Last updated on: 1/15/2019 | Author: ProCon.org

Alex Berenson Biography

Title:
Novelist and Former New York Times Reporter
Position:
Con to the question "Should Recreational Marijuana Be Legal?"
Reasoning:

“Marijuana causes pyschosis.

Psychosis causes violence.

The obvious implication is that marijuana causes violence…

[L]egalization signals that marijuana is not dangerous and encourages teen use. The states with the highest rates of youth marijuana use all allow legalized recreational sales or medical sales with very loose conditions.

The United States should not legalize cannabis nationally; it should move to discourage more states from legalizing, and it should consider pressuring those that have already done so to reverse course.”

Tell Your Children: The Truth About Marijuana, Mental Illness, and Violence, 2019
Theoretical Expertise Ranking:
Organizations/VIPs/Others
Individuals and organizations that do not fit into the other star categories.
Involvement and Affiliations:
  • Novelist
  • Reporter, New York Times, 1999-2010
  • Former reporter, TheStreet.com
  • Former reporter, Denver Post
Education:
  • BA, History and Economics, Yale University, 1994
Other:
  • Twitter: @AlexBerenson
  • Has written a series of 12 spy novels (as of Jan. 2019) about a character named John Wells
  • Recipient, Edgar Award for best first novel, The Faithful Spy, 2007
  • Served as a correspondent in Iraq for the New York Times in 2003 and 2004
Quoted in:
Pro & Con Quotes: Should Recreational Marijuana Be Legal?