FINALLY: Ron Paul and Barney Frank introduce Marijuana Legalization Bill in Congress

rapmastermind wrote: »

Marijuana bill officially introduced to Congress by Ron Paul, Barney Frank


Marijuana laws should be set at the state, not federal, level, Reps. Ron Paul and Barney Frank argued in a bill they introduced Thursday. The goal of the bill, HR 2306, is not to legalize marijuana but to remove it from the list of federally controlled substances while allowing states to decide how they will regulate it. "I do not advocate urging people to smoke marijuana. Neither do I urge them to drink alcoholic beverages or smoke tobacco," said Frank (D-Mass.). "But in none of these cases do I think prohibition enforced by criminal sanctions is good public policy.

"Criminally prosecuting adults for making the choice to smoke marijuana is a waste of law enforcement resources and an intrusion on personal freedom," he added. Frank admitted in a conference call Thursday that he didn't think the bill had a chance of passing, but according to Reason'? & Run blog, the congressman was "particularly struck by the hypocrisy of public officials who will themselves talk about smoking marijuana, wink at it, and then make it criminal for other people," which leads to "a very discriminatory pattern of enforcement."

The bill appears doomed on arrival, according to the Associated Press, which reported that House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith said his panel, which the proposed law is required to venture through, would not even consider it."Marijuana use and distribution is prohibited under federal law because it has a high potential for abuse and does not have an accepted medical use in the U.S.," said Smith, who like Paul is a Texas Republican. "The Food and Drug Administration has not approved smoked marijuana for any condition or disease."

Smith cited the theory that ? is a gateway drug, and then added the curious belief that legalizing weed would increase the coffers of drug lords."Decriminalizing marijuana will only lead to millions more Americans becoming addicted to drugs and greater profits for drug cartels who fund violence along the U.S.-Mexico border. Allowing states to determine their own marijuana policy flies in the face of Supreme Court precedent," Smith said. The Office of National Drug Control Policy echoed some of Smith's fears and said decriminalizing ? was a nonstarter.

"Our concern with marijuana is not borne out of any culture war or drug war mentality, but out of what the science tells us about the drug’s effects. The facts are that marijuana potency has tripled in the past 20 years and teens are using the drug at earlier ages," the office said in a statement to The Times. "The earlier a person begins to use drugs, the more likely they are to progress to more serious abuse and addiction -– reflecting the harmful, long-lasting effects drugs can have on the developing brain. Legalization remains a nonstarter in the Obama administration because research shows that marijuana use is associated with voluntary treatment admissions, fatal drugged driving accidents and emergency room admissions," the statement said.



Thank ? , it's coming folks. I'm not saying this bill will pass, probably not but the fact is the tide is truly turning. If ? 's can get ? and smoke all the tobacco they want. I should be able to smoke my weed. It's the most least harmful drug yet it's illegal. It's B.S. The truth is Marijuana is Big Business Illegally for the government. The War on Drugs has never really worked. If people are going to do drugs they will do drugs. Legalize it like they did alcohol and tobacco. Regulate it. You can only use it if you are 21 or older. And call it a day. Stop locking users up in jail. You will clean up the streets of drug dealers. You will ? the illegal drug market in Mexico that ships tons and tons of marijuana annually. Sure Coke business will go up but it's time for this B.S. to stop. Marijuana is pretty much harmless in comparison to alcohol and tobacco. Leave it up to the States to decide. But again since Prison is Big Business and a lot of non-violent drug offenders are locked up, I expect many powers that be to continue to try and keep it illegal.