abcnews.go.com — The report, "Marijuana Production in the United States," by marijuana policy researcher Jon Gettman, concludes that despite massive eradication efforts at the hands of the federal government, "marijuana has become a pervasive and ineradicable part of the national economy."
Apr 2, 2009 View in Crawl 4
jitterbitsApr 3, 2009
"You can't tax a Mexican drug trafficking group," Courtney explains. "That's the side a lot of people don't focus on."Hey, genius... if weed were legal, why would people be buying it from Mexican drug trafficking groups?
blueflame549Apr 3, 2009
Amen. Nice comment.
mrcoldheartApr 3, 2009
Surprise! The War on Drugs was a lie. You have to legalize it to regulate it. Period.
santaclauzApr 3, 2009
Dear President Obama,I was first introduced to marijuana a little over 2 years ago. Over time, I have learned many things about this Schedule 1 Drug that were contrary to what I had previously believed. As a marijuana user yourself, I am sure that you are well aware of its effects and can vouch for its relative harmlessness. Unfortunately however, marijuana remains illegal under U.S federal law despite a laundry list of reasons for why it should be legalized.So when the American public learned you were holding an online town hall to address the issues which we feel are important and ready to be fixed, we were excited. As you are aware, marijuana law reform was one of the overwhelmingly popular questions - if not the most popular.In response to this question however, you jokingly dismissed the online audience that helped raise millions of dollars for your campaign which successfully got you elected. In an almost disrespectful display to the millions of Americans who use cannabis medically and recreationally, the audience as well as yourself laughed in the face of a serious question posed by the thousands of users that responded. It is also worth mentioning that the question failed to even be shown on the screen as all the others had been and received a very short, simple answer compared to the 10+ minutes that some of the other questions received.I am writing this e-mail to you today to ask you to not only reconsider your drug policy, but also pleading that you take your online audience more seriously. I believe it would be well worth your time and much appreciated by a significant portion of the general public if you could please readdress this question with a more serious, thought-out and detailed answer.And unfortunately Mr. President, the question is not a simple one, but multifaceted. I believe it?s important for you to begin addressing the situation so we can move toward becoming a more stable country. So let me begin by providing you with a few issues that you might want to consider.As you are well aware, cannabis is currently a Schedule 1 Drug, which means it is defined as a substance with no medicinal value. Do you believe that marijuana is not medically helpful to patients who for example suffer from cancer or HIV/AIDS and have trouble eating or are in pain?Why is the DEA continuing to raid dispensaries in California despite assurance from Attorney General Holder as well as yourself that federal resources would not be used to circumvent state laws?Roughly 800,000 people were arrested in 2007 for possession of marijuana. This figure is higher than it has ever been before and has grown every year. Even patients who have been prescribed cannabis by their doctors have been arrested. Don't you believe it is wrong to be spending billions of dollars every year incriminating these people for non-violent crimes while the violent criminals run amok? Isn't it time to stop supporting private prisons that benefit from the imprisonment of others?Are you aware the marijuana is a safer drug than both Alcohol and Tobacco, not to mention less addictive than caffeine? In fact, its impossible to overdose on marijuana and its potentially harmful smoke related effects can be lessened if not eliminated by using a vaporizer. Over 400,000+ people are killed by cigarettes every year, and another 15,000+ from drunk drivers, yet no one has ever died from marijuana consumption. What's keeping it illegal?With the drug cartels more powerful than ever, don't you believe it is time to take away some of their power? Some estimates say that marijuana makes up over 50% of the cartel's income. Legalizing marijuana would eliminate much of their income and power. In addition to this, we would stop spending the billions of dollars that we currently spend fighting marijuana while generating billions of dollars by regulating and taxing this substance as well as hemp.Mr. President, needless to say I was very disappointed when you hypocritically laughed in our faces on March 26th. I hope that you can take the time to redress this situation and reassure the American public that you are the man we elected on November 4th. I hope the power of presidency does not blind sight you to the obvious beneficial effects the legalization of marijuana would have on America. I know you are an educated man Mr. President, and I know you will make the right choice.Hopeful for Change,Anand S.- Letter I wrote to obama via whitehouse.gov. I encourage you all to do the same and bring this issue to the forefront. I'm not expecting a response, but you never know - will keep you updated.