Marijuana bill officially introduced to Congress by Ron Paul, Barney Frank

Before we get started, who do you think smoked Cannabis? Here is a list of 200 well known Cannabis smokers. It is now being alleged that even William Shakespeare did and they are looking to non-invasively test his bones and teeth. That would kind of shoot down that whole, "it will make you stupid" thing, don't you think?

Arnold Schwarzenegger

How about, who do you think are the ten most successful Cannabis smokers. How about the ten smartest Cannabis smokers? You know, it really isn't that you could be more successful in not indulging, or smarter. It really is a personal choice. Just how smart or how successful do you need (or what) to be? Is it possible that without, you would not have been as (relaxed, creative?) successful, or smart? What does quality of life mean, to YOU? And whose business is it what that personal decision is? Certainly not the Government's. Or, your Mom's.

Now, let's get started....

The LA Times reported Friday that in a finally, bi-partisan move, one of the few, a Marijuana bill was officially introduced to Congress by Ron Paul, a Republican, and Barney Frank, a Democrat.

Barney Frank (D)

Ron Paul (R)

"The bill appears doomed on arrival, according to the Associated Press, which reported that House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith said his panel, which the proposed law is required to venture through, would not even consider it." Perhaps, a law such as this should not go through a committee such as his. If we have people who are so misinformed, so ignorant of the law and history, who are in charge of important committees such as this, there is something fundamentally wrong with our government. But, no big surprise there to most of us, right?

Lamar Smith, professional Congressional Goofball

It's about time, don't you think? Have you noticed how much you see Cannabis being used by characters on TV shows this season? It's always a sign of the times when it's time to throw in the towel for conservatives and those who ignore reality when that happens. Same sex marriage is being legalized all over the place, New York being the last to get on board; and same sex lifestyles and shows on TV/Cable are also all over the place.

This bill, the "Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2011," is broader and bolder than the medical marijuana bills that Congressman Frank has introduced in every Congress since 1995. The bill introduced today would allow states to determine their own marijuana laws -- not just medical marijuana laws -- without federal interference.

So maybe, just maybe, we should stop this nonsense, this infringement on American rights and give people their long over due considerations to be free Americans, free to live as they want, to be who they want in a country founded upon the ideals of freedom and the pursuit of happiness.

All, literally ALL the arguments I hear against legalizing Cannabis have to do with things that are none of those people's business. And why, is it so horrible, that people can get "high" on Cannabis and enjoy doing it? People enjoy a drink, right? And that is some kind of harmful stuff to your body, brain, liver. One has to ask, why is Cannabis so fear invoking in these ignorant legislatures and the judicial and law enforcement branches.

I'll tell you. Job security. Kick backs from drug cartels (if not to American's to our allies in places like Mexico. And finally, even people who want it legalized won't vote for it in congress because of their fear of losing their jobs do to the ignorant, religious vocal groups back home. Does the majority of America think it should be legalized. Yes. Does that matter? No, not really, because it's one of those things that should just be legal. Sometimes, our leaders should lead, do the right thing, not lie to us and do the wrong thing and call it the right thing. It's sad.

Tom Angell, media relations director for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, an international organization of criminal justice professionals who claim first-hand awareness of the waste and harms of current drug policies. He has said:


"No longer can reform advocates be laughed off as a bunch of Cheech and Chongs. Hopefully having this national debate will help more people to understand that marijuana prohibition harms public safety by giving drug cartels and gangs a huge source of tax-free profits, just like alcohol prohibition did for Al Capone and his colleagues during the 1920s and 30s."

Rep. John Conyers Says Marijuana Should Be Decriminalized.

Former President Jimmy Carter, a life-long humanitarian, wrote a New York Times opinion piece that says the time to end the war on drugs has come. He suggests following the advice of the Global Commission, a major facet of which is the need to end marijuana prohibition.

In yet another illustration of how the marijuana debate has gone completely mainstream, even the freshly-crowned winner of the Miss USA pageant, Alyssa Campanella, stated that she supports the use of marijuana for medical purposes.

Now let's enjoy some Disinformation (by the way, Disinformation was invented by the Soviets during the Cold War in a communist attempt to subvert the "American Way") from Congressman Smith, in the LA Times article:


"Decriminalizing marijuana will only lead to millions more Americans becoming addicted to drugs [cannabis is not an addictive drug, only mentally addictive, if anything] and greater profits for drug cartels who fund violence along the U.S.-Mexico border. Allowing states to determine their own marijuana policy flies in the face of Supreme Court precedent," Congressman Smith said.

