A Media Breakthrough?

by Ben Morris

Published March 26, 2009 @ 07:17AM PT

Written by my colleague Bruce Mirken.

Something is stirring in the U.S. news media that I was beginning to think I’d never see: In last two or three months, a complete rethinking of our marijuana laws has become a legitimate issue in the eyes of the mainstream media — something it hasn’t been for a long time.

To illustrate how big this is, let me take you back to early 2002, shortly after I started as MPP’s communications director. The first time I ever called CNN to try to pitch them a story on marijuana policy, it went like this:

I said, “Hello, this is Bruce Mirken from the Marijuana Policy Project –” and the woman who answered the phone burst out laughing. She had to put me on hold for a minute to compose herself. When she came back on the line, she said, “Okay Mr. Marijuana, what can I do for you?” While this was not the actual producer I was trying to reach, she was the one you had to get through in order to speak to that person. And I never got through.

Things have changed.

Earlier this month, CNN called me to set up an interview with D.L. Hughley about marijuana prohibition. That interview is currently set to air this weekend on what turns out to be the final episode of “D.L. Hughley Breaks the News,” which airs on Saturdays at 10 p.m. Eastern and 7 p.m. Pacific and repeats on Sunday (though TV news schedules have a way of changing at the last minute). This comes on the heels of appearances by MPP executive director Rob Kampia and myself on CNBC, MSNBC and Fox News, among others.

Meanwhile, columns and editorials questioning prohibition seem to be nearly everywhere in recent weeks, including the Providence Journal, CNN’s Web site, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Chicago Sun-Times, Los Angeles Times and many other outlets.

What was once dismissed as a fringe issue is suddenly mainstream.

Bill to Tax, Regulate Marijuana Introduced in California

by Ben Morris

Published February 24, 2009 @ 02:07PM PT

California state Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco) today announced the introduction of legislation to tax and regulate marijuana in a manner similar to alcoholic beverages. The bill, the first of its kind ever introduced in California, would create a regulatory structure similar to that used for beer, wine, and liquor, permitting taxed sales to adults while barring sales to or possession by those under 21.

Estimates based on federal government statistics have shown marijuana to be California’s top cash crop, valued at approximately $14 billion in 2006 — nearly twice the combined value of the state’s number two and three crops, vegetables ($5.7 billion) and grapes ($2.6 billion) — in spite of massive “eradication” efforts that wipe out an average of nearly 36,000 cultivation sites per year without making a dent in this underground industry.

Ammiano introduced the measure at a San Francisco press conference this morning, saying, “With the state in the midst of an historic economic crisis, the move towards regulating and taxing marijuana is simply common sense. This legislation would generate much needed revenue for the state, restrict access to only those over 21, end the environmental damage to our public lands from illicit crops, and improve public safety by redirecting law enforcement efforts to more serious crimes,” said Ammiano. “California has the opportunity to be the first state in the nation to enact a smart, responsible public policy for the control and regulation of marijuana.”

“It is simply nonsensical that California’s largest agricultural industry is completely unregulated and untaxed,” said Marijuana Policy Project California policy director Aaron Smith, who also spoke at the news conference. “With our state in an ongoing fiscal crisis — and no one believes the new budget is the end of California’s financial woes — it’s time to bring this major piece of our economy into the light of day.”

Independent experts from around the world, from President Nixon’s National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse in 1972 to a Canadian Senate special committee in 2002, have long contended that criminalizing marijuana users makes little sense, given that marijuana is less addictive, much less toxic, and far less likely to induce aggression or violence than alcohol. For example, in an article in the December 2008 Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, Australian researcher Stephen Kisely noted that “penalties bear little relation to the actual harm associated with cannabis.”

Written by MPP's Bruce Mirken.

Polls show growing support for ending marijuana prohibition

by Ben Morris

Published February 23, 2009 @ 10:49AM PT

Three recent polls have shown that Americans are more sympathetic to ending marijuana prohibition than ever before.

