cannabisnews.com: Obama: Marijuana No More Dangerous Than Alcohol

cannabisnews.com: Obama: Marijuana No More Dangerous Than Alcohol
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Obama: Marijuana No More Dangerous Than Alcohol
Posted by CN Staff on January 19, 2014 at 10:13:42 PT
By Mollie Reilly, The Huffington Post
Source: Huffington Post
Washington, D.C. --With a majority of Americans now in favor marijuana legalization, President Barack Obama is now saying weed is no more dangerous to individuals' health than alcohol. In an interview with the New Yorker's David Remnick published Sunday, Obama said while he believes marijuana is "not very healthy," the drug isn't as harmful as some insist.
“As has been well documented, I smoked pot as a kid, and I view it as a bad habit and a vice, not very different from the cigarettes that I smoked as a young person up through a big chunk of my adult life. I don’t think it is more dangerous than alcohol," Obama told Remnick. When asked if he believes marijuana is less harmful than alcohol, Obama said it is less damaging "in terms of its impact on the individual consumer.""It’s not something I encourage, and I’ve told my daughters I think it’s a bad idea, a waste of time, not very healthy," he added. Marijuana is currently classified by the Drug Enforcement Administration as a Schedule 1 substance, which the DEA considers "the most dangerous class of drugs with a high potential for abuse and potentially severe psychological and/or physical dependence." Other Schedule 1 drugs include heroin, ecstasy and LSD. Obama said his focus on reforming laws that punish drug users, noting the racial disparity in drug arrests. "We should not be locking up kids or individual users for long stretches of jail time when some of the folks who are writing those laws have probably done the same thing," he said. In August, the Obama administration announced it would not stop Washington and Colorado from legalizing recreational marijuana use, marking a major step away from the administration's war on drugs. In the New Yorker interview, Obama said he believes these new laws are "important."“It's important for it to go forward because it’s important for society not to have a situation in which a large portion of people have at one time or another broken the law and only a select few get punished," he said.Source: Huffington Post (NY) Author: Mollie Reilly, The Huffington PostPublished: January 19, 2014Copyright: 2014 HuffingtonPost.com, LLC Contact: scoop huffingtonpost.comWebsite: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/URL: http://drugsense.org/url/MOlI0cb8CannabisNews -- Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml
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Comment #49 posted by Paint with light on January 23, 2014 at 00:45:10 PT
Paraphrased from "A call to Unity"
I wanted to post this on MLK day but could not find the original quotation.We should acknowledge that hard work has brought us a mighty long way;and while we may not be where we want to be,or where we ought to be,we should be thankful we are not where we used to be.Source:http://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1033&context=leavenLegal like alcohol and eventually like tomatoes.
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Comment #48 posted by FoM on January 22, 2014 at 06:52:53 PT
Afterburner
Thank you for the music!
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Comment #47 posted by afterburner on January 21, 2014 at 20:51:59 PT
BGreen #43, FoM #46 & all
TOPPOP: Bob Marley - Positive Vibration
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tf-ttAD3-cYBob Marley - Positive Vibration Lyrics!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_TkXhPiUQwBob Marley & The Wailers ı-- Rastaman Vibration [full album]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ilf08z6J2AQThis is the first Bob Marley album that I bought, my introduction to reggae music and Rastafarians. I was impressed by the positive messages and the heartfelt music of struggle. I am thankful that I was able to see and hear Bob Marley live in Toronto, as well as Peter Tosh, Third World, and Ziggy Marley.
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Comment #46 posted by FoM on January 21, 2014 at 17:36:04 PT
BGreen
When I talk to a negative person I listen but realize I can't change anything. When I am around a positive person I gravitate to them and grasp onto what they have to say. An example. I met a lady who has no income at all. She lives in Section 8 housing and does receive some food stamps. She works as a volunteer to feed shut ins and the elderly. She is active in her church and full of life. She is bubbly and honestly happy and as poor as anyone can be without being homeless. I love to be around people like that.
