The Real Reason Pot Is Still Illegal

[madokie]

Opponents of marijuana-law reform insist that legalization is dangerous—but the biggest threat is to their own bottom line.
Lee Fang
July 1, 2014 | This article appeared in the July 21-28, 2014 edition of The Nation.


This story was reported in partnership with The Investigative Fund at The Nation Institute.

Patrick Kennedy, son of the late Senator Ted Kennedy, did several stints in rehab after crashing his car into a barricade on Capitol Hill in 2006, a headline-making event that revealed the then–US congressman for Rhode Island had been abusing prescription drugs, including the painkiller OxyContin. Kennedy went on to make mental health—including substance abuse—a cornerstone of his political agenda, and he is reportedly at work on a memoir about his struggles with addiction and mental illness. In 2013, he also helped found an advocacy group, Project SAM (Smart Approaches to Marijuana), which has barnstormed the country opposing the growing state and federal efforts to legalize pot.

Taking the stage to rousing applause last February, Kennedy joined more than 2,000 opponents of marijuana legalization a few miles south of Washington, DC, at the annual convention of the Community Anti-Drug Coalition of America (CADCA), one of the largest such organizations in the country.

“Let me tell you, there is nothing more inconsistent with trying to improve mental health and reduce substance-abuse disorders in this country than to legalize a third drug,” Kennedy boomed. The former congressman also praised his fellow speakers for standing up to the “extremist responses” from legalization advocates.

Given that CADCA is dedicated to protecting society from dangerous drugs, the event that day had a curious sponsor: Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of Oxy-Contin, the highly addictive painkiller that nearly ruined Kennedy’s congressional career and has been linked to thousands of overdose deaths nationwide.

http://www.thenation.com/article/180493/anti-pot-lobbys-big-bankroll

[pipoman]

1. I heard CO has already collected

Around $40 million with their 10% tax meaning around $400 million retail sales..just in Colorado. ..in 6 months. Is Colorado an anomaly, or does this give us a glimpse into a previously unknown, only guessed at national statistic? Who would think putting that kind of money into non tax paying criminal enterprise should continue? Only those profiting from the criminal enterprise imho....

edit...if the Colorado numbers hold nationally it would put national sales at around $48 billion per year, or $4.8 billion in tax revenue at 10%. It is also necessary to remember that these numbers don't reflect the black and gray market that still thrives in Colorado, or those growing their own.

[B Calm]

2. My Indiana Republican State politicians are the reason here. .