Jacob Redmond
Well-Known Member
While Gov. Jack Markell has come out against legalizing marijuana in Delaware, the state has followed others in the country and loosened it pot laws during his tenure.
On Friday, a new state law decriminalizing the possession and personal use of up to an ounce of marijuana went into effect.
Some believe this a step toward the eventual full legalization. Others, like Markell, oppose it wholeheartedly.
We believe Markell's successor would be wise to at least sanction a comprehensive study of marijuana legalization in Delaware.
As it stands now, Delaware and the rest of the United States support (and profit from) the use of two very lethal substances — alcohol and tobacco.
According to the National Institutes for Health (NIH), 88,000 people die from alcohol-related causes in the United States each year. Tobacco-related causes kill 480,000 people in the United States each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
The debate in the scientific community isn't about marijuana's lethality. It's about whether the drug affects health in the long term. Some research points to possible coronary or pulmonary damage, but other studies counter that.
In other words, we're talking about a drug that has not been shown to kill 100 people a year, much less tens of thousands.
Another widely circulated theory characterizes marijuana as a "gateway drug." According to the NIH, marijuana can, in fact, "prime" the brain to be more sensitive to other drugs.
"However, most people who use marijuana do not go on to use other, 'harder' substances," the NIH reports.
Two other substances that prime the brain for further drug use? Alcohol and tobacco.
Legalization proponents point to a costly legal system that leaves thousands of people with criminal records that harm their chances for future success.
Of the 8.2 million marijuana arrests between 2001 and 2010, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) reports that 88 percent were for simply having marijuana. Of those, blacks were nearly four times more likely than whites to be arrested.
Beyond the social injustice, current marijuana laws cost states a total of $3.6 billion a year to enforce, according the ACLU. Imagine that much money going to addiction treatment or public schools.
From a practical standpoint, legalized marijuana can make money. Colorado, one of four states where marijuana is legal, took in $70 million in tax revenue from legalized marijuana in the last fiscal year. The state planned to use more than $22 million of that money for prevention of youth drug use, addiction treatment, research and public education campaigns.
Still, we agree with Markell that Colorado's system is not perfect and is not a cure-all. The state, after all, is still running a budget deficit.
But for the reasons stated, it makes sense for Delaware to research whether or not it can implement a system that serves the best interests of the public, law enforcement and the medical community.
As for a moral objection, look around. How can our state — with its casinos, push for sports betting and myriad tobacco outlets and liquor stores - look itself in the mirror and say marijuana legalization is the greatest of those evils?
News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Delaware Should At Least Study Legalizing Marijuana
Author: Web Staff
Contact: Contact Page
Photo Credit: CB Delaware
Website: Delaware Online
On Friday, a new state law decriminalizing the possession and personal use of up to an ounce of marijuana went into effect.
Some believe this a step toward the eventual full legalization. Others, like Markell, oppose it wholeheartedly.
We believe Markell's successor would be wise to at least sanction a comprehensive study of marijuana legalization in Delaware.
As it stands now, Delaware and the rest of the United States support (and profit from) the use of two very lethal substances — alcohol and tobacco.
According to the National Institutes for Health (NIH), 88,000 people die from alcohol-related causes in the United States each year. Tobacco-related causes kill 480,000 people in the United States each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
The debate in the scientific community isn't about marijuana's lethality. It's about whether the drug affects health in the long term. Some research points to possible coronary or pulmonary damage, but other studies counter that.
In other words, we're talking about a drug that has not been shown to kill 100 people a year, much less tens of thousands.
Another widely circulated theory characterizes marijuana as a "gateway drug." According to the NIH, marijuana can, in fact, "prime" the brain to be more sensitive to other drugs.
"However, most people who use marijuana do not go on to use other, 'harder' substances," the NIH reports.
Two other substances that prime the brain for further drug use? Alcohol and tobacco.
Legalization proponents point to a costly legal system that leaves thousands of people with criminal records that harm their chances for future success.
Of the 8.2 million marijuana arrests between 2001 and 2010, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) reports that 88 percent were for simply having marijuana. Of those, blacks were nearly four times more likely than whites to be arrested.
Beyond the social injustice, current marijuana laws cost states a total of $3.6 billion a year to enforce, according the ACLU. Imagine that much money going to addiction treatment or public schools.
From a practical standpoint, legalized marijuana can make money. Colorado, one of four states where marijuana is legal, took in $70 million in tax revenue from legalized marijuana in the last fiscal year. The state planned to use more than $22 million of that money for prevention of youth drug use, addiction treatment, research and public education campaigns.
Still, we agree with Markell that Colorado's system is not perfect and is not a cure-all. The state, after all, is still running a budget deficit.
But for the reasons stated, it makes sense for Delaware to research whether or not it can implement a system that serves the best interests of the public, law enforcement and the medical community.
As for a moral objection, look around. How can our state — with its casinos, push for sports betting and myriad tobacco outlets and liquor stores - look itself in the mirror and say marijuana legalization is the greatest of those evils?
News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Delaware Should At Least Study Legalizing Marijuana
Author: Web Staff
Contact: Contact Page
Photo Credit: CB Delaware
Website: Delaware Online
