Since
the beginning of marijuana prohibition, tens of thousands of people have been
incarcerated for possession and thousands more have been killed. (NB the
majority of those arrested and incarcerated are young people of color. Racism?)
This tragedy arises from the greed of a few wealthy men who started the process
that has snowballed into a multibillion-dollar money-sink and created a
plethora of special interest groups that for purely selfish reasons will
continue to pump millions of dollars into fighting any and all attempts on the
part of a majority of American citizens to have marijuana removed from the
Schedule I list and made legally available for both medical and recreational
use. (What follows is partly conjecture and I really hope I am wrong.)
In
spite of several high ranking law enforcement officers speaking in favor of legalizing
marijuana, parts of the law enforcement complex will object; federal and local
law enforcement because the majority of marijuana arrests are of young or sick
people using marijuana medicinally, which are mostly safe and easy arrests that
count on a cop's record. Fewer arrests might mean RIFs. (I was told this by a
number of local police officers and deputy sheriffs who were students of mine.)
Courts will not want to relinquish this constant source of revenue. For- profit
prison systems will also face reduced revenue because prison populations will
decrease.
Big
Pharma will pour 'dark' money into defeating any efforts to legalized marijuana
because its therapeutic benefits are safer, more effective, and less expensive
than many of their best selling pharmaceuticals and will actively and
successfully compete with these products. The pulp and fiber industries will
fight agricultural production of hemp because it will be a viable competitor in
their markets. Big oil will fight because hemp can be made into bio fuel and is
a renewable resource.
Both
political and religious Conservatives will fight legalization because they are
reactionary by nature. However religious conservatives will also have to find a
way of getting around the fact that a literal interpretation of their bible
credits their god with creating all plants, which must include marijuana,
tobacco, and the fruits and grains that are the bases for beverage alcohol. To
paraphrase Joe Lewis, the renowned mid twentieth century heavy weight boxer who
at the end of every victory would declare, "It was a rough fight, Mom, but
I won;" for those of us who champion the fight to legalize marijuana, it
has been so far and will continue to be a rough fight, but we will
win!
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