To: President Donald Trump
Obama allow states to regulate marijuana
Marijuana should be declassified as a Schedule I drug. Washington and Colorado have legalized use of marijuana by adults. Thus, in those states, it will be legal on the state level, but still illegal according to federal law enforcement. This situation requires remedy. The illegality of this substance is not supported by science or the vast personal experience of the majority of Americans (including the President):
--Marijuana is known to have beneficial effects for many conditions and diseases, without the side effects of pharmaceuticals. No doubt the pharmaceutical companies and the politicians they purchase are dead set against legalization, but they should be ignored.
--Marijuana studies have shown no correlation with lung cancer or any other cancer.
--Marijuana has NOT been shown to be a "gateway drug" in scientific studies. Cigarettes, however, are more correlated with hard drug use.
--The current penalties for marijuana are dire: incarceration and felony conviction with all of the related penalties handicap an otherwise perfectly law abiding person for life. The people harmed by these laws are disproportionately poor and brown skinned.
--Law enforcement of this prohibited drug is racist and classist: The 1% can "experiment" with marijuana as much as they like, but the 99% go to prison. This is immoral.
--Most estimates of the costs of incarceration of otherwise perfectly productive and law abiding Americans for marijuana crimes is in the neighborhood of $1 Billion annually. Our public schools could use this money, as could our roads and bridges.
--Can anyone even guess the huge sums of money that would be gained if all current marijuana sales were taxed? We need these funds.
--Marijuana is extraordinarily widely used already. Most Americans have either used it or know people who do/have used marijuana without any detriment to health or quality of life. To continue to maintain that marijuana is a "dangerous drug" is an offense to the intelligence and personal experience of Americans.
--To the extent that a small percentage of people do become addicted to pot, we need to recognize that these are the same people who become addicted to sex, food, cigarettes and alcohol, all of which are legal. The vast majority of Americans should not be regulated and penalized by the behavior of a small number of vulnerable people. Treatment options should be made available to this population to deal with their wide variety of addictions.
--Given the easy availability of marijuana in U.S., there is no reasonable expectation that use of marijuana will substantially increase/change.
--We should free up law enforcement time and energy for the investigation and prosecution of real crimes that damage our society.
--Marijuana is known to have beneficial effects for many conditions and diseases, without the side effects of pharmaceuticals. No doubt the pharmaceutical companies and the politicians they purchase are dead set against legalization, but they should be ignored.
--Marijuana studies have shown no correlation with lung cancer or any other cancer.
--Marijuana has NOT been shown to be a "gateway drug" in scientific studies. Cigarettes, however, are more correlated with hard drug use.
--The current penalties for marijuana are dire: incarceration and felony conviction with all of the related penalties handicap an otherwise perfectly law abiding person for life. The people harmed by these laws are disproportionately poor and brown skinned.
--Law enforcement of this prohibited drug is racist and classist: The 1% can "experiment" with marijuana as much as they like, but the 99% go to prison. This is immoral.
--Most estimates of the costs of incarceration of otherwise perfectly productive and law abiding Americans for marijuana crimes is in the neighborhood of $1 Billion annually. Our public schools could use this money, as could our roads and bridges.
--Can anyone even guess the huge sums of money that would be gained if all current marijuana sales were taxed? We need these funds.
--Marijuana is extraordinarily widely used already. Most Americans have either used it or know people who do/have used marijuana without any detriment to health or quality of life. To continue to maintain that marijuana is a "dangerous drug" is an offense to the intelligence and personal experience of Americans.
--To the extent that a small percentage of people do become addicted to pot, we need to recognize that these are the same people who become addicted to sex, food, cigarettes and alcohol, all of which are legal. The vast majority of Americans should not be regulated and penalized by the behavior of a small number of vulnerable people. Treatment options should be made available to this population to deal with their wide variety of addictions.
--Given the easy availability of marijuana in U.S., there is no reasonable expectation that use of marijuana will substantially increase/change.
--We should free up law enforcement time and energy for the investigation and prosecution of real crimes that damage our society.
Why is this important?
Washington and Colorado have legalized marijuana for adults. Other states are planning to do so. The federal government should declassify marijuana as an illegal drug and allow states to regulate marijuana.