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According to the latest Gallop poll, " A record-high 50% of Americans now say the use of marijuana should be made legal, up from 46% last year. Forty-six percent say marijuana use should remain illegal."  This latest bit of factual data is not newsworthy for those of us who have been watching trends over the last decade or so.  A strong grassroots movement by a variety of different legalizing Marijuana proponents, has helped offer a different perspective on legalizing Marijuana.  Additionally, many Americans under the age of forty tend to view impending legalization as a forgone conclusion; mostly likely to occur in their lifetime.  

An interesting development has happened over the last couple days.  Ok, maybe not that interesting because after all, most people can careless about politics and especially can do without paying attention to the primary presidential politics.  But for those interested in anything related to the legislative question about Marijuana, this latest piece of news might, if ever so slightly, engage you.  So, former New Mexico Governor, Gary Johnson, has finally been allowed to participate in the republican primary for president.  Johnson has about as much of a chance at becoming president as I do, but, he was a former governor after all, and that in itself is pretty good.  So why am I talking about some no name candidate who will finally be allowed to participate in the presidential republican primary?   Well, I speak of Gov. Johnson because he openly supports the legalization of Marijuana.

Hey guys and gals,

Hello guys and gals, my name is Jack Kelly and it will be my pleasure to escort you through all things about Mary Jane with an emphasis on the impact it has on society, and of course, the merits of legalization. First, I will be your new guide at Sativ Academy and its quite possible (I am hopeful) we all will actually learn something from this.

Now that we have all had our awkward introduction via this blog, let's tackle the biggest elephant in the room; should Marijuana be legal? Our goal at Sativ Academy, especially in regards to this question, is to hear feed back from you. Because ultimately, legalization is welded to the political process. So, if Marijuana is ever to be legalized it will be because of you, the people. This introductory thread could be considered an ongoing topic or conversation, if you will. On this topic, your opinion may change due to unforeseen news or developing research on the topic. But regardless, any conversation involving legalization must have specific merits to society as a whole. Right now, it is illegal to ingest Marijuana in the United States. Sure, states such as California have given more access to it via a medicinal reason. But, from a 'freedom' standpoint, it is still illegal.

So, after all of this, where do I reside on the debate? It is quite simple actually and it is my belief it should be legal. Understandably, good people have good reasons why they reside on the illegal side. Some of their reasons, even us on the "make it legal" side, could find agreeable. Things such as smoke inhalation-which can cause cancer, driving under the influence and the possible "gateway" affect it could have to more illicit drugs such as Coke and Heroin. But, most of the arguments could be applied to two already, very legal drugs such as nicotine and alcohol. I mean can anyone really make a legitimate argument that Marijuana is anymore destructive than alcohol? Let's put it this way, would you rather be in the company of someone influenced by Marijuana ingestion or one obnoxiously hammered off of alcohol? Well, I know my answer, clearly not the drunk guy. Does this analysis alone give ample enough reason for Marijuana to be legal in all of the United States? Well, it depends on the criteria we are being held too when trying to answer it.

Lets examine alcohol and compare it to Marijuana, first as a substance then its impact on society. As a substance, alcohol is described like this according to http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/Controversies/1114796842.html: "Alcohol is a product that has provided a variety of functions for people throughout all history. From the earliest times to the present, alcohol has played an important role in religion and worship. Historically, alcoholic beverages have served as sources of needed nutrients and have been widely used for their medicinal, antiseptic, and analgesic properties. The role of such beverages as thirst quenchers is obvious and they play an important role in enhancing the enjoyment and quality of life. They can be a social lubricant, can facilitate relaxation, can provide pharmacological pleasure, and can increase the pleasure of eating. Thus, while alcohol has always been misused by a minority of drinkers, it has proved to be beneficial to most. Now let us look at the description of Marijuana according to http://www.marijuana-seeds.net/History-Of-Marijuana-&-Marijuana-Use-Through-The-Ages.html "Marijuana has been used down through the centuries as both a medicine and a recreational drug. The earliest known documentation was in 3727 BC, in China, which is also, as far as can be traced, the country of origin. Marijuana was recognized as an intoxicating drug, but it was widely used for its medicinal properties, particularly in the treatment of malaria, rheumatism, gout, and absent-mindedness. However, once marijuana made its way to India, it was used almost exclusively as a recreational drug. Marijuana was a great favorite for recreational use also among the muslims, as alcohol use was banned by the Koran." So, in both cases medicinal and recreational use are sited as historical reasons why alcohol and Marijuana became popular with people throughout history. Furthermore, religion also had varying roles with both substances and were both part of such rituals because of the altered state of reality these substances give. Now, somewhere along the line, one became sociallly acceptable, hence legal and the other was deemed bad, wrong or even 'evil', therefore, illegal. Without divulging too much into the historical reasons why one became illegal and the other didn't, (I will have a whole post on this in the future specific just to this issue) let's explore the impact both substances have on current society. According to the 1998 study by the U.S. Department of Justice on Alcohol and Crime found that "alcohol abuse was a factor in 40 percent of violent crimes committed in the U.S." Furthermore, "About 3 million violent crimes occur each year in which victims perceive the offender to have been drinking at the time of the offense. Among those victims who provided information about the offender's use of alcohol, about 35 percent of the victimizations involved an offender who had been drinking. About two-thirds of the alcohol-involved crimes were characterized as simple assaults." (http://alcoholism.about.com/cs/costs/a/aa980415.htm) Whereas Marijuana, "more than 800,000 people are arrested for marijuana each year, the vast majority of them for simple possession. Police prosecuted 858,408 persons for marijuana violations in 2009, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s annual Uniform Crime Report. "Marijuana arrests now comprise more than one-half (approximately 52 percent) of all drug arrests reported in the United States. A decade ago, marijuana arrests comprised just 44 percent of all drug arrests. Approximately 46 percent of all drug prosecutions nationwide are for marijuana possession. Of those charged with marijuana violations, approximately 88 percent (758,593 Americans) were charged with possession only. The remaining 99,815 individuals were charged with “sale/manufacture,” a category that includes virtually all cultivation offenses." (http://www.drugpolicy.org/facts/drug-facts/marijuana)

