the negative effects marijuana may have on a person if it were recreationally used. Along with these criticisms and false logic, it is almost comical who composes the advisory board with actors like Tommy Chong who played the role of a pothead in his two popular hits Cheech and Chong and That 70s Show. This organization is progressing steadily and is a good support in the fight for legalization, but one must agree that NORML should look into more valuable arguments.