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Comment #45 posted by FoM on January 21, 2014 at 17:31:09 PT
runruff
Very true. We become what we want to be.
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Comment #44 posted by runruff on January 21, 2014 at 16:35:27 PT
BGreen
We are what we pretend to be!
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Comment #43 posted by BGreen on January 21, 2014 at 15:58:08 PT
Yes, FoM
It has been really hard to try to be a positive energy when surrounded by negativity. It's everywhere. It's not even afflicting just bad people, negativity plays a major role in all of our lives. In some ways I feel I've wasted so much time bathing myself in negativity and yet I'm trying to accept that this is my journey and this is where I'm supposed to be.I want to be a positive energy. I'm tired of feeling bad. I'm tired of arguing over stupid little things. Very few things outside of myself are in my control. Positive emotions are healthy and negative emotions tear our bodies down. I choose the positive.Bud
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Comment #42 posted by FoM on January 21, 2014 at 15:44:27 PT
Oleg
I understand how you feel.
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Comment #41 posted by FoM on January 21, 2014 at 15:42:27 PT
Swazi-X
I look at life in such a broad way. I don't think too much of where we are but where we are going as far as change comes for our issue. I am happy for anything that gives me hope for a better tomorrow. I like Obama but I never had super high expectations for him. I am glad we don't have Romney or any Republican because we wouldn't be where we are now which is better then where we have been in years past.
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Comment #40 posted by Oleg the Tumor on January 21, 2014 at 15:12:01 PT:
Rev. B. Green
Indeed, Sir, I understand. You are correct to point out that we should cheer when we can to stay sane. Point well taken.Sometimes I have a difficult time knowing quite how to respond when a U.S. President speaks.As an epileptic brain tumor patient, I'm still suffering from Obama's definition of "Inappropriate". To find out now that what was "inappropriate" a short time ago, now "is no more dangerous to individuals' health than alcohol" begs some explanation. Certainly Mr. Obama did not come to this Eureka moment just last Sunday. He has learned this through personal experience. I understand that Hawaiian herb is very good. None of us know how much time we have left on this earth.
But checking out as an "uncaptured Federal criminal" is not on anyone's bucket list, certainly not mine.

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Comment #39 posted by Swazi-X on January 21, 2014 at 13:42:47 PT
Agreed
I'm totally with you Bgreen and FoM - choosing happiness and peace, finding the joy and beauty everywhere you possibly can is probably the most important thing in my life as well. The civility and intelligence of the discussion here is what keeps me coming back to spout off - and I apologize if any of my rants bring out negative emotions in anyone. I'm angry about the lies we have to put up with from those we trust, but apart from that specific anger - life is good!Like you mention we're all on the same side, working for the same goals, and for those of us in states where we can legally enjoy cannabis - we have even less to complain about.The tide is turning in our favor with the help of common sense and science, so much so that no politicians will be able to stand in our way eventually. It's a good time to be alive, and an even better time to be a cannabis fan!
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Comment #38 posted by FoM on January 21, 2014 at 05:25:17 PT
BGreen
I can't get over how much I do my best to apply what you are saying in my own life. Like Neil Young sings. Don't let it bring you down it's only castles burning. Also the Rolling Stones. You don't always get what you want but you get what you need. I am grateful for almost everything. What is difficult is a lesson in patience and what is good is to enjoy with gusto because it will only be short lived. Keep up your good attitude and life will be much easier.
