Yes We Cannabis

It’s time to catch up on the good news in world of cannabis!

In sum, the news is positive enough that I’m almost ready to declare that January 2018 will one day be considered the ‘tipping point’ in time for full decriminalization of marijuana in America.  (There’s only one thing standing in the way of that right now, more on that in a few paragraphs.)

The thing getting the most attention now is the legalization of recreation marijuana in the state of California.  That became effective on January 1, 2018, and now like several other (mostly western) states, they allow anyone at least age 21 to buy a limited amount of cannabis daily.

The difference here is, California is the most populous state in the country.  As such, the implications are more profound.  One of these implications is the amount of tax revenue this law will bring to a state that sorely needs it.

Make no mistake, money (i.e. tax revenue) is why cannabis will ultimately be legalized in all 50 states.   That isn’t the only reason, nor the best reason, but it’s the main reason.

[This would normally be where I go on a rant about how marijuana should be no more controlled than alcohol, and probably less controlled than prescription drugs.  But I’ve covered society’s asinine attitude about that more than once before, and specifically in regard to medical marijuana.]

One lesser but still important pot-related action happened just this week in Vermont (Vermont!), where the governor signed a bill making it the ninth state to legalize marijuana effective July 1, 2018.  The difference is that Vermont was the first state to do it via legislation, rather than by a voter-approved ballot initiative.  That is a big deal, and the first admission that states want to grab the tax revenue.

Regarding that one thing standing in the way of ‘tipping point’ actualization…..we currently have an old white male dominated (Republican) party in charge of the executive and legislative branches of the U.S. government, along with an old white guy U.S. attorney general that thinks marijuana is evil.  That means marijuana, for now, will likely maintain its federal designation as a Schedule I drug along with things like heroine and LSD – good grief.

These will all need to be changed before the pro-cannabis world can truly take over.  It’s only a matter of time, however, and that time is much shorter than it seemed only a few weeks ago.