Central to the political madness of our times is the ongoing crusade to legalize marijuana. Like most other politically correct issues, the entire drive relies upon defining victims and selling the public lies.

The first big lie is that the healthy Cannabinoid (CBD) chemicals in this plant can be derived in no other way. I was shocked when I read that CBD chemicals do not get anyone high. They are found in Cannabis, and in many other plants. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is what gets people high, and it has zero health benefits. In recent decades, the potency of marijuana has gone way up. The ratio of THC to CBD is much higher. It’s stronger, and more addictive. And ironically, the stronger it gets, the more that the beneficial CBD chemicals are blocked out.

https://mashable.com/article/difference-between-cbd-thc-marijuana-weed/

I know people who are addicted to marijuana. Getting high is the center of their lives, not education, financial success, church, volunteer work, or getting married and raising a family. It’s a sad waste of human potential. It’s bad enough that people are addicted to tobacco and alcohol. Adding another substance is an insane move.

The second big lie put forth by the cannabis lobby is the only way to stop the aggressive over-prosecution of marijuana offenses is to fully legalize it.

There are people sitting in jails with sentences of 1 year, 5 years, 10 years, and in some insane cases even life in prison, for possessing or selling small amounts of marijuana. We understand that this is a social injustice. And we do not deny that there is a racial imbalance to the prosecution, the conviction rate, and the length of sentencing.

All of this has been the driving force behind an effort in my State, New Jersey, to legalize marijuana. They want to expand the medical marijuana program to include adult recreational use, tax it, and then expunge everyone’s records. Like most things done by the Far Left, the legislation is massively complex. It’s like Obamacare all over again.

On Monday, March 25th, that legislation died in the State Senate of New Jersey. It was pulled when it became clear that enough votes to pass it did not exist. This sends a potent message to the rest of the country that the full legalization of marijuana is not inevitable, and that even a deep blue State can say no. Kudo’s to the minority Democratic legislators from Newark and other places that stood up to the marijuana lobby.

Democratic State Senator Ronald Rice’s recent letter to his colleagues could be the most comprehensive debunking of marijuana that has ever been printed. It should go national.
https://www.insidernj.com/letter-senator-ronald-l-rice-legislative-colleages-ahead-monday-marijuana-...

Rice is the senior and respected Black legislator in New Jersey. He stood up to the big Democratic power brokers, and he killed this bad legislation. The sponsors said it was 3 votes shy of passing. That’s a lie; it’s political cover to reduce the embarrassment. It was great that it didn’t pass, but the central problem is unresolved. People are still being served with criminal charges, people are still being jailed, and nobody’s record has been cleared.

There’s a real easy answer to all of these problems. New Jersey needs a short and simple piece of legislation that does one thing, it reduces all marijuana offenses to the misdemeanor level. Possessing a small amount, or selling a small amount, will be like getting a parking ticket. Nobody gets a criminal record, nobody does jail time, no families are broken apart, and no communities are harmed. It can be written in 3 sentences. And for possession or sale of any larger amount, add another sentence that the maximum sentence would be one year.

Following it’s passage, the Governor and the legislature can work on expungement legislation. As Senator Rice pointed out, full expungement takes many years.

Why would I support this, when I am against the legalization of marijuana? Easy answer. It would take the wind out of the sails of the legalization movement. Decriminalization is actually the solution needed, and if that passes, it will be much harder to achieve a public consensus, no less a legislative consensus, to fully legalize this highly addictive substance.

Once the major ongoing social injustice problems are solved, the public will say “Wait a minute, we already solved those problems by making it a misdemeanor offense, so we don’t need to legalize it”.

Do you see where I’m going: Actually solving the major problem disproportionately affecting Black and Latino marijuana users and sellers can be done simply, quickly, and easily, and the State legislators would be under overwhelming pressure to vote “yes” on this Bill. It would pass, and very easily.

Why isn’t this being done? Easy answer. The folks pushing for it really don’t care about the people whose lives have been harmed by the criminal justice system. They want to create a new “Big Tobacco”. There’s money out there to be made and businesses to be founded or expanded, and that’s the incentive. They know full well that my solution, if adopted into law, will become the alternative to legalization, and thwart their entire business model.

All the victims, especially the Blacks and Latino’s that are over-convicted, over-sentenced, over-fined, and over-incarcerated, don’t matter too much in their minds.

Having all of these victims with marijuana convictions is all part of the Democratic Plantation. People are being mined for votes, and used for votes.

And what’s equally sad is that the Republicans are only just beginning to figure this out, and craft the alternative message that the more people prosper, own homes, live at low density, and shun victim status, the more they will vote Republican.

I don’t want the prison-industrial complex profiting off of these people, or anyone. Make marijuana offenses the equivalent of a parking ticket. A simple misdemeanor. Problem solved.

Our political leaders in New Jersey are loath to enact this simple legislation.

The whole idea of holding out on the real needs of the public, to achieve a business plan and a regressive political strategy, is an anathema.

Those who read our articles will see a repeated pattern. All of our principles of Economic Populism are to help the people. Nobody is left out. Nobody is held out there as a victim for other goals. Listen to Candace Owens, she knows this stuff real well.

Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) is a national organization devoted to educating the public on a more rational public policy direction. I encourage all readers to learn more. https://learnaboutsam.org/?fbclid=IwAR25lRyhJIsytzG44SkI4d8HVl5ose0_B6JEffrdv-PNSjXwr79wdhD0zw4