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Interesting article on MJ legalization, William Randolph Hearst & the DuPonts

JacksinPA said:
Meet the Man Responsible for Marijuana Prohibition - MassRoots

Interesting reading of the back story that made pot illegal.
Click to expand...

I've read much of that history before, and it's shameful. What's sad is we've known better for decades at least, and it's still illegal at the federal level. So in some ways I'm not sure what's worse - the fact that a few corrupt plutocrats in the early 20th century misled Congress and the public to criminalize a drug far less harmful than alcohol, or that we've known the total corrupt nonsense behind pot criminalization for decades and still haven't reversed that decision in 2019.

The decision to decriminalize pot and treat it like cigarettes or alcohol seems like such a no-brainer that the only rational reason I can come up with about why we haven't done it yet is there is still a group of very powerful but corrupt interests who will be financially harmed by doing it, and Congress is listening to them versus the evidence. Maybe it's the pharmaceuticals, or timber, or plastics, or the prison industry or all the above and others. What seems obvious is a bunch of powerful interests have a HUGE financial stake in pot remaining illegal.
 
JasperL said:
I've read much of that history before, and it's shameful. What's sad is we've known better for decades at least, and it's still illegal at the federal level. So in some ways I'm not sure what's worse - the fact that a few corrupt plutocrats in the early 20th century misled Congress and the public to criminalize a drug far less harmful than alcohol, or that we've known the total corrupt nonsense behind pot criminalization for decades and still haven't reversed that decision in 2019.

The decision to decriminalize pot and treat it like cigarettes or alcohol seems like such a no-brainer that the only rational reason I can come up with about why we haven't done it yet is there is still a group of very powerful but corrupt interests who will be financially harmed by doing it, and Congress is listening to them versus the evidence. Maybe it's the pharmaceuticals, or timber, or plastics, or the prison industry or all the above and others. What seems obvious is a bunch of powerful interests have a HUGE financial stake in pot remaining illegal.
Click to expand...

Federal legalization is a heavy blow to a massive DEA and private prison infrastructure, both of which are aimed solely as revenue generators for their hosts. Pot raids and other marijuana based DEA operations employ tens of thousands of agents. Private prisons rely on marijuana convictions to fill beds.

There's your powerful interests, the two largest ones. The timber industry and pharmaceutical industry are large players as well but they're dwarfed by the top two, who enjoy a guaranteed steady stream from taxpayer pocketbooks.
 
Based on a recent post of mine, legalization of pot will negatively impact beer & liquor sales. They have powerful lobbies.
 
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