novella
Active Member
RaVeN said:
Well, I think there are two issues here that are getting conflated: decriminalization; and legalization for medical use. General legalization is not on the table, to my knowledge, but if that's what Moto is referring to, then that is outside the present realm of possibilities.
Decriminalization, IMO, has no downside. People should not face jailtime for pot, period. Pot has been decriminalized in NY State already, in small quantities. Dealers and growers still face time.
Legalization for medical use is another matter entirely. I give you Canada's current system for legal medical use:
In July 2001, Health Canada implemented the Marijuana Medical Access Regulations, which provided for access to marijuana for medical purposes. The Regulations allows people to access to marijuana who are suffering from grave and debilitating illnesses. However, while permitting marijuana's medical use, the Regulations do not legalize the drug for general use.
The Regulations contain two main components: (1) authorizations to possess marijuana and (2) licences to produce marijuana.
Authorization to Possess Marijuana – Applicants must provide a medical declaration that states that all conventional treatments have been reasonably tried or considered, and that the benefits of using marijuana outweigh the risks. The Regulations describe three categories of individuals who can apply to possess marijuana for medical purposes: (1) persons who have a terminal illness and who are expected to pass away within 12 months, (2) persons who suffer from specific symptoms associated with medical conditions such as multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, spinal cord disease, cancer, AIDS/HIV infection, severe arthritis and epilepsy, and (3) persons who have symptoms associated with a serious medical condition or conditions, other than those described in categories (1) and (2).
Licences to Produce Marijuana – In December 2000, Health Canada contracted Prairie Plant Systems Inc. to cultivate and produce a safe, standardized, homogeneous supply of marijuana.
On the surface, this looks cool. In practice, the gov't wants to restrict use to the pot grown under license, which--anecdotally as reported in the NY Times and elsewhere this year--is completely unsatisfactory (tastes bad, is weak, gives a headache, etc.)
Further, the discussion in America that has gained the most traction is about licensing pharmas to produce THC pills, so that marijuana itself would remain illegal. This is the obvious route by which big business will co-opt the legalization for profit.
My money is on the US gov't licensing pill production and leaving actual weed where it is. This could lead to a gradual evolution in how people view pot, but I think it is more likely that cancer and AIDS patients will be able to get prescribed pills from their doctors, much the way they get morphine or oxycontin, but the rest of society will be subjected to the status quo.
In short, nobody will gain any rights or freedoms re pot, except the pharmas who will control the chemical production. This will put yet another drug on the market to be abused. But because it is potentially a huge profit opportunity for business, it will probably happen and I'm sure is being actively lobbied for and researched right now.
