Merry Christmas Marijuana Users!

President Biden has issued a nationwide pardon for marijuana users. The pardon only applies to those who have possessed/used pot for recreational or medical use and since it’s a Presidential pardon it only applies at the federal level. States don’t have to follow Biden’s lead if they don’t want to. For more information you can check out this article published by USA Today last Friday.

When we think of Culture War stuff the debate over marijuana, weed, pot or whatever you want to call it doesn’t come up much anymore. Still, it’s an issue that gets folks both for and against use, whether recreational or even medical worked up. Over time laws prohibiting possession of and using marijuana have relaxed with decriminalization becoming the norm. However it’s a complicated legal issue at best. In fact it’s a legal mess in many ways due to the tug of war between state and federal laws.

The federal government via the DEA has, despite pleas and evidence suggesting they’re dead wrong has insisted on maintaining it as a Schedule 1 Drug under the Controlled Substances Act.  According to the just provided linked article from Forbes it seems there’s a good chance the DEA will finally relent. HHS has formally recommended to them it’s time (to many people, even though who don’t use weed way past time) to reclassify the drug. Doing so will have a number of legal consequences and business ones as well. Business ones I might add that can provide a new stream of tax revenue to state coffers via well-regulated sales of marijuana. Businesses that produce or sell the drug either wholesale or to consumers face all kinds of hurdles, including being able to use banking services.

A larger issue is that removing marijuana from Schedule 1 would have a massive impact on our courts and jails/prisons. Prosecutions would drop like a rock and free up resources for LE and both the state and federal criminal justice systems. Efforts could be focused on other drugs that are far more harmful, as well as those who engage in illegal manufacture and distribution. Assuming laws allow those who want to “grow their own” don’t grow very much at home, or give any away (at least in significant amounts) or sell any “extra” they might produce.  I can foresee some trying to take advantage, with pot/weed becoming like people who grow tomatoes at home and wind up with more than they can give away. I’m sure many of you have had people begging you to take some of their extras. When you already have been given more than you can use!

Anyway, this pardon if followed by a much more widespread one for those serving time who never sold/distributed weed, in other words true NON-violent offenders rotting in prison would free up all kinds of money nationwide. It’s expensive to incarcerate someone. The U.S. has more people in prison than any other country including dictatorships. Even China. Think about all the money that would be saved if these non-violent prisoners were pardoned and allowed to go home. Rebuild their lives, and become productive citizens.

The only people who wouldn’t like it are those who own and operate the way too many private prisons in this country. Yes, their employees (a lot of them) would be out of a job but assistance could be provided to  help them transition. Tuition assistance, job-retraining etc. would be cheaper than what gets shelled out (indirectly) in wages and benefits.

For the moment, President Biden has made a big step in what I think (I don’t use weed) in the right direction. So if you like to get high with pot/weed Merry Christmas. Roll em and light em if you got em (a variation of the old days in the military when “smoke em if you’ve got em” was commonly heard) or have a loaded brownie.

Have yourself a “Mary Jane” Christmas. (Just don’t drive. Whether from booze or pot, driving while impaired is still driving while impaired and dangerous not only to you but others!)