WHAT? Unbelievable. Really?! I mean, WHAT? There is so much bullshit in that statement, I don't even know where to start. First, we should fire Smith for being an idiot, ignorant, and not doing his job properly. We need intelligent and informed people in these important positions. The drug cartel issue is ONLY there BECAUSE it's illegal.

Oh my God, talk about out right lies and twisting the facts. Republicans are dangerous to the United States because they spouts lies and turn children into hamburgers, and all have children meat grinders in their basements and they ALL have basements. Yes, that's ridiculous, but it's just as accurate. Who makes these fools chairman of anything? People, we really need to start voting intelligent people to congress because this is all American's fault. YOU put guys like this in charge of our laws. Look how they handle their responsibilities. Unbelievable!

Not to mention, the things they are using as arguments against legalizing Cannabis, are simply NONE of their business. Also, Cannabis is a natural compound that grows wild as a weed, and is NOT an addictive drug, and is not a narcotic at all as has been legislated and placed next to heroin and cocaine in the restricted drugs list, both of which ARE dangerous synthetic drugs.

Next....

"The Office of National Drug Control Policy echoed some of Smith's fears and said decriminalizing pot was a nonstarter."

Surprise! But hey, it makes sense doesn't it? I mean, really, would you expect to hear the Office of National Chewing Gum Control Policy to vote to legalize Chewing Gum, were it illegal? Wouldn't that kind of kill their job? That is something I've never understood, some jobs, you should work your way out of. Like the environment, for instance. You WANT to do good work so one day your job disappears because the environment is doing so well. Right?

Next....

"Our concern with marijuana is not borne out of any culture war or drug war mentality [Righttttt....], but out of what the science tells us about the drug’s effects [we're reading very different scientific documents, have you read the ones about THC growing brain cells? Killing nausea in cancer patients? Increasing the desire to eat in those same patients? The fact that its just fun about pretty harmless when compared to alcohol?]. The facts are that marijuana potency has tripled in the past 20 years [true and I suggest growing your own, if you can legally do so, but then more potent means smoking less, and then there's always the safer "vaporizer" where you breathe in no smoke at all] and teens are using the drug at earlier ages," the office said in a statement to The Times.

That bit about teens, is not a "do not legalize it" issue, that is a parental issue, pure and simple. What has this to do with legalizing it so people stop going to jail for trying to do what should be legal for adults? Kids drink alcohol illegally too, do we make that illegal? We've seen how that goes, just as we are seeing with Cannabis. Making it illegal, does not work. It simply makes criminals out of law abiding citizens. It takes handling those teens who smoke Cannabis, out of the hands of their parents who should be dealing with it and putting it in the hands of law enforcement. Do we really want them handling this for our children, for not only doing it underage, but for it also being illegal only adding to an already difficult situation?

Putting it bluntly, children, should not drinking alcohol (but they do) and they shouldn't smoke (or use) Cannabis. From my reading, you shouldn't do things like that until you are out of your teens due to how the brain is structured. But there are other issues than simply do kids "smoke pot". There is why are so many people in jail for smoking it; why do we continue to support, as a national government effort, foreign drug cartels? You have to ask yourself, why do they support those cartels, continue to fill their coffers with billions of dollars, when legalizing it will remove that money from their corporate (yes, cartels are basically a corporation under a different name) structures.

And finally, legalizing Cannabis has a LOT to do with people being afraid of change, and lazy. Lazy especially for Law Enforcement agencies because then they would have to do some real police work, crack real crimes. Legalize Pot and law enforcement statistics will drop drastically because they will no longer be putting normal people in jail, they won't be harassing your kids anymore.

They will have to stop putting Grandma in jail, busting medical Cannabis stores. Have YOU ever called 911? Have you ever gotten put on hold? DO you realize how many people have been in the middle of violent crimes and were on hold or police were slow to arrive because the police resources were busy dealing with busting a Medical Marijuana store, or in the middle of a Cannabis bust? Do you realize how much money is freed up if we just stop, dealing with Cannabis? For those worried about illegal aliens crossing our borders, do you realize how much money that frees up for ICE once it's pulled away from ATF and DEA?

