The Fight to Legalize Marijuana in the US
By James Donahue
It took two attempts, first in 2010 and again in 2016, before California voters approved the recreational use of marijuana. That year similar propositions won voter approval in Nevada, Maine and Massachusetts. At the time of this writing recreational marijuana use also is declared legal by voters in nine other states plus the U.S. Virgin Islands. They are Alaska, Colorado, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont and Washington, plus the District of Columbia.
Because of intense research in laboratories outside of the United States, a substance in Marijuana, cannabinol (CBD), was shown to have medical benefits, the medical use of cannabis is now legal in 33 states, the District of Columbia and the territories of Guam and Puerto Rico. Of course the Chinese knew this several thousand years ago. Emperor Shen Nung in 2737 noted in writings that cannabis was a medication for rheumatism, gout, malaria and absent-mindedness. The Muslims introduced hashish, made from cannabis resin. The plant was introduced to the Americas by the Spanish.
The English introduced cannabis in Jamestown in 1611. There is became a major commercial crop with tobacco. But it was grown as hemp, a source of fiber. It was always known, however, for its properties for medical and recreational use. Unfortunately marijuana was caught up in the nation’s anti-drug campaign and was declared an illegal substance in 1970. This established a big undercover cannabis production operation designed to supply street demands. As it was during prohibition, the production and sale of marijuana became a major criminal enterprise.
In spite of this amazing acceptance of cannabis by the U.S. public, it still remains a prohibited substance in federal law books. This is because of the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. Under this act cannabis is classified as a Schedule 1 substance, determined to have a high potential for abuse and no accepted medical use.
Because of the federal law, and the refusal by some states to legalize CBD even for medical use, there has existed mass confusion among users. We have heard tales of police drug arrests of drivers passing through these areas because they had small amounts of marijuana on their person, purchased in a home state where the sale was legal. Also in those areas we must assume the illegal growth, production and sale of “weed” is thriving. Those states also are missing out on the cash rewards of the sales taxes now collected in the legal marijuana states.
The irony in all this is that without a federal acceptance, it has been up to each state to write and adopt their own laws and establish punishments for law violations involving cannabis. Thus users throughout the nation must abide by the laws established in their own states, and use extreme caution when visiting other parts of the nation.
Even though we suspect that many of our elected representatives in Washington are cannabis users, the halls of Congress have been the home to mostly elderly men and women, all having been heavily indoctrinated by the drug propaganda of their time. A search of the web even today proves that the propaganda still exists. We found one “medical” information page that warns of the dangers of “overdosing” on marijuana. Users familiar with the effects of the weed know this is false. Unlike alcohol, which is found legal everywhere, death by marijuana is almost unheard of.
If anything, there have been proven benefits in the use of marijuana. Certain established varieties of the plant are found to be an excellent pain killer. It is actually being successfully used in helping addicted hydrocodone users escape the addition and turn to daily doses of marijuana to deal with arthritis and other body aches. Where it is now legal various varieties of marijuana can be bought in specialty shops. It can be consumed either by smoking it or consuming foods containing CBD.
Before passage of the Controlled Substance Act American farmers were encouraged to grow hemp, a variety of cannabis used to make rope, clothes and even quality paints. Back when sailing ships ruled the high seas, U.S. farmers were required to grow hemp for naval purposes.
By James Donahue
It took two attempts, first in 2010 and again in 2016, before California voters approved the recreational use of marijuana. That year similar propositions won voter approval in Nevada, Maine and Massachusetts. At the time of this writing recreational marijuana use also is declared legal by voters in nine other states plus the U.S. Virgin Islands. They are Alaska, Colorado, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont and Washington, plus the District of Columbia.
Because of intense research in laboratories outside of the United States, a substance in Marijuana, cannabinol (CBD), was shown to have medical benefits, the medical use of cannabis is now legal in 33 states, the District of Columbia and the territories of Guam and Puerto Rico. Of course the Chinese knew this several thousand years ago. Emperor Shen Nung in 2737 noted in writings that cannabis was a medication for rheumatism, gout, malaria and absent-mindedness. The Muslims introduced hashish, made from cannabis resin. The plant was introduced to the Americas by the Spanish.
The English introduced cannabis in Jamestown in 1611. There is became a major commercial crop with tobacco. But it was grown as hemp, a source of fiber. It was always known, however, for its properties for medical and recreational use. Unfortunately marijuana was caught up in the nation’s anti-drug campaign and was declared an illegal substance in 1970. This established a big undercover cannabis production operation designed to supply street demands. As it was during prohibition, the production and sale of marijuana became a major criminal enterprise.
In spite of this amazing acceptance of cannabis by the U.S. public, it still remains a prohibited substance in federal law books. This is because of the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. Under this act cannabis is classified as a Schedule 1 substance, determined to have a high potential for abuse and no accepted medical use.
Because of the federal law, and the refusal by some states to legalize CBD even for medical use, there has existed mass confusion among users. We have heard tales of police drug arrests of drivers passing through these areas because they had small amounts of marijuana on their person, purchased in a home state where the sale was legal. Also in those areas we must assume the illegal growth, production and sale of “weed” is thriving. Those states also are missing out on the cash rewards of the sales taxes now collected in the legal marijuana states.
The irony in all this is that without a federal acceptance, it has been up to each state to write and adopt their own laws and establish punishments for law violations involving cannabis. Thus users throughout the nation must abide by the laws established in their own states, and use extreme caution when visiting other parts of the nation.
Even though we suspect that many of our elected representatives in Washington are cannabis users, the halls of Congress have been the home to mostly elderly men and women, all having been heavily indoctrinated by the drug propaganda of their time. A search of the web even today proves that the propaganda still exists. We found one “medical” information page that warns of the dangers of “overdosing” on marijuana. Users familiar with the effects of the weed know this is false. Unlike alcohol, which is found legal everywhere, death by marijuana is almost unheard of.
If anything, there have been proven benefits in the use of marijuana. Certain established varieties of the plant are found to be an excellent pain killer. It is actually being successfully used in helping addicted hydrocodone users escape the addition and turn to daily doses of marijuana to deal with arthritis and other body aches. Where it is now legal various varieties of marijuana can be bought in specialty shops. It can be consumed either by smoking it or consuming foods containing CBD.
Before passage of the Controlled Substance Act American farmers were encouraged to grow hemp, a variety of cannabis used to make rope, clothes and even quality paints. Back when sailing ships ruled the high seas, U.S. farmers were required to grow hemp for naval purposes.