The process by which society detects and interprets information from the outside world in a utilitarian theory states: one should always do the greatest good for the greatest number of people. When you have the motivation to achieve goals that benefit you, it is called ethical selfishness. In this article we will consider a brief history of cannabis, the parallels between the legalization of medical marijuana and the prohibition of alcohol in the 1920s with regard to ethical selfishness and utilitarian theories. The earliest evidence of human cannabis use comes from the island of Taiwan located off the coast of mainland China. Archaeologists have unearthed an ancient village dating back over 10,000 years to the Stone Age. Along with the pottery found were stick-shaped tools, resembling those later used to peel cannabis fibers from their stems. Pottery with woven fiber patterns embedded on the sides suggests that humans have been using the marijuana plant in some way since the dawn of history. (Chang, 1959) Once an assumption is established by society, especially over time, it becomes a great effort to change it. Marijuana was first recognized as a narcotic in the 1920s and 1930s. Relying almost exclusively on information intended to mislead or persuade against the harms of marijuana, tabloid newspapers published embellished accounts of violent crimes committed by immigrants intoxicated by marijuana. Considering the vast emotion and widespread paranoia aroused by the surge of the women's temperance movement, the temperance movement might be considered to have played an important role in the formation of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937. 238, 75th Cong...... middle of document ......see on January 12, 2001: htttp://www.tokeofthetown.com/2009/12/bill_to_legalize_marijuana_introduced_in_washingto.phpChang, K., The Archeology of ancient China (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1968), pp. 111-12; CT Kung, Archeology in China (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1959), 1:131.American College of Physicians. Support research on the therapeutic role of marijuana. Philadelphia: American College of Physicians; 2008: Position Paper. (Available from the American College of Physicians, 190 N. Independence Mall West, Philadelphia, PA 19106.) Retrieved from: http://www.acponline.org/advocacy/where_we_stand/other_issues/medmarijuana.pdfSchieszer, J., I NSAIDs other than aspirin may increase the risk of RCC Renal and Urology News. August 18, 2009 Retrieved from http://www.renalandurologynews.com/nonaspirin-nsaids-may-raise-rcc-risk/article/146731/