AMAC Exclusive – By Neil Banerji
As more states look to decriminalize or in some cases even completely legalize marijuana, research is continuing to pile up pointing to the disastrous consequences of the pro-pot movement.
In May, Minnesota became the 23rd state to legalize recreational pot use, along with Washington, D.C., and Guam. In April, a bipartisan group of lawmakers in Congress also introduced a bill entitled “Preparing Regulators Effectively for a Post-Prohibition Adult Use Regulated Environment.” The legislation acknowledges that more states are likely to soon legalize recreational marijuana, and would remove pot as a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act.
Marijuana legalization advocates have argued that cannabis is less harmful than tobacco or alcohol, and decriminalizing it will help reduce prison populations and alleviate the burden on overworked police departments without any adverse impacts on society or health effects for users .
However, actual evidence from states that have legalized recreational pot use presents a more complicated picture.
A study from the Journal of the National Medical Association from August of last year, for instance, found that “opioid mortality rate increased more rapidly in marijuana-legalizing than non-legalizing jurisdictions.” This finding lends more credence to the idea that pot is a “gateway drug” to other, even more dangerous substances.
Another study from 2020 found that marijuana use “is associated with substantially increased risks of homicide victimization.” According to the results of the study, marijuana users are more likely to be both perpetrators and victims of homicides than their non-using peers.
In Maryland, which legalized weed last November, Baltimore police chief Robert McCullough has noted that local crime has skyrocketed due to the existence of an “underground economy for marijuana” within the city. An alarming growth in school violence, automobile accidents, and felonies has also taken place in Colorado after the state legalized marijuana in 2013.
Evidence also suggests that marijuana isn’t the worry-free drug that proponents make it out to be. Various research has found that cannabis use carries with it a greater risk of heart disease and heart attacks, along with a higher likelihood of developing chronic bronchitis.
Perhaps most significantly, a study released by Columbia University in May also found that teens using cannabis recreationally are far more likely to develop psychiatric disorders. Another study from 2021 reported that pot use can result in higher frequencies of suicide attempts and depressive thoughts.
Despite these alarming statistics, a record-high 59 percent of Americans now say that marijuana should be legal for medical and recreational use by adults. Those percentages are even higher among younger people, with 72 percent in the 18-29 age bracket saying weed should be completely legal – including 62 percent of self-identified Republicans.
Likely hoping to cash in politically on this polling data, many Democrats at the state and federal level have made weed legalization a top issue. Last October, President Joe Biden pardoned all federal convictions for simple marijuana possession. Republicans slammed the move, with Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton saying, “In the middle of a crime wave and on the brink of a recession, Joe Biden is giving blanket pardons to pot heads — many of whom pled down from more serious charges.”
Some Democrats are hoping to take the drug legalization push even further. Members of the “Squad,” a group of far-left House Democrats, have repeatedly introduced legislation decriminalizing possession of all drugs, not just weed.
A similar policy implemented in Oregon in 2021 has led to disastrous results. The Drug Addiction Treatment Recovery Act, commonly referred to as Measure 110, was passed through a statewide voter referendum and made Oregon the first state in the country to effectively decriminalize personal use of all drugs.
Following implementation of Measure 110, overdose deaths skyrocketed 33 percent in Oregon. The overdose problem became so bad that the Oregon Department of Education created instructional materials for teachers to show students how to administer naloxone.
A majority (51 percent) of voters in Oregon now regret ever approving this law, and legislators have been forced to pass additional laws restricting possession of deadly fentanyl.
Nonetheless, liberals in other states are looking to follow Oregon’s lead. Earlier this year, a major push by Washington state Democrats to legalize all drugs fell just short. A number of other bills decriminalizing drugs have also been introduced in other state legislatures, although with less support.
With broad public backing for marijuana legalization, it seems only a matter of time before pot becomes legal and widely available in most U.S. states. What remains to be seen are the long-term downstream health and societal consequences of this development – and whether or not far more controversial drugs may be next on the legalization docket.
Neil Banerji is a proud Las Vegas resident and former student at the University of Oxford. In his spare time, he enjoys reading Winston Churchill and Edmund Burke.
There is absolutely no doubt now that the majority of Americans want to completely legalize cannabis nationwide. Our numbers grow on a daily basis.
The prohibitionist view on cannabis is the viewpoint of a minority and rapidly shrinking percentage of Americans. It is based upon decades of lies and propaganda.
Each and every tired old lie they have propagated has been thoroughly proven false by both science and society.
Their tired old rhetoric no longer holds any validity. The vast majority of Americans have seen through the sham of cannabis prohibition in this day and age. The number of prohibitionists left shrinks on a daily basis.
