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First of all it is a schedule 1 narcotic. Schedule 1 Narcotics must have 2 characteristics. 1. No accepted medicinal benefits. 2. Risk of addiction is substantial.

Both of these are lies.

Secondly, did we learn nothing from prohibition. If many people in a society want access to a good even if it is made illegal a black market will rise and give billions to organized crime. We subsidize Mexican cartels.

Third, Before Nixon started the war on drugs a.k.a war on those protesting the Vietnam war. He had a study commissioned. The famous Shaffer commission. Which suggested that marijuana was harmless and should be legalized. Nixon reportedly threw it away without reading it and started the war on drugs anyway.

We spend billions and billions a year on this "war" with no victory or end in sight.

We aren't allowed to grow hemp in this country which has hundreds of uses. Instead we have to buy the products from other nations.

The pharmaceutical companies fight marijuana legalization because of its medical benefits and because all the people buying their drugs that would be better suited to just eat a weed brownie without the side effects instead of spending hundreds to make the pharmaceutical companies rich.

The private prison industry is one of the fastest growing industries in the nation. Both the prison guards and owners have their own lobbyists. They are opposed because millions and millions of people are convicted of marijuana related crimes each year. They would see profits fall if it were legalized or even decriminalized.

They say that marijuana is a gateway drug. But I argue that any effect to that extent is a characteristic of the black market. If your drug dealer sells many illegal drugs then he may pressure the customers into trying other drugs. Is milk a gateway to alcohol simply because you drink milk before you drink alcohol?

They say we have to do it for the kids. But a survey of high school students is performed every year and it is about drug use, sexual activity and alcohol use. Consistently the students overwhelmingly express the fact that it is easier for them to get marijuana than cigarettes. Again this is due to the black market. The dealer doesn't care how old you are he's breaking the law whether the buyer is 14 or 40. In a gas station however if an attendant sells cigarettes to a minor they face large fines perhaps even being shut down.

I really don't care either way. Personally I think that a person has the right to make their own decisions even if they are poor decisions. We shouldn't spend billions upon billions to keep people from making a bad decision. Also we are funding the cartels in Mexico when the money could stay in this economy.

There are two reasons why marijuana is still illegal. 1. it makes too many people too much money keeping it illegal 2.Many politicians today run on platforms against drugs. For them to come out and change their minds means 1 of three things either they were wrong to begin with, they were just stupid, or they lied. No politician is going to admit any of these things.

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[-] 1 points by littleg (452) 13 years ago

It's the number one petition with more than 69,000 signatures on Whitehouse.gov. I guess you haven't seen,