To sum up all of the data, Marijuana arrests consisted of people selling or of obtaining the product compared to alcohol, which is legal, seemed to produce more crimes while people were under the influence as opposed to Marijuana. Now, this data could be somewhat flawed because it is impossible to identify exactly what substance someone is on when they are committing a crime. However, common sense can ascribe us to believe that a person under the influence of alcohol is more likely to become violent or artificially "courageous", therefore allowing them to simply do something destructive and stupid. With Marijuana, this is less likely to happen, when one considerers some of the problems associated with Marijuana. The point of comparing the two is simple; one is legal and one is not and it is difficult to argue, based off the available info, why alcohol is any less destructive than Marijuana. So to repeat, based off of all available information, why is alcohol legal and Marijuana not? Regardless of how one feels about the specifics, it is my belief Marijuana should be legal and taxed and regulated by the federal government.

As we move forward with this debate, I will provide specific details as to how I believe legalization could be enacted through detailed laws that would restrict it from being much different than it is now, only differences being, is it will be legal and restricted, but the government could tax and send those revenues too treatment programs for all forms of substance abusers. That's all for now, what do you guys think?

I was recently reading a story about 80-year-old Virginia law maker who is sponsoring House Bill 1443, which will change the criminal fine of possession to a civil penalty. Although this bill still has a long way to go before law, it is a step in the right direction. Putting non violent offenders in jail for pot is getting old. Maybe we should start contacting our senators, and remind them next time they are trying to balance the budget to stop putting marijuana smokers in jail for having a flower in their pocket?

Hey this is Blaze, and welcome to the SativAcademy blog!  Tune into InsidersHealth.com every Thursday for a new episode of SativAcademy, where I’ll be your host and tour guide through almost every topic and every region of the ever changing U.S. marijuana culture.

Let's be honest, almost everybody does it... You might not be a stoner like 1969, or a California medical marijuana patient going to the dispensary every single day. Or maybe you have chosen to stop for various reasons. Don’t let any of that stop you from tuning into SativAcademy, where we will be your "connect" to the growing world of today’s marijuana culture.

SativAcademy will be bringing you all the latest wisdom we can gather from this herb's scene. Before I let you in on what we'll cover, let me tell you a little about my experience. I have been cultivating organic medical marijuana in California for just under three years. All the marijuana is directly linked to a medical marijuana co-op where the able patients are the farmers. When I am not meeting patients of our co-op, or growing the medicine, I am travelling to various marijuana expos and talking to industry leaders. For those of you who are wondering where these sorts of things take place, it’s mainly in California, Colorado, Oregon, and a few dozen more liberal states.  I am, in modest terms, a "pot farmer"…

SativAcademy is designed to touch upon any and every subject in marijuana. Please check out our videos, blogs, or our forums where we will talk about:


Medical marijuana

How to grow marijuana

What Sativa and Indica are

How strains differ from one another

Different ways to consume marijuana

and many, many more topics.

 

So whether you check out our blog, our videos, or our forums, you can count on SativAcademy to bring you the latest and greatest on the happenings in the medicinal marijuana field. Till next time, this is Blaze and please remember to always…stay on a high note.