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Comment #37 posted by BGreen on January 20, 2014 at 22:52:32 PT
Nobody was coming down on anybody
This has been extremely civil. I was just expressing my beliefs just like Oleg and Swazi-X. We're brothers and sisters here and we're also on the same side.I've come to the conclusion that I've spent so much time stressing about what I don't have that I've forgotten to enjoy what I do have. I've endured so much loss lately that it's been hard feeling happy. Always being pissed off because everything isn't the way I want it has ruined my life. It's amazing the blow back I've gotten in my life since trying to adopt a positive outlook. My being pissed off or impatient doesn't change anything except make me unhappy. I will be patient in my journey, enjoy what I have and find the good wherever I find it.This entire conversation is base on the fact that some are more enthusiastic than others about what Obama said. I'm not thrilled that Obama didn't tell the whole truth as we know it but I choose to embrace the part that he's not gleefully talking about the newest way to throw my ass in jail like all of the other presidents in my past. Our knowledge of this plant is decades beyond the mainstream so I don't expect much from those in power as long as it is positive.Always embracing the negative doesn't make me feel good. I know nothing happens quickly in government. Heck, nothing is happening in government these days so any progress is great news.Swazi-X, you may not know my story but I got into activism back in the 70's after watching my dad die a horrible death from pancreatic cancer. I knew then that THC had been shown to kill cancer cells. I've faced a lot of crap in my life trying to get people to understand the truth. I won't be fully satisfied until I see full legalization, just like you, but I'm still thrilled about the progress we're making. I'm with you, brother, but I have to rejoice where I can or it's going to kill me.I understand that it can sometimes be difficult to understand someone's meanings and intentions in our posts but I certainly never meant to attack anyone here.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #36 posted by Swazi-X on January 20, 2014 at 17:00:51 PT
Just The Truth
BGreen - I believe you've misunderstood the problem we face now. It's different than back in the day. In the '70s we knew very little about cannabis. Now we know there's a cannabinoid system in humans/mammals that regulates most of the vital processes needed for life. It's not just something to get high with anymore - we need this for our health and freedom from the grip of the medical industry's unholy greed in favoring profit over human life. This delicious, lovely plant can save us from cancer, diabetes, asthma, autism, kidney disease, depression, and much more, and we all can grow it free.Obama's offhand, inaccurate comment is just a bone thrown by someone who's got better things to do than take an honest look at the situation, and who values politics over the health and well being of his subjects. Someone who can't be bothered with all those stoners out there making noise, or at least that's what his nonchalance seems to say.Obama's statement was a begrudging nod to the tide of change he's smart enough to recognize as evidenced in Colorado and Washington state. It's the least he could do - literally - to protect himself politically. And those who are dying of cancer after mortgaging their home and draining their bank account? Literally dying for lack of this information, lack of legal access from the federal government.You're old enough to remember Jimmy Carter and his statement that the punishment for using a substance shouldn't be worse than the substance itself. That's what courage looks like coming from a President. That's what we have yet to see from Mr. Obama.Bottom line: Science shows cannabinoids to be necessary to our continued health, able to cure cancer and probably most other modern chronic disease. Why should we "rejoice" at such a lame, ineffective, inaccurate and misleading statement as his? Should we let him off the hook so easily after all these years of promising Hope and Change? His statement was neither Hopeful or does it Change anything - it was a political calculation devoid of courage or even basic facts. Obama doesn't need to speak in any particular way - he just needs to tell the truth. Is it really too much to ask for our President to be honest with us? Should we allow politics to keep the cure for cancer hidden because it would anger those who profit from keeping it under wraps? As for me, I'll be hitting the big 60 soon. Old enough to know we can't rejoice until EVERYONE can legally grow and use this plant.
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Comment #35 posted by schmeff on January 20, 2014 at 08:51:54 PT
Apologies to Oleg & Swazi-X
I feel like I pretty much got the negativity ball rolling with my comment about President Platitude, but it seems that all the corrective lectures came down on you two while I skated. It isn't right that our comrades here at C-News would come down so hard on Oleg and Swazi-X while giving Kings-X to schmeff. My experience is that folks here are usually more fair-minded than that.I demand equal rejection! But no matter, allow me:Shame on you, schmeff, for peeing on our parade! You should be ashamed for your not-far-enough mongering! How dare you remind us that actions speak louder than words? What kind of Cassandra would harsh our collective mellow by suggesting that the President has a long track record of betraying his populist rhetoric? Keep it up, buddy, and you won't be invited to the victory party.There. At least someone gave me what I deserve.
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Comment #34 posted by kaptinemo on January 20, 2014 at 07:47:45 PT:
"Put not your faith in princes."
