While
Congress was busy stripping away consumer protections and legalizing
bank fraud, they managed to slip in a little provision which made many
marijuana advocates rejoice. States that have legalized marijuana for
medicinal purposes will no longer have to worry about federal raids on
their operations.
The
Obama Administration has made it part of their policy, although
unofficially, to neither indict nor raid dispensaries and growers of
medicinal marijuana. While this is encouraging, it is a tenuous hope at
best. Just because the Obama Administration has not made it a priority
and put focus on other issues within the nation does not mean that a
future administration could reverse course and begin a hunt to take on
the medical marijuana movement.
Since the “War on Drugs” began back in the 1970’s the United States has spent more money fighting this than
any other moral social expenditure. We have created a system of
imprisoning more people than all other nations on the planet – combined!
The vast majority of our prisoners are in jail due to the harsh sentences imposed by the “war on drugs.” In fact, 1 in 8 prisoners is in prison because of marijuana. And the disparity between blacks and whites receiving sentences for marijuana is also sadly depressing.
But
Congress may have finally begun a stage of waking up from decades of
failed policy. As stated above, tucked in the newest budgetary act,
Congress approved a measure to legalize all the creation, distribution,
sales, possession, and use of medicinal marijuana.
All
50 states are affected by this measure. This does not mean that
medicinal marijuana is effective immediately in every state. The states
must first ratify at their own legislature the passage of medicinal
marijuana in order for the process to begin. Currently, there are 32
states that have medicinal marijuana approved. The remaining 18 states
need to realize it’s time to catch up and put this horrible legacy of
imprisoning our population behind us.
This
brings to light a problem plaguing combat veterans suffering from PTSD.
Many of them have been given prescriptions by the Veteran’s
Administration and receive medicinal marijuana in states that have
measures legalizing it for medicinal purposes. Will this now extend the
medical practice to any of those 18 states who have yet to see the
light?
That
is another question that could set a precedent for speeding up the
process to making this the non-issue it always should have been.
source: ifyouonlynews