4 Score and 20 years ago, our founding fathers put forth a nation devoted to liberty, and rooted in agriculture. Hemp was an important resource in those times, but then again those were very different times. So today as we try to create a more perfect union, the issue of legalization of the substance known as Cannabis, a.k.a. Marijuana, pot, grass, reefer, indo, chronic, schwag, mary jane, herb and of course, weed, should at the very least be discussed on this, April 20th, the unofficial official day of those committed to the use of Marijuana.
I’ve heard all the arguments, pot is a gateway drug, it funds terrorism, etc. and I wanted to try to give as an objective an opinion on the subject as possible. Should we legalize it? Are we ready to legalize it? Will we ever legalize it? I will briefly tackle these questions.
The truth of the matter is, this country is not a big nation of potheads. When prohibition was in effect, pot was legal, and it did not take off in the way bootleg speakeasies did. People preferred to break the law, rather than smoke herb. Isn’t that interesting? Yet pot use did spark fear of increase. Eventually, pot was criminalized by an ambitious campaign funded by right-wing evangelical Christians and a manipulative politician, culminating in the release of Reefer Madness.
It was not till the 60s that pot became part of a large counterculture. It boomed as a symbol of defiance, and lingered a while before fading away in the 80s.
When gangster rap glorified “the chronic” in the 90s, pot resurfaced in popularity. With findings of its medicinal properties on the upswing, a movement to legalize pot for the sake of terminally ill patients began to explode, so far with 12 states approving medical marijuana laws.
Most states have lessened the criminilization of pot.
Today pot is part of popular culture. The hit show weeds, glorifies the sale of pot in upper middle-class neighborhoods as being legitimate, TV shows and movies by the score make references to pot and its so ingrained in music, the industry would collapse tomorrow if pot disappeared today.
So pot is a part of life in this country. I saw it more times than I could count by the time I was 13, and that’s not even a feasible question to even ask how many times I saw pot in my first year of high school alone. It was more readily available then alcohol and much much easier to purchase.
Which brings me to my point. That first illicit drug purchase opened me up to a world of drugs that I could easily obtain. Is pot safer in the hands of drug dealers or liquor stores? I think this is a fair question to ask. If there is any truth to the gateway drug argument, it is in this statement. Making the leap from pot to speed is about as true as the same being said of alcohol, from what I experienced.
I’ve been to Amsterdam, I’ve visited the coffee shops (hash bars) and witnessed the culture. For the most part, it works, and one thing about Amsterdam, most people go home by 1am. Must be that stoned burnout. Vegas, with its alcohol fueled nightlife is far more wild. Yet drugs are easily obtained in Amsterdam. Ecstasy, mushrooms, coke all easily purchased despite being illegal. Would this happen in the U.S. too?
Medicinal marijuana laws here in Cali, has fueled a movement of easily obtained prescription cards and a quasi-legitimate drug trade. There are traces of a backlash and of course, the federal government is there waiting to get its paws on these pot farms, reasserting its national authority over states rights.
We are a nation of alcoholics, and a nation with ever increasing DUI laws. The trajectory of pot use will likely increase, because of this, but never replace booze as our national drug. Alcohol is far deadlier, far more destructive, far more addictive, and yet one is legal and not the other. Well who do you think is keeping it illegal? Tobacco is also in this mix, afraid of impact on sales. But if it becomes legal, who do you think will be in charge of it? Big tobacco will become Big Reefer. I could live with that.
Sure pot has more tar, but if you smoke as much pot as you would tobacco, you’ve got to get some help. If you smoke both, as many do, cancer is something you should study, it isn’t a good way to go!
Despite all this, pot is something our society accepts, yet allows to be illegal, like the speakeasies of prohibition days. Why not allow pot to be legal and tax it?
Hemp can be used to make plastics, rope, clothing and is a great source of food. If we do not legalize drug consumption, we would be stupid not to legalize the use of industrial hemp for plastics in the face of peak oil on the horizon.
Should pot be legalized? The arguments against require manipulated numbers, links to terrorism, the exaggerated gateway argument. Where are the facts? I’ve yet to see a strong anti-marijuana argument. But in favor the pro pot movement is a little short sighted. Legalizing a drug sends shockwaves through the society. Legalizing it everywhere may not be a good idea. Most enlightened European societies have legalized zones for illicit acts like the ones in Amsterdam. So should we have “green zones” here? Maybe Las Vegas, San Francisco, Atlantic City, Austin, etc. or maybe just legal states. Its already being discussed.
Are we ready for legalization? No. Another 10 years, perhaps. An industry that stands to profit needs to evolve, public mindsets need to change a bit, medicinal marijuana needs to prove itself with a little more time, but soon.
Many questions need to be addressed.
Will it ever be legalized? This is the million dollar question. Honestly I don’t know, but I can feel the possibilities on the rise. Politics works in pendulums, and many thought it would happen in the 70s. Perhaps that was naive. But if trends continue, two thirds of the states will have medical marijuana laws on the books. If that happens, a constitutional amendment is a reality.
Otherwise it will take a major industry to lobby Washington and get some support for limited legalization. Full blown legalization is not likely to happen anytime soon, but you never know.
Anyhow, on this 4-20, many Americans will enjoy smoking pot regardless of any laws, and an institution with its laws being clearly disregarded, is an institution many no longer believe in. It is in the interest of the U.S. government to find a solution that doesn’t involve laws it can’t possibly enforce. With so much tax to be gained from the industrial and recreational use, it would be foolish not too. Just underscores the influence of big industry on our nation’s government. Our government needs to be liberated from a drug it too has grown addicted to, industrial capital.