The majority of people overwhelmingly support the legalization of medical marijuana, and by a small margin support full-scale legalization. So I think its time that these policy directors get together and figure out where they are going with this thing. These are two different directions with which Colorado has experimented. I seriously doubt that people who smoke pot would rather go to a doctor, pay him and then go to a store all under the cover that its for medicinal purposes (A lot of the time, it is) than just walk into 7/11 and buy their product. By defining this plant as two different things, both a medicine and recreational intoxicant, we’ve effectively made the road to legalizing both very difficult. Yes, classifying marijuana as a medicine was a smart idea from the start, however the states with medical marijuana programs are now aware of what is going on. They can’t stop someone from lying—they just cant. And the doctor in certain states, such as California, is inclined to give you the required card, receiving money for the approval.
However, this impedes the progress of the full-scale legalization process by defining this plant as two different things. Those who grow the plant for medicinal shops most definitely would not want full-scale legalization; their product would immediately loose most of its market value.
Going back to California, its no wonder that their legalization law didn’t pass, their lobby of medical growers opposed it. The usual voters who would approve such legislation actually opposed it because of the financial success they have from working in a gray area. An MSNBC article also found that in Maine, a similar proposition was made and failed. One of the opponents of the legalization bill was the Medical Marijuana Caregivers of Maine. These opposing groups impede the progress than can be obtained by those who feel legalization and regulation is the correct answer to the drug war. Which yes, it is. Colorado now has to deal with both industries erupting and will most likely see their medical program seriously drop off in members, and rightfully so. Luckily their medical supporters were unable to block the law that legalized the drug fully.
This problem will never get solved until the federal government decides what to do with the Controlled Substances Act in relation to marijuana’s category. Most politicians in D.C. are aware that it is not classified correctly, however the agenda doesn’t call for this change at the current time. The government has enough problems at the moment than dealing with this. No matter how many states legalize however, nothing will change until that federal law does.
As the rule of law goes, the federal government’s laws will trump those of the states when conflict arises. Anyway, it would be nice to see these two camps come together and forget the financial aspect of this issue and look more at the morality of it. Should we treat it as a medicine and continue this game with the government where states operate in gray areas? Or should we outright legalize it and allow everyone the choice to try a plant that’s been illegal for 80 years, for reasons that were completely unfounded and racist (its criminalization was the result of racist speculation decreeing the plant made white women sleep with black men in the 1930s). I promised myself I would only write about this topic once, so that’s it.
Please send all feedback to opinion@dailycardinal.com.
