Michael Phelps: Why We All Should Make A Safer Choice

So for those of you not living under a rock, the past few days have been interesting. We've seen in the news that Michael Phelps, Olympic champion and swimming stud, has recently been "outed" as a pot smoker. Not only this, but now we find out that NONE of his sponsors care. In fact, Omega (a Swiss-based company...hmmmm...Swiss...go figure) said that it was his private life and that the media had no business being in it. The really interesting thing is that this news story has prompted people to think twice about cannabis prohibition and highlights what a clear majority of Americans (79% by the count of one news story, 58% in a recent NORML poll) want: deciminalize pot now for all adult Americans.

Whether or not you agree with adults recreationally smoking cannabis, you have to agree with me on a few points:

1. With all of the medical, industrial, and nutritional applications of the cannabis plant (cannabis sativa L.), it is time to decriminalize it for this sector of society. Rather than giving the DEA jurisdiction over cannabis, give it to the FDA. This would promote more study of the plant, meaning (probably) more applications for it as well as a standardization of procedure. About 80% of Americans favor decriminalization of cannabis for medical use and they have science and medicine on their side. It is hypocritical to argue that a qualified doctor can prescribe a dangerous, addictive substance like an opiate to someone in pain, while telling that same doctor that he or she can't prescribe cannabis as well.

Of course big pharma doesn't want you to be able to grow your own medicine. They have a vested interest in keeping you sick. If they have a choice between giving me Prozac for the rest of my life, in increasingly higher dosages, they have a lifetime customer. I grow cannabis in my garden and they no longer have a business opportunity. The coporations that control our government aren't the only ones with a vested interest in this either. The CIA would lose funding of their black ops in Afghanistan if their opium fields didn't have any buyers in the medical or black market industries. Even their cannbis fields in Afghanistan would lose money for them and they wouldn't be able to give young men "army or jail" alternatives.

By opening up the midwest to hemp growers (industrial hemp has 0% THC, i.e., it can't get you high), this would produce a solid agricultural industry that would save the failing one that exists now. While we waste the aquifers under the midwest through the farming of wheat and corn, which are both inefficient industries, we could come up with another solution: cannabis requires less water, more plants can be grown per acre and yield a higher weight of pure vegetal material. Instead of growing corn for fuel, we can use the corn for food and use our hemp fields to produce everything from fuel, to fiber, to plastics, to industrial, non-toxic solvents (anything made of wood, fiber, or plastic can be made from hemp). This will keep the prices of corn and wheat from rising and we can continue to move towards a progressive, sustainable future. Not to mention the use of hemp oil (a source of Omega 3, 6, and 9 fatty acids) as a cheap, nutritional way to feed people and add nutrients to food products.

2. The Federal "War On Drugs" is an utter failure. Not only because the anti-cannabis people use century old myths to fight their propaganda wars, but also because it (like so many other federal programs) is completely bureaucratic and inefficient. We pay billions in tax dollars arresting people for choosing to use a substance that is SAFER than alcohol and tobacco, which are both legal. Instead of concentrating our efforts (and tax dollars) on cannabis, we can provide more money for drug interdiction at our borders and in concentrating on drugs that actually cause damage like methamphetamine and opiates. Plus, instead of treating drug users like criminals, we can pour more money into treatment programs for abusers.

Prison is not the way to deal with cannabis. Let's imagine that you get sent to prison for smoking pot. Not only will you have a permanent criminal record that will bar you from getting into most colleges and universities and from getting most jobs, but the prison drug trade is big money. In no time you will be hooked on god only knows what because it is available, and let's face it, prison is hard. Someone comes to give you some heroin and tells you that it'll give you an escape or make you part of the "in crowd" (protection), you're going to take it. And this doesn't even take into consideration that hard drugs can be forced upon you too. You try to tell Bubba "no" when he offers you some meth. After he brutally beats and rapes you, you'll get it anyway. So our now drug addicted prisoner gets out of jail and has no future: he's addicted, has no economic opportunities, and no way to get an education. Where do they turn? Crime. Prisons make criminals...and it's all part of the plan. Most prisons are privately owned by corporations who build and staff prisons for the federal government. Like any industry, they want to make sure that they have an econimically viable future and the "revolving door" prison system is perfect.

3. The black market would be closed down, especially from the drug cartels in Mexico and other countries. Why on earth would you buy weed taken from a huge brick, smuggled across the border in a gas tank, when you could grow your own or go to a dispensary and get it? Why would I support gang activity by buying from a corner dealer, when I could walk into my indoor garden and have access to organic, safe herb? Remember what happened with alcohol during Prohibition in the 20s? Think the same way for cannabis. Instead of a black market, we could create a legal market with standards and regulations that would raise about $500 billion in taxes annually. Economic recession? Not with cannabis. This doesn't even take into account the tourism dollars and the money from related industries that would be made.

Decriminalization of cannabis, with amnesty for all those imprisoned for non-violent drug crimes, would provide our economic system with tens of thousands of instant workers and consumers who are free to have access to education and quality paying jobs. The newly created cannabis industry itself would be open for hiring of thousand of new workers.

4. This is a state's right's issue. The constitution (the supreme legal and philosophical document of our country) was written to let federalism work. States, it is argued, are "the laboratories of democracy." You capitalist conservatives out there should be on my side. If you don't like government regulation and intrusion and want to create capital through a new industry, then this is an issue for the Right to get behind. I know you all have your limits; if a woman wants to get an abortion or a man wants to marry another man, then I know you believe that government has every right to meddle in our lives (I'll let you decided if that is hypocritical or not). However, if we are to let the states decide for themselves how they want to go about their business, it would be the healthiest mandate for our democracy. Think about all the great federal programs and legislation: civil rights, women's right to vote, etc. NONE of these would be here today without federalism. If a brave state had never said, "You know? Black people are humans too and they should be allowed to vote, run for office, etc.," we would never have come as far as we have with regards to race relations. If you women no longer think that federalism is important, then we can take away your right to vote; states started that movment too.

How dare the federal government (which has become increasingly centralized since the Civil War...you can thank Abraham Lincoln for that) tell the voters of a state that they can't vote on what they want! That was the whole point of our union! We are a federation of states, which means that while we agreed to help each other out economically and militarily, we are each an autonomous region that is able to make our own decisions without fear of the rest of our federation coming after us. The Feds can stay out if they don't want it. That is the beauty of federalism; if you, as a state, want to outlaw abortion for whatever reason, the majority of voters can. If you don't like it, then there are certainly other states for you to live in that share your views.

There is a federal decrim bill coming up for debate this year sometime. Please support HR 5842 and let federalism work for those states that choose to exercise their democratic rights.