Pubdate: Tue, 07 Jan 2020
Source: Wall Street Journal (US)
Copyright: 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Contact:  http://www.wsj.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/487
Author: Paul Armentano
Note: Headline by Newshawk

THE MAJORITY AGREE WITH POLICY REFORM

One in five Americans reside in a jurisdiction where the adult use of
cannabis is legal under state statute, and the majority of citizens
reside some place where the medical use of cannabis is legally
authorized. Many of these latter programs have been in place for the
better part of two decades.

Were the societal impacts of these policies not preferable to those 
associated with criminal prohibition, or as dire to public health as some 
critics suggest, then support for marijuana policy reform would be rapidly 
declining. Instead, the opposite is true.

Most Americans understand that a pragmatic regulatory framework that
allows for the legal, licensed commercial production and sale of
marijuana to adults - but restricts and discourages its use among young
people - best reduces the risks associated with the plant's use and
abuse. By contrast, advocating for the marijuana's continued
criminalization only compounds those risks.

Paul Armentano

National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws

Washington
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MAP posted-by: Matt