The feds need to legalize marijuana
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No one has ever died from rolling a joint.
Larry Ragland, Staff Writer
April 25, 2012
Filed under Opinion, Top Stories
Each state in our union is in and of itself a laboratory conducting a multitude of experiments. Each one free (within reason) to explore various ways of improving co-habitation, law and commerce, as well as a host of other necessaries. What then is the point of having state’s rights when the federal government can come in, at will, and decide what you can and can not do, negating any previous law in its wake?
California residents spoke loud and clear when they voted for the legalization of medical marijuana back in November of 1996. For the most part, people have been left alone to do what they medically saw best for them. Provided you are licensed, you can use marijuana for whatever ailment has beset you.
Even the Obama administration on October 19, 2009 stated that they would no longer be seeking to arrest users, growers and distributors, so long as they were adhering to state laws. The only exception to that rule being those that the government could prove were conducting other illegal activities in the guise of legitimate business. So why now after all this time and relative peace, are there federal agents raiding dispensaries and shutting down legitimate businesses like Oaksterdam University?
California is not alone in its experimentation with the medical marijuana industry. CNBC aired a special in 2010 called “Marijuana USA” that goes into great detail about the marijuana industry in America.
Currently there are 16 states that have marijuana laws on the books. There are countless documentaries on the subject.
Everything from the humorous yet telling “Super High Me” to poignant films like “The True Tale of American Marijuana” that dealt with the history of marijuana and hemp in United States. The knowledge is out there for people to educate themselves with and make a decision with their doctor without the federal government stepping in.
The truth is that many in Washington think they–from their positions on high, know what is best for us; the Lilliputians, below. Who cares if we decided years ago that the state of California was going to legalize the use of medicinal marijuana? Who cares if there are tons of legal prescription medications that poison your body, often times making symptoms worse?
Those are all right because they are licensed and taxed. Not to mention there’s no money in the cure. If they can get you sick off of one medication, they can sell you another to cope with the first. And I’m pretty sure that if you follow the money, someone got paid to make sure things stayed the way they are. There are plenty of medical lobbyists who have no interest in seeing people feel better off of something they don’t own a patent for. Those people pay for campaigns.
I am not some medical purist who only believes in holistic remedies, far from it. It cannot be denied the plethora of blessings that modern medical science has afforded humanity. That being stated, if there is no reason not to let a patient cope with their illness in the best way for them to do so then why not? Some would argue that it’s just a placebo, that there are no “measurable advantages.” Even if that is the case, who are any of use to deny someone the right to a pain free existence when we can do so?
There are scores of people who will attest to the benefits of medical marijuana when all others have failed. I don’t think that it’s right to punish those individuals.
The laws have worked fine up until this point so why the need for the crack down? I can see if there aer those operating outside of the state law but feds shouldn’t have the right to swoop in and dictat when that should happen: especially when there is no reason to do so. If anything with such an ailing economy, it would be better to legalize it and tax it.
I don’ want to go all conspiratorial but in this case, you would be hard pressed not to. I think it is pretty obvious that a lot of people would stop taking a lot of medications if they could switch to medicinal majijuana. Many of the top medications for some of the most debilitaing illnesses today: cancer, Aids, depression ect., may help overall but wreak havoc on our bodies. There are thousands of people who die every year due to complications to various medicataions.
I have yet to hear of anyone dying from rolling a joint.
