Pubdate: Tue, 26 May 2009
Source: New University (CA Edu)
Copyright: 2009 New University Newspaper.
Contact:  http://www.newuniversity.org/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2812
Author: Kevin Pease
Note: Kevin Pease is a fourth-year psychology and social behavior major.

PUT THAT IN YOUR PIPE AND SMOKE IT

The battle over marijuana took a significant turn as the Supreme Court
left California's Compassionate Use Act, which allows the use of
medical marijuana, intact by refusing to hear a suit filed by the San
Diego and San Bernardino counties. Local officials in the two counties
would not allow their residents to use cannabis as part of their
treatment plans and had hoped that the United States Supreme Court
would support them. Now, the counties must distribute cards allowing
for medical marijuana use.

The decision has vast implications, considering that 12 other states
have similar laws and efforts to completely legalize marijuana are
increasing. This decision was a significant step because it
acknowledges that marijuana has possible medicinal benefits,
establishes state authority and indicates increasing popular
acceptance of the drug.

Marijuana is classified as a Schedule I drug, which means that it has
no official medical use according to the federal government. In
addition, in 1970, Congress enacted legislation to make the use or
sale of marijuana illegal. Since that time, the war on drugs has
escalated and waned with each presidency and efforts to prevent the
use and sale of marijuana have failed overall. According to Jon
Gettman, a marijuana policy researcher who was interviewed by ABC News
on the topic, marijuana is America's largest cash crop.

Recent developments indicate a reversal in policy over the previous
two decades. Our last three presidents have all admitted to or have
been accused of marijuana use. Thirteen years ago, California passed
the Compassionate Use Act to allow its citizens to use marijuana for
medicinal purposes. Since then, 12 states, such as Maine, Montana and
New Mexico, have followed suit. Under the new Obama administration,
the federal government has stated that it will not go to great lengths
to prosecute low-level state marijuana cases.

But these developments have not stopped San Diego and San Bernadino
counties from refusing to allow their sick citizens a chance to use
medical marijuana. Since 2004, California has required counties to
issue identification cards, but the two counties have refused to
comply despite lawsuit threats. Each county believed the state law
directly conflicted with federal regulations on marijuana. The
counties first attempted to take their issue to the California Supreme
Court. When the court refused to hear their case, the counties looked
to the Supreme Court, which ruled in 2005 that the federal government
could ban the possession of the drug in states for the treatment of
illness.

However, the Court refused to hear the case, which means the state
policy remains valid. This, combined with the federal government's
policy on low-level cases, means San Diego and San Bernardino counties
will likely be distributing identification cards.

The decision backs the power of the state. Marijuana laws at the
federal and state levels conflict, and this time the Supreme Court's
action favors the state of California. This gives California, and
other states in a similar situation, the chance to allow medical
marijuana use.

The more power the states have, the more likely the legalization of
marijuana will become. With increased independence, California will be
able to pass a legalization bill allowing the taxation of marijuana
sales to people above a certain age. The country will watch as the
first working model of a state with legal non-medical marijuana comes
into focus. The speculation will finally end. People who have always
said that legalizing marijuana will cause drug use to skyrocket will
see that the state will not crumble and the world will not implode. In
the meantime, crime and violence surrounding marijuana sales will be
drastically reduced and the state will gain billions in tax revenue. A
more regulated system will also reduce the dangers of getting
marijuana laced with undesired substances.

This vision of California is just like the speculation of those who
swear legalization would burn the state to the ground, but my version
has facts and other countries as an example to back it up.

State tax collectors estimate the state could make $1.3 billion a year
if they taxed the already-known marijuana sales. Other countries like
the Netherlands, Spain and Portugal have decriminalized marijuana in
small amounts, which has led to significantly lower murder rates
related to the drug. A state with legalized marijuana is not too far
away, and while this Supreme Court decision may not be an enormous
step forward, it does help establish state authority, leading us a
step closer to a legalized state. 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake