Am I a Pot Head Now?

This is in response to a comment made by one of my friends today. I have become a member of NORML and MPP both are lobbyist against the criminalization of Marijuana and both are trying to get bills passed to legalize marijuana. I believe just like them that there is a lot of good that can come from cannabis. The ability for the farmers of this country to grow cannabis would free up a lot of other resources that have deteriorated our environment. Please look up the uses of cannabis and you will notice that it could be a very profitable crop for the US for products that we export and it has nothing with rolling joints. I also am a firm believer that Marijuana has many benefits to the medical community and they are still researching those benefits. They do know that it can help Chemo patients with nausea, It can help AIDS patients with their appetite, They are using it for those with chronic Pain, and they are using it to help those that have eating disorders. I for a fact know that my life would have a lot less pain in it if I was able to eat a pot brownie instead of taking Vicodin. I also know for a fact that I can take Marijuana for 2 years straight and quit cold turkey but if I took vicodin for 2 months straight I would have a hard time getting off of it. I am also a firm believer that Marijuana is classed as a Type 1 Narcotic along with Heroin and Cocaine. I do not believe that this is the correct classification. I believe that Even Coffee and Alcohol are both more addictive. I also know that Alcohol and Nicotine are both more hazardous to your health. When i was growing up i was told that one Joint was like smoking a full pack of Cigarettes. Current research is now saying that one Joint is like smoking 5 cigarettes. The Way I was raised and taught about marijuana was mostly made up of myths because I back then the government was not allowing the proper research. Current research shows that not only is it a great medical device the side effects and damage that it does is not nearly as bad as most of the prescription medications that are allowed by the FDA. I have had worse side effects from some of the over the counter medications I have taken. I am also a firm believer that the War on Drugs is a failure. The amount of money that is spent on fighting Marijuana could be used for a lot of better Wars… How about the war on teachers and Nurses Pay. How about the War on illiterate children, how about the war on Health Care. Last year over 60% of drug related arrests were for small amounts of Marijuana. (under an Ounce) These arrests now spend Jail time for these offenses. (NY has already decriminalized Marijuana so it would only be $100 Fine) But then you add in the bad drug arrests, Those who sell marijuana… What would happen if it was sold in Coffee shops like over in The Netherlands? If we wanted to sell Marijuana we could Tax it 114% to make it comparable to how much it sells now. We would get the drug dealers off the street and opening coffee shops, (You think Star-bucks is all over the place now) The money we would save by chasing these Pot Heads down and Trials for them is nothing compared to the amount of money we could make by Taxing it. Even if we were to tax it like Alcohol and Cigarettes we would make enough in one year to lower everyones income tax. So far there are a few presidential candidate’s that are for Ending the war on Drugs. pay attention to them and then find out why the others will not even touch the issue. Most of the time it is because they do not want the Stigma of “Soft on Drugs” They do not have a good argument on why marijuana can not be used for medical purposes. Most states that were getting close to the legalization of Marijuana for medical purposes have stopped everything because of the Presidents issues. President Bush said when he first took office, “Let the States Decide” So 12 states have made it legal. Lately the DEA has been making arrests in those states because they have found the other statement made by the President, “If the federal and state governments do not agree then the federal law is the one that counts. So even though there are Medical Marijuana users in these states legally they are getting arrested. Anyway if you do not believe me on any of these please feel free to debate me on it. I am up for it. I have been sending letters and fighting my Senators about it so I would be more than willing to discuss this with any of those that feel they need to disagree. But My first argument is “Its my body why can the Government stop me from doing it?” But before you answer that remember they let me smoke while drinking a bottle of JACK. .. So to finalize this blog, “Am I a pot head now?” No I am not a Pot head. I have not taken anything that is illegal for me to take. I did Smoke in Amsterdam since it was legal and the pain I deal with everyday was completely gone. Will I start making Marijuana butter to make brownies and Cookies with? No, I follow the laws of the US and NY State, I will not break any laws. I will not stick up for anyone that does willingly break the law. I am currently using my voice as a registered voter to make people think about the things I believe in. Do I have a selfish Motive? Yes I do, I just filled my prescription again for 800mg of Motrin… It does not do anything. it takes a little edge off the pain but it still Flipping hurts. I know I can not go back to Vicodin, Percocet, or Codeine because I will easily abuse those and there is such thing of overdose (been close a few times) Marijuana will not allow you to overdose on it.