For the curious, google the following:Clinton Obama June 6 2008 Chantilly VirginiaBitter truths are often coated in sweet illusions to make them more palatable to the public. This is what is often referred to as the 'Noble Lie'...which almost always winds up being used for ignoble causes. Like starting wars and continuing wars, for example.Sometimes the coatings of lies are in so many layers, you have to dig down deep to get to the truth. Most people never do; too much trouble, and, besides, 'Dancing with the Stars' is coming on The Tube soon!But on very rare occasions (actually, the meetings are held every year, but only every 4 years are they held in America, hint, hint, hint), you can see where the coating of lies missed a spot, and then if you look down deep, you can clearly see right down to the core...and the ugliness inside. That search string mentioned above draws attention to one of those times.As bitter as the truth is, it has one saving grace: the sharp taste doesn't last long after the first bite. You get used to it and know it as medicine; the best kind usually tastes awful. While a lie meant to cover the truth tends to have a cloying, overly sugary flavor, wrapped around your tongue and it won't let go, ultimately giving you spiritual diabetes if you keep chewing on it. And you can go blind from diabetes.Red pill, blue pill. Bitter truth or sweet lie. What's your pleasure? Run that search string and find out...if you dare.
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Comment #33 posted by Paint with light on January 20, 2014 at 01:17:31 PT
BGreen comment #13 plus
Great comment by BGreen.I join in yelling,"Viva, Obama! Viva, freedom! Viva, the truth!"For those negative voices that want to pee on the parade....The winds of change are blowing it back in your face,How does it taste?Legal like alcohol, the beginning of he end of prohibition.
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Comment #32 posted by Universer on January 19, 2014 at 22:48:12 PT
More CannaBowl
#CannaBowl #SmokahBowl #DoobieBowl #WeedWillRockYouWorth a read and a watch:From Examiner.com -- Marijuana Bowl: Super Bowl 2014 could be a real high for stadium fanshttp://www.examiner.com/article/marijuana-bowl-super-bowl-2014-could-be-a-real-high-for-stadium-fans
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Comment #31 posted by afterburner on January 19, 2014 at 21:39:29 PT
FoM #22
"The snowball is gaining size and speed as it is going down the hill."The Temptations - It's Growing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVE9AvL5MaQ
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Comment #30 posted by Hope on January 19, 2014 at 21:18:13 PT
Cannabowl
That is so cool. I haven't batted an eye over a superbowl in many years. I'm paying attention now.
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Comment #29 posted by Hope on January 19, 2014 at 21:16:25 PT
"It's won".
I'm looking to the future in that musing.
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Comment #28 posted by The GCW on January 19, 2014 at 21:10:48 PT
The Cannabowl!
Wow. I hope that gets lots of attention.
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Comment #27 posted by Hope on January 19, 2014 at 21:10:03 PT
In our lifetimes...
For real. It's so wonderful. Hello to a couple of the really old timers that have been here about as long FoM. So good to see both of you. Had Enough has got to be right around the corner lurking with Dankhank.The Cannabowl? Cartwheels! Come on, Runruff, cartwheels!I am so happy. And yes. It has most certainly been from the ground up. Has it ever? The bottom of this debacle has dead bodies. Sorry. Harshed my own contact buzz. But it's true. My joy is truly deep and real. Nothing shallow about such a terribly hard won improvement over such a ghastly situation. Very hard won. But it's won.Get back Calvina. Go home and live your own life.
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Comment #26 posted by Universer on January 19, 2014 at 19:17:37 PT
Oh, and lemme just add...
Preach, Rev!BGreen is absolutely correct. That is all.
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Comment #25 posted by Universer on January 19, 2014 at 19:05:13 PT
OT: The CannaBowl!
You know what, no amount of not-far-enough-mongering is going to harsh my buzz today.Off-topic:So residents of the states dominated by Seattle and Denver voted to correct the horrific failure of Cannabis Prohibition -- and they're immediately rewarded with their teams in the Super Bowl.Coincidence? Well, yes. But still, goes to show: You want gridiron glory, the gameplan is simple: Just make it legal.(Then again, the other NFL contenders San Francisco and Boston(ish) are metropoleis of states which will likely be the next to come to those senses. Also good.)