The polls, conducted by Rassmussen Reports, CBS News, and Zogby, show 40, 41, and 44 percent support respectively. In conjunction with Gallop poll data going back to the 1960s, we see that support for ending marijuana prohibition has consistently trended upwards, while opposition has trended down.

Fore more information, check out Nate Silver’s analysis at www.fivethirtyeight.com.

Latin American Panel Calls U.S. Drug War a Failure

by Ben Morris

Published February 13, 2009 @ 06:49AM PT

A commission led by three former Latin American heads of state blasted the U.S.-led drug war as an utter failure in a report released Wednesday.

The report, by the Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy, called for the U.S. to re-examine its punitive, enforcement-based drug policies and consider decriminalizing the use of marijuana.

What’s really startling about this report is not its findings – we’ve long known the war on drugs was a failure – but rather our government’s response.  As reported by the Wall Street Journal, a senior U.S. official said Wednesday: “If the drug effort were failing there would be no violence … We're taking these guys out. The worst thing you could do is stop now."

Not only does this statement ignore the plethora of evidence showing that U.S. drug policy has failed to curb marijuana use, it clearly admits that drug-trade violence is a symptom of marijuana prohibition and not marijuana use – something MPP has been saying, and drug warriors have been denying, for years.

Please take this opportunity to visit www.house.gov and tell your member of Congress about the Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy’s report entitled Drugs and Democracy: Toward A Paradigm Shift.

Early Success

by Ben Morris

Published February 05, 2009 @ 01:56PM PT

Yesterday, President Obama’s administration made its first remarks on medical marijuana, speaking out against the Drug Enforcement Administration’s continuing raids on state-legal medical marijuana dispensaries.

Many of you have signed change.org’s petition calling for an end to the raids, and thousands more have written to the White House and Congress through MPP’s online action center. It worked!

On the front page of the Washington Times today, a White House spokesman responded to the DEA raids, saying, “The president believes that federal resources should not be used to circumvent state laws, and as he continues to appoint senior leadership to fill out the ranks of the federal government, he expects them to review their policies with that in mind."

Your letters paid off. Change is happening, and you're a part of it.

Please take this opportunity to sign our other petition, calling for an end to marijuana prohibition, and check out the video below of then-Senator Obama talking about his position on medical marijuana in March of 2008.

MPP Responds to Photo of Olympic Champ Caught Smoking Marijuana

by Ben Morris

Published February 04, 2009 @ 08:18AM PT

MPP’s Bruce Mirken appeared on CNN Sunday night to discuss the news that a 23-year-old American male had been photographed using marijuana at a college party.

Bruce’s interview occurs at about 6:40 on the video below. In it, he shoots down the “gateway” myth, demonstrates prohibition’s many failures, and points out how absurd it is that of the 100 million Americans who have used marijuana, anybody should care that one of them is Michael Phelps.

Legalize the Medicinal and Recreational Use of Marijuana

by Ben Morris

Published February 03, 2009 @ 12:36PM PT

Every 36 seconds, someone in the U.S. is arrested for a marijuana offense. 89% of these are for marijuana possession — not for sale or manufacture, but simple possession. This comes at a major cost to American taxpayers, between $10 and $14 billion annually by conservative estimates. Yet despite this investment in fighting marijuana, the United States has the world’s highest rates of marijuana use.

Our current marijuana laws are failing. It's time for a new approach – strict regulation similar to how alcohol and tobacco are controlled – to reduce the criminal market and lower teen use.

The Marijuana Policy Project has been leading this effort for 14 years. Since our founding in 1995, we’ve helped pass medical marijuana laws in 13 states, decriminalize marijuana possession in Massachusetts, and change federal law to provide for the early release of hundreds of prisoners arrested for marijuana cultivation.

These victories have been won by slowly changing the attitudes of Americans. 41% of Americans now support making marijuana “legal,” and 79% support making medical marijuana available to the seriously ill. By taking action on change.org and following this campaign, you can educate even more people about the failures of marijuana prohibition and the need for change.

In the coming days, we’ll be talking about America’s failed war on marijuana and the benefits of a legal, taxed, and regulated system, as well as posting actions that will allow you to urge Congress to tackle this important issue.