Contents Preface: The State of Marijuana Reform ix 1 Marijuana Policy Reform: The “Tipping Point” Reform—The Marijuana Legalization Debate 3 Legalization of Marijuana: An Overview 8 By Alex K. Rich and Alexander Stingl, Points of View Reference Center, 2013 War on Drugs a Global Failure, London School of Economics Says 14 By Janelle Jordan, CBC News, May 9, 2014 Legally Green 17 By Suzanne Weiss, State Legislatures, February 2013 The 3 Worst Arguments for Legalizing Marijuana 24 By Mike Riggs, Reason, March 23, 2012 How Marijuana Legalization Leaves Mothers and Pregnant Women Behind 28 By Kristen Gwynne, RH Reality Check, May 12, 2014 8 Lies We Have to Stop Telling Ourselves about Marijuana in America 33 By Tom McKay, PolicyMic, May 12, 2014 How Not to Make a Hash out of Cannabis Legalization 38 By Mark Kleiman, Washington Monthly, March/April/May 2014 Obama: Marijuana Is Not “More Dangerous Than Alcohol” 46 By Eyder Peralta, NPR, January 19, 2014 Is Marijuana as Safe as—or Safer Than—Alcohol? 48 By Jen Christensen and Jacque Wilson, CNN, January 22, 2014 Student Views Shifting on Risks of Marijuana 51 By Evie Blad, Education Week, January 8, 2014 Poll: Marijuana Legalization Inevitable 54 By Kristen Wyatt, Associated Press, April 2, 2014 Don’t Fear the Reefer! 56 By Jordan Smith, The Austin Chronicle, March 14, 2014 How Far Can Ethan Nadelmann Push America’s Drug Laws? 61 By Will Godfrey, The Fix, June 30, 2013 An MBA for Stoners: Get Ready for the Next Growth Industry 70 By Michelle Goodman, Salon, November 16, 2013 U.S. Policy on Marijuana Fuels Push for Legalization Worldwide 74 By Gene Johnson, Associated Press, February 16, 2014 Following Legalization in US, Uruguay, Marijuana Gets Second Look 77 By Associated Press, Associated Press, February 15, 2014 v vi Contents 2 Marijuana: Legalization versus Decriminalization The Evolving Legal History of Marijuana 83 Decriminalizing versus Legalizing Marijuana—Who’s Right, and What’s the Difference? 89 By Randy LoBasso, Philadelphia Weekly, February 20, 2014 FYI: Decriminalization of Cannabis Does Not Mean Weed Will Be Legal in Texas 91 By Angelica Leicht, Houston Press, January 31, 2014 Legalizing Marijuana: Why Citizens Should Just Say No 94 By Charles “Cully” Stimson, The Heritage Foundation, September 13, 2010 Drug Legalization: Why It Wouldn’t Work in the United States 111 By Edmund Hartnett, The Police Chief, March 2005 Pot Reform’s Race Problem 119 By Carl L. Hart, The Nation, November 18, 2013 3 Seeking Relief: Medicinal Marijuana Marijuana as Medicine 125 Health Benefits of Medical Marijuana: 3 Major Ways Cannabis Helps Sick People Live Normal Lives 130 By Anthony Rivas, Medical Daily, May 19, 2014 Medical Marijuana: 4 Experts on Benefits versus Risks 133 By David Levine, Elsevier Connect, May 2, 2014 Family Moving in Search of Medical Marijuana 138 By Taylor Shuck, The Baker Orange, April 3, 2014 Out of Options 141 By Jacob Jones, Inlander, March 27, 2014 Marijuana Raid in Bates County Illustrates the Evolution of an Issue 144 By Donald Bradley, The Kansas City Star, March 29, 2014 The Top 10 Studies of 2013 Proving the Medicinal Power of Cannabis 148 By Arjun Walia, Collective Evolution (CE), January 5, 2014 Medical Use of Marijuana in Palliative Care 151 By Suzanne Johannigman and Valerie Eschiti, Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing, August 2013 A Boost for Medical Marijuana? 157 By Leonie Welberg, Nature Reviews Neuroscience, January 2014 Is Pot Getting More Potent? 159 By William Brangham, PBS NewsHour, April 2, 2014 Contents vii 4 Marijuana Reclassification: The Next Debate The Reclassification Quagmire 165 The Politics of Cannabis Psychosis 170 By Jason Reed, The Huffington Post, July 17, 2013 Pot Block! Trapped in the Marijuana Rescheduling Maze 172 By Harmon Leon, The Nation, October 30, 2013 Rescheduling Marijuana 176 By Jon Gettman, High Times, October 17, 2012 Confused about Pot? So’s the Law 180 By Mark A. Kleiman, Bloomberg View, February 14, 2014 Obama Just Took One Big Step towards Marijuana Legalization 183 By Matt Essert, PolicyMic, April 7, 2014 When Holder Says Congress Can Reclassify Marijuana if It Wants, Is He Taking a “Big Step” toward Legalization? 185 By Jacob Sullum, Reason, April 7, 2014 NIDA’s Director Tells Us What We Know—and Need to Know— about Marijuana 188 By Bruce Barcott, National Geographic, March 4, 2014 5 Taxing Marijuana: Boon or Blunder? Taxation 193 Marijuana Is Legal. Time to Regulate and Tax It. 198 By Joni Balter, Bloomberg View, January 8, 2014 Why Legalizing Marijuana Is a Smart Fiscal Move 201 By Bruce Bartlett, The Fiscal Times, January 3, 2014 Economic Benefits of Marijuana Legalization 204 By Abbas P. Grammy1, Premier Thoughts: The CSUB Business Blog, March 26, 2012 Marijuana Legalization Could Be a Tax Windfall for States 207 By Associated Press, Associated Press, September 19, 2012 Marijuana Tax Touted as Budgetary Benefit to US and States. Really? 210 By Allison Terry, The Christian Science Monitor, March 29, 2013 Legalizing Marijuana for Profit Is a Bad Idea 212 By Jamie P. Chandler and Palmer Gibbs, Politix, April 25, 2013 Colorado’s Marijuana Debate Heats up as Activists Argue against Heavy Taxation 214 By Kristen Wyatt, Associated Press, October 3, 2013 viii Contents “The $100 Million Question”: What to Do with All That Marijuana Tax Money? 216 By Bente Birkeland, KUNC 91.5, February 26, 2014 Anti-Pot Group Complains That Coloradans Are Not Buying Enough Pot 218 By Jacob Sullum, Reason, March 12, 2014 Appendix 221 Bibliography 222 Websites 223 Index 225.