With their credibility shattered, and their not so hidden agendas visible to a much wiser public, what’s left for a cannabis prohibitionist to do?
Maybe, just come to terms with the fact that Cannabis Legalization Nationwide is an inevitable reality that’s approaching much sooner than prohibitionists think, and there is nothing they can do to stop it!
Legalize Nationwide!…and Support All Cannabis Legalization Efforts!
How about we let adults decide for themselves.
“Cannabis is 114 times safer than drinking alcohol”
“Cannabis may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say”
“Cannabis may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say New study: We should stop fighting Cannabis legalization and focus on alcohol and tobacco instead By Christopher Ingraham February 23
Compared with other recreational drugs — including alcohol — Cannabis may be even safer than previously thought. And researchers may be systematically underestimating risks associated with alcohol use.
Those are the top-line findings of recent research published in the journal Scientific Reports, a subsidiary of Nature. Researchers sought to quantify the risk of death associated with the use of a variety of commonly used substances. They found that at the level of individual use, alcohol was the deadliest substance, followed by heroin and cocaine.”
-Washington Post
“The report discovered that Cannabis is 114 times less deadly than alcohol. Researchers were able to determine this by comparing the lethal doses with the amount of typical use. Through this approach, Cannabis had the lowest mortality risk to users out of all the drugs they studied. In fact—because the numbers were crossed with typical daily use—Cannabis is the only drug that tested as “low risk.”
-Complex
The “War on Cannabis” has been a complete and utter failure. It is the largest component of the broader yet equally unsuccessful “War on Drugs” that has cost our country over a trillion dollars.
Instead of The United States wasting Billions upon Billions more of our yearly tax dollars fighting a never ending “War on Cannabis”, lets generate Billions of dollars, and improve the deficit instead. Especially now, due to Covid-19. It’s a no brainer.
The Prohibition of Cannabis has also ruined the lives of many of our loved ones. In numbers greater than any other nation, our loved ones are being sent to jail and are being given permanent criminal records. Especially, if they happen to be of the “wrong” skin color or they happen to be from the “wrong” neighborhood. Which ruin their chances of employment for the rest of their lives, and for what reason?
Cannabis is much safer to consume than alcohol. Yet do we lock people up for choosing to drink?
Let’s end this hypocrisy now!
The government should never attempt to legislate morality by creating victim-less cannabis “crimes” because it simply does not work and costs the taxpayers a fortune.
Cannabis Legalization Nationwide is an inevitable reality that’s approaching much sooner than prohibitionists think and there is nothing they can do to stop it!
Legalize Nationwide Federally Now! Support Each and Every Cannabis Legalization Initiative!
Hello , Love AMAC But this article is the same attack as has been going since Reefer Madness. I’m near 69 , grew up in a alcoholic home. So wish my parent s would of medicated with Marijuana instead . Alcohol is the gateway drug ,people intoxicated will do thing s they never would.
I ve been using Marijuana for over 50 year s & my Dr. Can t believe my test result s.
People make choices in life & not alway s the right choice. Tired of reading & hearing the attack s on hemp also , if we used hemp for auto fuel we d have no problem with air pollution from combustion engines as not a fossil fuel. Everyone want to be truly informed watch ” The Hemp Revolution . I do agree with age limit s on Mariuana. Tired of blame on Marijuana use of bad choices as most using alcohol or other drug s help make sick choices . Most people use Marijuana are relaxed , calm & hesitant to use harder as they are satisfied with it. Wish people would focus on the bad big pharma pushed ,just watch TV & hear law suit s , side effect s ect ,many more lives destroyed by big pharma , what about the so called Vaccine? & we re discussing Marijuana. How many murdered now by the Vac . Get on target .
I replied earlier to John E, but let’s add to it. Psychiatric drugs, for most cases once a person starts taking them they can’t stop, in most cases if they stop conditions can get worse ie violence, despair, etc. . Big pharma makes billions off the drugs, anything that threatens their bottom line, is going to be bad. Marijuana has proven to help with epilepsy.Marijuana does not by itself cause overdose deaths. Suffering from PTSD, marijuana has relieved almost all of my nervousness, I have no violent reactions to loud or sudden sounds. The list could continue. With alcohol use it is the exact opposite, if you really want to name something as a gate way drug, it’s alcohol. To the Wolfet’s response to Hazel, you are correct about age. But our society will let a preteen decide to alter their body, fill them full of drugs. The drugs that have been approved by The FDA, whose budget comes mostly from the drug companies! As long as big money is involved the real truth about Marijuana will be argued for eternity, if you have never abide in marijuana you really won’t know!
