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pockets. But, what if I now informed you that by regulating marijuana for profit we could prevent pot smokers from continuing on to worse, much harder drugs and drastically drop the use of them? Let me explain: there is a misguided belief that the habitual use of marijuana inevitably promotes the need for the smoker to go on to newer, harder drugs i.e. cocaine/crack, heroine, methamphetamines, etc. This belief is known as the "gateway theory" and is widely conceived as truth. This simply is not the fact. Just ask the Institute of Medicine, in 1999 they wrote Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base and described the Gateway theory as "misleading". They further confirmed that, "In the sense that marijuana use typically precedes rather than follows initiation of other illicit drug use, it is indeed a "gateway" drug. But because underage smoking and alcohol use typically precede marijuana use, marijuana is not the most common, and is rarely the first, "gateway" to illicit drug use. There is no conclusive evidence that the drug effects of marijuana are causally linked to the subsequent abuse of other illicit drugs." The National Institution of Drug Abuse reported against this statement, claiming that buying marijuana from drug-dealers typically put the buyer in contact with people who use and sell other drugs, therefore indirectly finding that pot truly is the "gateway drug". But this itself is a redundant statement! By legalizing marijuana and selling them in stores, this "gateway" will be eliminated for the connection will be lost, minimizing harms to our country and people. Duh!

There are many who claim that marijuana is to remain illegal because of the serious health problems that arise with the use of it. What if I said no harm would come out of you toking up? The NIDA claims the only effects attributed with marijuana are "Short-term effects include memory and learning problems, distorted perception, and difficulty thinking and solving problems." Also in "Marijuana and Medicine", the IOM gave insight and evidence indicating the therapeutic effects of "cannabinoid drugs". Not particularly the high is sought, but mood enhancement, anxiety reduction, and mild sedation can be desirable qualities in medications. Your Surgeon General might not tell you this, but in 1985 the U.S Food and Drug Administration approved Marijuana's use in chemotherapy patients for treatment of nausea and vomiting.

So, why exactly is marijuana prohibition in effect again? Oh yeah, it's unjustifiably sending innocent people to prison, wasting time and tax payer money which could lower national debt, not exposing our youth to REAL drugs, and making people a little slow from time to time. Though, the last I checked 400,000 people a year die from smoking tobacco with not one death directly attributed to marijuana. Let's not forget the fact that our idiot is a president. Ooops, I meant our president is an idiot.

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