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Comment #24 posted by kaptinemo on January 19, 2014 at 18:35:39 PT:
Bowing to the inevitable doesn't require grace,
just intelligence.The pressure to maintain prohibition from the banking sector is enormous. The dirty money from prohibition is all that enabled the banks to stay afloat after they torpedoed the rest of us. Even the UN knows it. And so all the crypto-fascist machinery to create and prosecute unConstitutional drug laws was built up and used under cover of 'public safety' to (superhero echo chamber voice) Saaaaave the Childreeeeeeeennnnnn!" while the real intent was to save profits.But now, pressure is mounting from below, in the form of the State initiatives, being organized by (and voted into law by!) none other than members of the DARE Generation, who were supposed to replace their parents as 'marks' in the multi-generational prohibition con-game. On growing up, they said "No thanks!" and are instead voting to re-legalize cannabis.Push is finally coming to shove, and the prohibs are being forced (through sheer demographics in being not only numerically, but socially and culturally out-numbered) to admit that the game is almost over.This greater pressure is coming from below, from the cannabis-savvy and civil liberties-minded electorate; all we ever had from above was a back-hand...if not a crushing jackboot heel. Well, we have the numbers, now, and prove it every time in polls and at the ballot box. Now the owners of those hands and wearers those boots had best watch their steps; it's unmolested re-legalization now, OR DrugWar tribunals later if they don't get out of our way... For they've done great harm to this country with their insane quest for something that has never existed, the kind of harm I'd have readily shot some foreign enemy for attempting. That kind of cultural cancer must be excised, and publicly, lest, like cancer, it comes back to threaten future generations.
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Comment #23 posted by FoM on January 19, 2014 at 15:39:00 PT
The GCW
I agree!
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Comment #22 posted by FoM on January 19, 2014 at 15:37:40 PT
BGreen
It is happening. What a journey. I have had people say it won't happen in our lifetime but now they say it very well could happen. The snowball is gaining size and speed as it is going down the hill.
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Comment #21 posted by The GCW on January 19, 2014 at 15:34:56 PT
Huge News indeed.
It keeps getting better.
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Comment #20 posted by BGreen on January 19, 2014 at 15:33:05 PT
Thanks, FoM
We sure have come a long way and been through a lot in this journey. It's so cool that so many people view as inevitable what we once feared for our freedom to even dare dream.(Happy sigh of relief.)Bud
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Comment #19 posted by FoM on January 19, 2014 at 15:27:20 PT
Obama Said
Change comes from the bottom up not the top down. I always believed this is what he meant and it is happening.
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Comment #18 posted by FoM on January 19, 2014 at 15:25:14 PT
BGreen
I find joy when I see any positive movement in our direction. It's been a long and winding road.
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Comment #17 posted by BGreen on January 19, 2014 at 15:21:14 PT
Oleg the Tumor
He compared cannabis to alcohol but that didn't seem to phase you. However, I believe what Obama was doing was taking the first step into what I've written about before ... the complete dismantling of the entire war on drugs.I understand how difficult it is to lose a great athlete like Len Bias. That doesn't ignore the real dangers that came about by Reagan using this one death to destroy the lives of millions!What about all of the equally talented young men and women who never even had a chance because of the collateral damage caused by the war on drugs?More damage has been caused by our laws against drugs than have ever been caused by the drugs themselves. I used all kinds of hard drugs in my early life and I made it just fine. I'm absolutely no different than MOST people who use even hard drugs. We don't die, we don't get hooked and we don't get hurt unless the cops get involved.Every good thing said about cannabis has to be tempered in order not to make the bat-sh!t crazies go even crazier.Can't we ever find any joy with anything positive even if it's not all positive? I remember when there was almost never anything positive. That's pretty much why this website even exists. It's definitely why I started posting here over a decade ago.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #16 posted by FoM on January 19, 2014 at 15:12:43 PT
Article From Think Progress
President Obama Says Pot Is Less Dangerous Than Alcohol For The Individual ConsumerURL: http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/01/19/3183431/obama-pot-dangerous/
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Comment #15 posted by FoM on January 19, 2014 at 15:08:17 PT
BGreen
As always you go guy!