So, this law came thirty years after I said that it would be legalized within ten years, by 1980. I don't know quite what went wrong. But it's about time we rectified the situation, stopped be afraid of everything, and accept that some change, is good. As soon as I heard about it, I knew it would be squashed by the fear-mongers, the job security issues, the ignorance. And the only way to get beyond that is to keep pushing, talk about it, clear up the fears, and when people talk about the "important issues", point out that 95% of those have nothing to do with legalizing it.

Finally....

""The earlier a person begins to use drugs, the more likely they are to progress to more serious abuse and addiction -– reflecting the harmful, long-lasting effects drugs can have on the developing brain. Legalization remains a nonstarter in the Obama administration because research shows that marijuana use is associated with voluntary treatment admissions, fatal drugged driving accidents and emergency room admissions," the statement said."

Again, these issues have NOTHING to do with legalizing Cannabis. This statement incorrectly makes Cannabis look like a dangerous drug. The only danger is the same with alcohol, and in fact, that statement is far more true for alcohol. Most emergency room admissions for Cannabis are in the end, unnecessary and perception based. There have been no deaths due to Cannabis. Alcohol on the other hand, and yes, we do need to compare to a legal drug for clarity on this issue.

"The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which published a U.S. government study in 2005, estimated that 34,833 people in 2001 died from cirrhosis of the liver, cancer and other diseases linked to drinking too much beer, wine and spirits. Another 40,933 died from car crashes and other mishaps caused by excessive alcohol use."

Cannabis related deaths during that time period: Zero.

According to the CDC:

"Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug among youth in the United States. Current marijuana use decreased from 27% in 1999 to 21% in 2009. Current cocaine use increased from 2% in 1991 to 4% in 2001 and then decreased from 2001 (4%) to 2009 (3%). Lifetime inhalant use decreased from 20% in 1995 to 12% in 2003 and then remained steady from 2003 (12%) to 2009 (12%). Lifetime use of ecstasy among high school students decreased from 11% in 2003 to 7% in 2009. Lifetime use of methamphetamines was steady from 1999 (9%) to 2001 (10%) and then decreased to 4% in 2009. Lifetime heroin use did not change from 1999 (2%) to 2009 (2%). Hallucinogenic drug use decreased from 13% in 2001 to 8% in 2007 and then remained steady from 2007 (8%) to 2009 (8%)."

So Cannabis use has decreased. What I've seen in my home area are a youth culture that is far wiser than my cohort were when I was there age. They are less interested in drugs in general, more into ecology and being productive citizens. Comparing Cannabis use now, if it's legalized to say thirty years ago, simply isn't a good gauge of where it will take us. We also don't consider those who WILL try Cannabis once it's legal, but then will STOP drinking alcohol.

I remember a very good friend who was into hallucinogens and pills, then someone introduced him to Cannabis and he immediately quite all his other drug use. He cut way back on even drinking alcohol. No one talks about that kind of behavior. Why? Because, isn't it obvious? That is how fear mongering works.

The CDC goes on to point out that the issues now, are not Cannabis use, but pills.

"While illicit drug use has declined among youth, rates of nonmedical use of prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) medication remain high. Prescription medications most commonly abused by youth include pain relievers, tranquilizers, stimulants, and depressants. In 2009, 20% of U.S. high school students had ever taken a prescription drug, such as Oxycontin, Percocet, Vicodin, Adderall, Ritalin, or Xanax, without a doctor's prescription. Teens also misuse OTC cough and cold medications, containing the cough suppressant dextromethorphan (DXM), to get high. Prescription and OTC medications are widely available, free or inexpensive, and falsely believed to be safer than illicit drugs. Misuse of prescription and OTC medications can cause serious health effects, addiction, and death.^"

These are the things we need to be paying attention to and here is where the laziness comes in. It is far easier to make Cannabis the monster, when there are far uglier monsters out there attacking our kids and our nation; with issues that really are hard to go up against. Partly because these are MEDICAL issues, and not Law Enforcement issues. It has gone on for too many decades now that we treat our American citizens as criminals and incarcerate them rather than get them help.

Do the right thing. Start screaming about this to your Congresspeople. Tell them to: Stop wasting our money in government and start doing things that actual help us. Let them know we know this magic act they have been pulling on us all this time and start working, break a sweat, solve some problems and stop, putting us in jail, forcing us to live in ignorance and fear.

Do your job, Congress! Stop being so afraid of your jobs. Maybe what we need is only four years for anyone on congress. If they can't do their jobs because of fear of being voted out, perhaps they shouldn't have a continuing job for them to protect, we can simply take it away. We, after all, are THE PEOPLE.