Jim Newell —
It would seem natural, given America's many current, profound problems that need to be resolved to avoid its total destruction, that more people nowadays would view federal investigators and their coordinated SWAT teams equipped with auctioned-off military weapons chasing around pot dealers as a waste of limited government resources.
Well, at least we're heading in the right direction now, as two prominent congressmen plan to introduce the first-ever bill ending the federal war on marijuana.
The Marijuana Policy Project shares this exciting news about a bill that will never pass, but at least, for once, exists:
Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) and Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) will introduce bi-partisan legislation tomorrow, June 23, ending the federal war on marijuana and letting states legalize, regulate, tax, and control marijuana without federal interference. Other co-sponsors include Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN), Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO), and Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA). The legislation would limit the federal government's role in marijuana enforcement to cross-border or inter-state smuggling, allowing people to legally grow, use or sell marijuana in states where it is legal. The legislation is the first bill ever introduced in Congress to end federal marijuana prohibition.
There's some appetite on the state level for this. Connecticut recently became the 13th state to decriminalize marijuana. California's ballot initiative to legalize marijuana in the last election ended up failing, but it attracted more consideration than usual. And now some people in Washington state, with the help of the travel guy from PBS, are vying for their own initiative. Because why do we still do this on the federal level, 40 years after Richard Nixon? Shouldn't we be telling kids how good drugs are in such an advanced society?
This is all the Internet has ever wanted.
[via Reason; image via Shutterstock]
2011-06-23
An Actual Bill to End the Federal Marijuana Prohibition
via gawker.com
