ManMulcahey

I am not a big follower of the leagalization fight, but Straight up how close are we acually?

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jaman

well , that's a good question .


I can only tell you my friend , that we are closer today then we were yesterday. The Battle Is Long.

Stick around , make some friends and together , Who knows what we can do ?

In the meantime I don't think your supply will be cut short.

PARTY ON !!!!!

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freedom to grow , freedom to smoke .

Mr. President , please relieve us of our dependency on foreign oil !

Legalize hemp production !

Panama

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WNB

Not very close. Most people have very little contact with weed, and believe the lies that they are constantly bombarded with. No politician will take up the legalization cause, as it would mean political suicide. Outside of a supreme court decision, which is very unlikely to happen with the conservative court we currently have, it will be a long time before weed is legalized.

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cky

some political dude should go for it anyway it might work like it does in the movies

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Dalamar49

Closer than you think. Once Canada decriminalizes marijuana America will have a close, perfect example to follow.

The only example we have now is the Netherlands, which is too far away to really help in our debate against the prohibition idealogues.

Canada, decriminalize quick and America shouldn't be far behind.

Proline63

How long's it taken for Canada?

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fishman

I'm fairly hopeful that we'll see decriminalization with five years. This would depend on a few things:

- continued international progress on decrim. If Switzerland decrims, much of Europe will likely follow. If Europe decrims, the US will spin in the wind.

- The democrats would have to win at least one house in Congress, and the presidency would help.

- a few more notable conservatives like William Bennett need to be shown to be hypocrits.

The pendulum swings back, and it swings forth. The polls show that the american people want change - the question is just when the politicians will step up. I see signs that the repubs are starting to eat their own young, this may be hopeful for the cause.

Lothar121

Honestly, I would say decriminalization on the federal level 2012ish.

We will see states possibly legalize it before then, and you will see a clash between the federal and state government that does this (*cough* california). The medical marijuana laws are the main focus on the federal level right now, and we should all set aside our personal ambishons and help out the sick and dying for now, since it is actually a political goal that we could see victory in by the end of this year (very unlikely tho).

We will continue to see state's decriminalize small amounts, Texas is on the way to the possibility, with several others pondering it.

As the young rise up to the political power, and the old generation dies off that categorize smokers as a hippie, you will see progress made in quick bursts I predict. The burst will eventually happen as it did in Canada, where all the sudden the law just crashes to a hault, and the politicians come out seeing favoring reform as a positive political move rather than a negative.

It will happen, assuming we ride this wave of momentum to the end. If we hit another 1980 Reagan conservative anti drug period, I think it may be time to move.

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OverwhelmSam

It's on the way! Time magazine reported that 72% of the American population think medical marijuana should be legal creating the impetus for the the federal government to reclassify marijuana from a schedule I drug to a schedule II drug.

After rescheduling, the sick and dying will at least be able to get a prescription and medical professionals will be able to observe wide scale use creating the impetus for legalization.

The individual states are one key! As the states pass less stringent laws, the federal government will have no choice but to back off their laws in regard to marijuana.

Education is another key. The current problem is a lack of true information in the public. People really think that it kills you, makes you pregnant, fries your brain and so on. Many just don't know anything about it and state they don't like it just because it's against the law and they don't want to be a criminal. As more effort is expended toward teaching the truth about marijuana people's positions tend to change.

The main key is Congress. It will take a political upheaval to turn Congress around. As Senaotrs and Representatives get voted out of office for being anti-marijuana, the new leadership in Congress will realize that it's their career on the line. As it is now, politicians have their pockets lined by pharmaceutical compnaies, tobacco companies, alcohol distributors, and many other special interest groups. It wouldn't surprise me to find out that the drug cartels have lobbyist paying off congressmen. Focusing on House leadership in their districts during elections will go a long way toward getting Congress to change their mind.

So how long will it take?

"As long as it takes." George W. Bush

Of course that's just my opinion, I could be wrong.