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Comment #14 posted by FoM on January 19, 2014 at 15:05:53 PT
Article From The Gawker
Obama Says All the Right Things About Weed in New Interview****America is no longer scared of pot, and it doesn't seem like Barack Obama is, either. In a long interview with David Remnick of The New Yorker, Obama said just about everything he should be saying about weed."As has been well documented, I smoked pot as a kid, and I view it as a bad habit and a vice, not very different from the cigarettes that I smoked as a young person up through a big chunk of my adult life," Obama told Remnick, as pointed out by The Hill. "I don't think it is more dangerous than alcohol."Bringing the conversation back to policy, he acknowledged that "middle-class kids don't get locked up for smoking pot, and poor kids do. And African-American kids and Latino kids are more likely to be poor and less likely to have the resources and the support to avoid unduly harsh penalties." This is a fact that long ago moved away from being a secret.In talking about efforts to legalize pot in states like Colorado, Obama gave his blessing while grounding his support like an ex-law scholar might. "It's important for it to go forward because it's important for society not to have a situation in which a large portion of people have at one time or another broken the law and only a select few get punished," he told Remnick.In acknowledging his own culpability and the hypocrisy of anti-marijuana legislators — "some of the folks who are writing those laws have probably done the same thing" — Obama isn't trying to distance himself from the issue, but talk is only talk. These are the right notes to hit, but without tangible action the sentiment can't help but feel a bit stale considering Bill Clinton was calling for decriminalization as president in 2000.Clinton's administration, though, had a history of doing the opposite. Obama has already erased a number of Clinton's sins — time will tell if weed will be another.URL: http://gawker.com/obama-says-all-the-right-things-about-weed-in-new-inter-1504593977
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Comment #13 posted by BGreen on January 19, 2014 at 15:02:03 PT
Swazi-X
Do you have any idea how difficult it is to let your true thoughts come through in a way in which the intelligent gets the message and the clueless remain clueless?There is nothing incorrect about what you stated but there is no way on the face of this planet that the President can speak the way you want him to. I don't know how old you are but I've been actively trying to put an end to cannabis prohibition since the mid-70's. I haven't heard this kind of talk from any President since Jimmy Carter and the republicans used his words to destroy his career and that of any other democrat besides Clinton for the next three decades.All it takes to understand Obama is to witness and examine his actions and words. He's for us more than any other President in my lifetime. For this I'm giddy. You can be pissed off at Obama for not saying it your way but his career would be over. He knows that. I know that. A lot of others know that.The LGBT community got pissed at Obama in the beginning of his term because he wasn't speaking his words the way they thought he should. While I saw a careful choice of words by Obama in order to not give ammunition to the other side that would be used against him, many in the LGBT community saw a coward and traitor.In retrospect, there is no doubt that Obama was always a supporter of equality and the proof is in the happy couples who are not only married, they are also enjoying the advantages of marriage in many states that don't even allow gay marriage.There is no difference in these two matters. It's all about fairness and equality. It's about choosing our words as carefully as possible in order to advance our cause. The anti-cannabis side can and will say anything against us, no matter how insane, and it has no deleterious effect on their message of hatred. One wrong word from our President could mean utter failure for us and our cause and ensure another republican presidency.I understand how you feel but I'm telling you from my gut feelings that this is HUGE for our fight. Negativity isn't good for our souls so I will choose to embrace the positive.This is as positive a message as I've ever heard from our President in my entire lifetime concerning cannabis. I will not criticize the President for what I feel he should have said. Instead, I'm going to rejoice in what our President said. I find it to be miraculous considering just 10-years-ago when the republicans almost made it illegal to even talk about cannabis, we were called "terrorists" and selling cannabis could have led to the death penalty.Viva, Obama! Viva, freedom! Viva, the truth!The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #12 posted by Oleg the Tumor on January 19, 2014 at 14:38:59 PT:
Wait just a Minute!
