Max Bernhardt

The Case for Marijuana Legalization

Imagine- you’re a cancer patient in Oklahoma. Your terminally ill, in the last stages of
your lung cancer, in great pain and the only drugs available to you are highly addictive
painkillers. A natural painkiller is illegal in your state, and if you want this drug you are
forced to buy it on the black market where it could be potentially dangerous. Marijuana, a
drug that could save you is completely locked away simply because someone- a
politician, or a healthy, unaware individual- may consider it immoral or dangerous, and
you consider it a break from the immense pain you will feel over the next 2 months
before you die. Unfortunately many people out there fall victim to a society that view
marijuana usage as taboo, as well as dangerous to everyone—even if the person is using
this in the friendly confines of their home. Marijuana should be legalized for Medical
and Recreational usage, so long as it is highly regulated and taxed reasonably. Unfolding
in the United States right now is a compelling case for Marijuana Legalization. There is
drug violence in Mexico that is attributed to this, in fact since the US gets anywhere from
80-90% of its illegal drugs from Mexico, a good portion of that is Marijuana, since it is
the most used drug in the US. Only time will tell who wins this fight to get a basic human
right, the right to good health, and the right to privacy.

15 US states and DC have legalized the MEDICAL usage of Marijuana- AK (1998, 1oz,
58% passed), AZ (2010, 2.5oz, 50.1%), CA (1996, 56%, 8oz), CO (2000, 20z, 54%), DC
(2010, 2oz, 13-0 Council Vote), HI (2000, 32-18 House, 13-12 Senate, 3oz). ME (1999,
2.5oz, 61%), MI (2008, 2.5oz, 61%), MT (2004, 1oz, 62%), NV (2000, 1oz, 65%), NJ
(2010, 2oz, 48-14 house, 25-13 senate), NM (2007, 6oz, 36-31 house, 32-3), OR (1998,
24oz, 55%), RI (2006, 2.5oz, 52-10 House, 33-1 Senate), VT (2004, 2o, 82-59 house, 22-
7 senate), and WA (1998, 24oz, 59%). All of these states permit you to possess
Marijuana for Medical purposes, for cancer patients or for other people who use it as a
painkiller, or as a natural alternative to Vicodin or other drugs. In 12 out of the 15 states,
proof of residency in the state is required, and 13 out of the 15 states allows home
cultivation- eliminating the need to buy it off of a potentially dangerous and impure black
market. Fees for usage are also anywhere from $0-200. Before we hear from a Cancer
patient in Montana, lets take a look at the history of how we got to this point in the battle
for Marijuana Legalization. Marijuana was actually widely legal in the US throughout the
late 1800s, and in 1854 Marijuana was even declared a suggested remedy for muscle
spasms. Finally, in 1870 Marijuana was listed as a medicine by multiple gov’t
organizations. This stayed steady but by 1937, there were multiple dealers who were
being arrested and people were starting to get suspicious about the nature of selling and
therefore also the usage of Marijuana. The Cannabis Tax Act of 1937 required sellers to
obtain a state license, not too harmful right? Well, unfortunately for the marijuana
supporters of the time in 1941 it was de-listed as a drug and thus began a downward
spiral into the 1980s. The 1970s Controlled Substances Act was designed to incorporate
50 drugs (including Marijuana) into an illegalizing program designed to curtail
importation. However, again in 1978 the Carter Administration separated Marijuana from
Narcotics and Marijuana seemed back on track. In the 1980s, under the Reagan
Administration, the ‘War of Drugs’ was launched. This was a very hard-fought campaign
to ‘eliminate’ drugs from our society, including Marijuana. Especially by 2011, this effort
is viewed as a largely-failed attempt to harshly regulate a booming, largely illegal
industry. Finally, in 1996 California legalized the possession of medical Marijuana and it
passed with a 56% vote. But how is Marijuana seeing so much success at the polls? There
are many voices- both scientific evidence and activists alike support the Medical
Marijuana cause. A 1990s American Medical Association as well as countless others
concluded that Marijuana- particularly if it is taken in medical doses is not physically
addicting. Marijuana was even cited in this AMA study as less habit-forming than
caffeine as well as the legal drugs alcohol and tobacco. The typical user smokes 1
marijuana cigarette a day- compared to possibly 20+ with a tobacco smoker, and
Marijuana does not contain nicotine- a key to why it is not very habit-forming. Especially
in medical marijuana, most people are not long-term smokers (more than 70%) and thus
there aren’t many ‘marijuana addicts’ out there (when was the last time you’ve heard of a
marijuana addict?). Even the Government has 4 people who receive medical marijuana,
politicians and DC citizens, on an IND program. Folks like former surgeon general
Jocelyn Elders, Ralph Nader, Ron Paul, the American Nurses Assocation, Montel
Williams, and the American College of Physicians all endorse medical marijuana for
usage in people with HIV/AIDS, Cancers, Inflammatory diseases, Crohn’s Disease and
Alzheimer’s Disease. A man in Montana recently has a personal story. In 2004, Roger
Chalmers was diagnosed with a treatable cancer. 6 years later, the cancer had developed
to the point where it was un-treatable and Mr. Chalmers was terminally ill. In that same
year of 2004, the Montana state legislature passed a bill that allowed people just like him
to use Medical Marijuana to ease the pain. He said he had to get it off of “unstable”
markets until 2009 when the State Legislature passed a home cultivation law. He now
smokes it only a few times a day, and views it as a far better alternative to additive
painkillers that are the only things available to patients just like him on other states where
Medical Marijuana usage and possession is illegal. He also says his son with ADHD
finds relief in smoking it a few times a week. It is a true travesty to know that people just
like him in 35 states are unable to get access to something that will have to ease pain and
potentially save them from a world of hurt.

