Colorado Democratic Rep. Jared Polis: Remove Cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act [View all]

[RainDog]

http://www.coloradoan.com/viewart/20130204/NEWS11/302040049/Colorado-Rep-Polis-introduces-national-marijuana-bill

Polis’ measure would regulate marijuana the way the federal government handles alcohol: In states that legalize pot, growers would have to obtain a federal permit. Oversight of marijuana would be removed from the Drug Enforcement Administration and given to the newly renamed Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Marijuana and Firearms, and it would remain illegal to bring marijuana from a state where it’s legal to one where it isn’t.

The bill is based on a legalization measure previously pushed by former Reps. Barney Frank of Massachusetts and Ron Paul of Texas.

The legislation created by Frank and Paul was left to die in the office of Texas Republican Representative Leland Howard, who claimed it would never get out of his committee. It didn't. Do not let this happen again. Call your Representative to encourage them to do the correct thing regarding the increasing estrangement between Congress and the American people regarding cannabis' legal status in the US.

It is important to remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act because Nixon's organization has created intractable conditions for a plant to meet the standards of a human-manufactured drug. (BTW, Nixon's own commission recommended cannabis not be included in the CSA but Nixon wanted a way to punish his enemies so he ignored the legal and scientific evidence, as has the rest of the Federal govt for the last 40 years.

Democratic Reps. Earl Blumenauer introduced legislation to create a tax structure for cannabis that would be reviewed after two years, and then five, to tax the commercial production of cannabis for both recreational and industrial use.

CO and WA were the tipping point. We're beyond that moment and moving into a major shift in cannabis law in the U.S. Hopefully Congress will not keep itself mired in racist law and will acknowledge the will of the American people sooner rather than later.