"If marijuana is fully legalized and at some point folks say, Well, we can come up with a negotiated dose of cocaine that we can show is not any more harmful than vodka, are we open to that?"Am I hearing this guy correctly? He is trying to compare a non-toxic plant to a substance that can give you a heart attack! In the '80s, I was working on the campus of the University of Maryland in College Park, MD, the day Lenny Bias died. It was the last day of classes. He had one hit with his friends, went into cardiac arrest and expired. This young man had just signed a $3 million contract with the Boston Celtics. Probably the first of the "LeBron James" caliber player, and just like that, he's dead and gone.How many people remember Lenny Bias? Making the kind of comparison Mr. Obama suggests, reveals a mind that can go blank on demand.Will Obama act before Chuck Norris does?
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Comment #11 posted by FoM on January 19, 2014 at 12:51:39 PT
Marijuana Comment From The New Yorker
When I asked Obama about another area of shifting public opinion—the legalization of marijuana—he seemed even less eager to evolve with any dispatch and get in front of the issue. “As has been well documented, I smoked pot as a kid, and I view it as a bad habit and a vice, not very different from the cigarettes that I smoked as a young person up through a big chunk of my adult life. I don’t think it is more dangerous than alcohol.”Is it less dangerous? I asked.Obama leaned back and let a moment go by. That’s one of his moves. When he is interviewed, particularly for print, he has the habit of slowing himself down, and the result is a spool of cautious lucidity. He speaks in paragraphs and with moments of revision. Sometimes he will stop in the middle of a sentence and say, “Scratch that,” or, “I think the grammar was all screwed up in that sentence, so let me start again.”Less dangerous, he said, “in terms of its impact on the individual consumer. It’s not something I encourage, and I’ve told my daughters I think it’s a bad idea, a waste of time, not very healthy.” What clearly does trouble him is the radically disproportionate arrests and incarcerations for marijuana among minorities. “Middle-class kids don’t get locked up for smoking pot, and poor kids do,” he said. “And African-American kids and Latino kids are more likely to be poor and less likely to have the resources and the support to avoid unduly harsh penalties.” But, he said, “we should not be locking up kids or individual users for long stretches of jail time when some of the folks who are writing those laws have probably done the same thing.” Accordingly, he said of the legalization of marijuana in Colorado and Washington that “it’s important for it to go forward because it’s important for society not to have a situation in which a large portion of people have at one time or another broken the law and only a select few get punished.”As is his habit, he nimbly argued the other side. “Having said all that, those who argue that legalizing marijuana is a panacea and it solves all these social problems I think are probably overstating the case. There is a lot of hair on that policy. And the experiment that’s going to be taking place in Colorado and Washington is going to be, I think, a challenge.” He noted the slippery-slope arguments that might arise. “I also think that, when it comes to harder drugs, the harm done to the user is profound and the social costs are profound. And you do start getting into some difficult line-drawing issues. If marijuana is fully legalized and at some point folks say, Well, we can come up with a negotiated dose of cocaine that we can show is not any more harmful than vodka, are we open to that? If somebody says, We’ve got a finely calibrated dose of meth, it isn’t going to kill you or rot your teeth, are we O.K. with that?”
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Comment #10 posted by schmeff on January 19, 2014 at 12:34:19 PT
...with Uruguay.
...or any guay who has a spine.
