Archive for December, 2008
Massachusetts Officials Try to Circumvent New Law
In just two days, Question 2, which decriminalizes possession of less than an ounce of marijuana in Massachusetts, takes effect. Under the new law, the violation is a ticketable, but not arrestable, offense. Police may fine offenders $100 and confiscate the marijuana, but offenders face no criminal record and no jail time.
Marijuana Tops Second Round of Change
Of the top ten questions in the ‘Additional issues’ section, five relate to marijuana, including the top three questions from the section.
Change.gov Open Again for Questions
Barack Obama has opened a section of his website for a second round of questions.
Last time, the top question was about marijuana policy reform, and Obama’s answer was brief and dismissive: ‘President-elect obama is not in favor of the legalization of marijuana.’
No explanation, no evidence, and no rationale. If I had to guess why, I’d probably say because Obama knows there is no rational explanation.
Here is our chance to send a strong message: yes, we actually meant it! If you log into change.gov (and you don’t even need to verify your email, so it should take about thirty seconds to register), you will see that questions about marijuana are in the top ten under categories such as ‘National Security’ and ‘Additional Issues’. There are multiple questions about marijuana in each category, and the more we vote for these questions, the more likely we are to see change in this administration.
My personal opinion: questions about ending DEA raids are the most significant, because it is the step that Obama is most likely to take first. He can end DEA raids on patients using marijuana with a prescription, all without spending much political capital.
That said, vote for all the questions that you would like Obama to answer. Let’s make sure that the Obama administration gets the message.
Welcome to Legal.Now
Welcome to Legal.Now. This blog is designed for those who support the decriminalization and/or legalization of marijuana – in any form – to learn about steps we can take to make legalization a reality.