There is a lot of smoke around marijuana (pun intended). There are many myths, but just
as many facts to counter it. Myth: Marijuana can be highly cancerous. A UCLA study
found that even long-term smoking of Marijuana has minimal lung damage, and thus
little chance of lung cancer. In other words the risk is miniscule. Myth: Marijuana
Contains OVER 400 Chemicals. This is no myth, as the average cup of coffee contains
well over 1,500 and Rat Poison contains 30. None of the chemicals in Marijuana are
identified as seriously dangerous. Myth: Marijuana is a ‘Gateway’ Drug. This is a theory
that is pressed and pressed by anti-marijuana advocates to scare people off. In fact, the
US Gov’t’s own studies have shown that about 3 in 4 people NEVER go on to use harder
drugs, and a majority of those 25% are actively in this climate- for many, Alcohol or
Tobacco are those ‘gateway’ drugs even before Marijuana. This is a problem that cannot
be ignored, with or without Marijuana legalization. Myth: Marijuana is addicting. As
mentioned before, Marijuana isn’t actually PHYSICALLY addicting. Alcohol, Tobacco
and Caffeine have been shown to be more habit-forming than Marijuana according to the
American Medical Association. Myth: Marijuana Usage impairs learning ability/motor
skills. A breakthrough study in 1996 in California found that heavy marijuana usage may
impair learning ability. Notice the words HEAVY and MAY. Even with heavy usage
(which constitutes less that 5% of the population according to the study), impacts were
found to be subtle and only temporary. Casual (1 a day or less) users showed little to no
impairments whatsoever. That also takes out a large chance of ‘high’ driving since the
average high lasts an hour (depending on the quality of the Marijuana), and with most
casual users it’s used on a ‘casual’ basis.

Lastly, there is a criminal-related issue with crime, and how it relates to legalizing
recreational usage. Under the Controlled Substances act of 1970, and again refreshed
with Reagan’s War on Drugs, Marijuana was grouped in right with other, harder drugs
such as methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin. Therefore Marijuana was considered just
as bad. 3% of the federal prison population is in for drug trafficking and/or possession of
Marijuana. Out of the 3%, nearly all of that is trafficking—something that could be
minimized with the legalization of even medical marijuana. 20% of Federal Prisoners are
in on drug charges (as of 2009), of which Marijuana takes up the most offenders. Doesn’t
sound like a whole lot, right? Well, when you look at the state and local levels, the
situations are dismal. In the US, 850,000 people are arrested each year on Marijuana-
related charges. 150,000 of those were in Texas. If in a recent study 42% of adults have
admitted to using Marijuana in at least some time in their lives, that’s a ton of people that
could’ve been booked. Keep in mind, 150,000 ‘arrests’ means anything from a slap on
the wrist for 0.5oz possession to 5+ years of jail time for trafficking, but all of those are
for Marijuana. Imagine the cost, time and energy saved by legalizing Marijuana
completely, and how many of the problems would get smaller.

In the Netherlands, where Marijuana is illegal, the proportion of Marijuana users is

nearly identical to the US, so even when dealing with Recreational usage just because it’s
illegal doesn’t mean people aren’t going to use it. If you were to legalize Marijuana
completely, money, time, energy, lives and guilt would be saved and it would take some
pressure off of the crumbling ‘war on drugs’ effort. In a Conservative year, Prop 19 in
California that would’ve made California the first state to legalize recreational usage of
Marijuana failed 58-42. It is the first effort in trying to obtain the right to privacy and the
freedom of expression. Someone’s personal life should not be regulated in this aspect.
Finally, here are some solutions. Tax it, but don’t tax it to the point where getting it from
a dealer is the better buy. Make sure that it’s financially accessible to most people, as all
classes of people use Marijuana for both Medical and Recreational purposes. Certainly
legalize it for medical purposes, and for Recreational usage put it (the industry) under
supervision of the FDA, so far as to regulate it for purity, quality and safety. Apply home
cultivation laws and tax as needed. This will indirectly ramp up enforcement of
importation, and encourage an American Market to curtail Mexican interests from Illegal
drug smugglers in Marijuana. Marijuana legalization is very possible, and it seems like
we are moving the right direction. Legalize it, for the cancer patient’s sake!

All opinions expressed in the article are solely those of Max Bernhardt.

http://missoulian.com/news/local/article_a59794f6-6329-11e0-b9ca-
001cc4c03286.html
www.drugpolicy.org
www.legalizationofmarijuana.com
www.legalize-marijuana.com
www.medicalmarijuana.procon.org
www.balancedpolitics.com/marijuana_legalization.htm