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Comment #9 posted by Swazi-X on January 19, 2014 at 12:11:00 PT
No Cigar
If Obama hadn't implied the promise that he'd let states do their thing with the legalization of cannabis (he has not let states do their thing - he's been worse than lil' Bush in DEA raids and Justice Dept. bullying and threats) this would be a step forward for him."...no worse than alcohol."? Get a grip - the federal patent on the active substances in cannabis proves the neuro-protective and anti-oxidant properties of the plant. Cannabinoids protect brain cells (neurons), and alcohol kills brain cells, period. It's science, and these are facts.While he's probably smart enough to understand the real situation - profit from prohibitionist industries funds the massive lobbying/pushback against legalization of cannabis - he's still playing the "Gee, I guess it's ok.." game. The legal term for this is Willful Blindness - when the facts are purposefully ignored.Not only is cannabis the most beneficial substance a human can use, not only is it completely non-toxic and incapable of causing death even by massive overdose, not only does it kill cancer cells and - when used fresh - comes close to curing depression, diabetes, kidney disease and many other modern chronic problems, but it can be grown for free by virtually anyone.Health care problems? Solved. Health insurance companies and Big Pharma? Shrunk to where they should have always been - just another business rather than the current owners of our government.I'm glad he's developed the sand to say something even as mildly positive as this non-factual comment, but for someone in such a position of power he is inexcusably clueless of the science on this issue.We need to do a President-swap with Uruguay.
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Comment #8 posted by Universer on January 19, 2014 at 11:53:10 PT
Link to New Yorker piece
Look what I foundy found:http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2014/01/27/140127fa_fact_remnick?currentPage=all
New Yorker: David Remnick: Going The Distance - On and Off the Road with Preside
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Comment #7 posted by Universer on January 19, 2014 at 11:39:57 PT
Another Step. Any Link?
...to the New Yorker piece?Might be paywalled.Obama is the quintessential politician. Give him truth serum, and he'll spill beans about how cannabis is by far less dangerous than alcohol and needs to be regulated for responsible adult consumption. But, regardless of what you thought of him in 2004 or think of him in 2014, he didn't shoot through the ranks to be a two-term President without being extremely careful choosing his words nor his nuanced and somewhat fluid positions.This is a step. To have the President of the United States speak publicly in such non-absolutist terms, it is another step. We ought be thankful for it ... and then take the next step.
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Comment #6 posted by schmeff on January 19, 2014 at 11:31:21 PT
Understatement
"...only a select few get punished."700,000 people arrested annually for cannabis possession. Obama may think that's "a select few", but I would respectfully suggest that three-quarters of a million people might be more accurately described as "quite a few."
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Comment #5 posted by schmeff on January 19, 2014 at 11:15:38 PT
President Platitude
We all know President Platitude is a smooth salesman, but does he deliver the goods? Last Friday, President Platitude gave a speech about the NSA and expressed how important it was that we as a nation have this debate about blanket surveillance. But of course, this important debate would never have been possible without the brave actions of whistle-blower Edward Snowden, a man whom President Platitude wants very much to eliminate.So when the Smooth-Talker-In-Chief opines that cannabis is safer than alcohol, one has to wonder why lip-service is all he brings to the game. Even a President of Platitudes has the power to 'walk the walk'. He could direct the DEA to reclassify cannabis at any point. Why doesn't he?It's a rhetorical question, but I'll provide the answer anyway: because he's not a leader. He's a coward and a steadfast guardian of the status quo.
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on January 19, 2014 at 11:11:27 PT
Obama Says
Marijuana: Obama said he is most concerned about the impact of drug laws on minorities and the poor. “Middle-class kids don’t get locked up for smoking pot, and poor kids do,” he said. “And African-American kids and Latino kids are more likely to be poor and less likely to have the resources and the support to avoid unduly harsh penalties." He added that he supports Colorado and Washington’s efforts to “go forward” with their efforts at legalization and decriminalization.URL: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2014/01/19/17-highlights-from-the-new-yorkers-17000-word-profile-on-obama/
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on January 19, 2014 at 11:00:30 PT
Obama Quote!
“It's important for it to go forward because it’s important for society not to have a situation in which a large portion of people have at one time or another broken the law and only a select few get punished," he said.
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Comment #2 posted by HempWorld on January 19, 2014 at 10:32:52 PT
Amen!
Thank you Mr. Prez. stand up for your fella brotha! It's about time! (2nd term... )
Legalize it, end race purification!
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on January 19, 2014 at 10:14:38 PT
President Obama
Thank you!
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