You are simply against marijuana. I’m a 68 year old who has smoked it for 50 years. I’m also a Trump supporting Republican. Try again! Marijuana is safer than anything out there. Problems with marijuana are the individuals choice.
Everything in moderation for an adult is well In children whose bodies and brains are developing not so good
Bottom line? Dope is for LOSERS and ALWAYS will be.
What a bad, ironic joke. Relieving the burden of pot related arrests for police? Police can’t arrest anyone anymore anyway and if they do, the perp goes free. Nothing is a crime and no one follows the rule of law.
Best indicator of our drug problem is our homeless problem. We had homeless people 60 years ago when I became a police officer, most of them were alcoholics. We would arrest them and they would spend up to a month in jail, get out, get drunk and get arrested again. There were not that many. Now nearly all homeless are drug addicts and in many democratic run cities they have to commit a violent felony to be arrested and it is a huge problem. Nearly all addicts started with marijuana. Relaxing drug laws has been a huge mistake and is ruining this country.
Many studies are cited in this article. Most studies these days provide results that reflect the wishes of whoever funds them. It would be great if we had verifiable charts and tables from independent researchers on this subject. I would like to see Marijuana removed from the schedule one drug classification, as then it could be studied by more 3rd party labs.
The psychiatric disorders are likely due to the high concentration available these days. From what I have read, in the ’60s and ’70s, marijuana was typically 3-5% THC. Plants now are hybridized to 20%+. Tinctures and edibles can reach upwards of 90%. At those concentrations a “high” can easily get out of control, especially with edibles, where the effects do not appear for some time. The user can think nothing is going on and takes more before things start happening.
I do use hemp based CBD and have researched the rest of the plant family out of curiosity. I remember hearing almost zero issues with marijauna way back when. Now that the industry uses more science and chemistry, people need to be more careful of what they consume and how much.
Smoking marijuana also causes emphysema and lung cancer, along with heart disease and bronchitis. Any form of smoke does not belong in the lungs whether tobacco or other conditions of smoke. Liberal is another name for “fool”.
As with all street drugs the Uber becomes detached from reality. Pot smoking at a young age has the most negative effect.
Take a long hard look at who is all for legalization of a unhealthy mind altering drug?
Yes, it is the demented Democrats. Maybe smoked a lot in college instead of learning like our Demented Druggy Obama. Talk about being detached!
Interesting article. I must correct an error, however. Robert McCullough is the Cheif of Police for Baltimore County, not “Baltimore”, which infers the city. These are 2 very different places and departments.
Really? She is a very smart strong and articulate conservative. Wish there were 430 of her in the house.
I was well known in the 70’s That pot was worse on a user’s lungs than cigarettes were. Yet, here we are in an era where everyone is against anything that might cause cancer. It was also well known that many pot smokers would lace thier joints with other drugs, such as PCP. This would intensify the high, to a whole different even level. And that was with marijuana strains that had lower levels of THC. It was before, all the new strains started to emerge that were even more potent than they were in the early 70’s. Even with the less potent strains, I knew people that smoked on a regular basis, and many of got to a point they had no concept of what was going on around them, they had no ability to perform even basic jobs that were assigned to them, we called this BURN OUT! They would become almost useless. On a lesser level, I knew that smoking the pot at that time could give you a feeling of invincibility, which was dangerous when driving a car. They didn’t seem to care about what was happening around them on the road, and would find close calls amusing.
So, I have a hard time now understanding that will all the new strains of marijuana out there that is more potent, how it could even be considered less of a problem than using alcohol. I know alcohol is legal, but it is also highly regulated. Its alcohol content is regulated. Yet recreational pot is not that well-regulated. I have no problem with medicinal marijuana, as its THC Content is very low or non-existent.
Regulate the amount of THC content, and get illegal growers under control, and Legal Pot will not be any worse BOOZE. But until then, Pot should not be legal for recreational purposes. Of course, you could say Illegal growers are akin to moonshiners. Illegal but hard to prosecute
Drugs are needed in blue states to help people forget the horrible failures of Demoncrats’ policies. Enough already! There are now narcotics hitting the market that are more powerful than fentanyl. Of course, there are over 30 million alcoholics in the U.S. This dwarfs all other drugs combined.
“Members of the ‘Squad’ … have repeatedly introduced legislation decriminalizing possession of all drugs, not just weed.”
So who will be accountable for negative effects of these legalized drugs on [1] the user and [2] the rest of society? Will increased insurance premiums be required for the medical harm done to the user or the accidents effecting the rest of society? Typically the Squad never considers the “unintended consequences” of their anti-social schemes.