Marijuana decriminalization progress

My comments assume that eventually marijuana use will be legal federally in the US despite anyone’s lobbying efforts. If so, selling MORE conventional anti-anxiety medication after marijuana legalization does not appear to be an option according to your article: that market will reduce even if the drug companies preferred that it didn’t. Thus the drug companies’ decision is whether to just accept the loss of that revenue or try to at least partially replace it with a lower margin product like weed.

There are countless examples of other industries adjusting their product mix to accompany new realities. At the end of the day, companies will maximize their income and profits even if forced to go into a lower margin business to do so.

Hey, I like it when folks make predictions.

I think you are wrong. I predict that Biden will get it rescheduled. This will increase access. It will take more time to be fully legal and regulated, but we will get there in this decade.

I also predict that more states will move towards both medical and recreational legalization in the next couple years.

Yup. Pfizer already getting into medical cannabis:

I would agree. I think there is a lot of support and not much opposition by US voters on this issue? I don’t think Americans and Canadians differ a whole lot in their attitudes on this subject and it was a non-issue here when Trudeau promoted legalization.

I don’t think it is a political issue in the US the way abortion or gun control is? The US may not go as far as Canada has with legalization but Biden is only proposing a modest first step.

Cspan is right that we do have very powerful lobbies looking at their bottom line. But I don’t the the US is beyond reform, where voters and doctors are interested. Which is how it’s worked out in states.

It’s a Democrat issue, but not a hot topic like abortion or gun control or lgbt.

I think it also has some buy-in from Republicans because lots of old people use MJ.

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and all the young people do as well…

I expect a lot of the younger Republican types who stormed the Capitol may be users as well. Possibly only the Religious Right might have some opposition but it is not as hot button as abortion.

This is within Pfizer’s existing business model though, not within the legalized/medicinal cannabis industry model. People purchase dried flowers, edibles, and concentrates, not “Olorinab (APD371), an investigational, oral, full agonist of the cannabinoid type 2 receptor (CB2).”

It’s quite possible that Pfizer would pursue patented medicine like this while also opposing full legalization as an incentive to purchase their medicine. Sure, you may get a rescheduling from I to II or something to allow this, but that doesn’t necessarily mean we get full legalization.

I think the main push for full legalization and drop it from the schedules would be popular support at this point. At some point, some political figures would think to themselves “wtf are we even doing”, we can get elected so easily on this issue.

This simply isn’t true or it would have been done already. I’m supportive of your stance but this isn’t an issue that is a top concern for most people.

Don’t like 80-90% of Americans support medical and/or full legalization? If that’s not enough, what is? At some point, Americans should start asking the question why it’s not legal already, and then they may start having similar opinions as my own.

Legalization is such a no-brainer issue politically that surely there’s some hidden but influential opposition to it that’s prevented it?

I want to say you guys are right. But fact is we have politicians that are just disconnected from reality. Be it abortion or drugs.

And they push for things that sometimes are not popular. Like interracial marriage (when it was legalized).

I think sometimes the explanation could just be “they dunno what they’re doing”

There has to be a first person to push for legalization at some point. That doesn’t necessarily mean there’s some hidden opposition prior to such an event happening.

I think there has been. Numerous bills have been introduced in Congress that would effectively legalize. The bills never go anywhere, so apparently politicians are really disconnected from reality or else constituents are disconnected from the political lobbying process.

The US senate is biased towards the Republican base. And also towards not passing any laws. Same with abortion, gun control, and immigration. This further combines with lobbying power and apathy from voters.

Still, I think it will happen with the level of support we have now. Which is relatively new.

Apparently it’s continued on an upward trend…

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effing legalize it already! I wanna be able to bring edibles when I travel

Good.

Now the main thing is to get 1 Republican Senator to vote for it. And then there’s the fucking filibuster.

That or for Garland to make it happen through the FDA, but that’s a tricky process. They need to use studies to prove its medical value, but at the same time can’t legally study it.

In any case I think it will happen, and my guess is it will happen through Garland, or the next Democrat AG. Especially if Rs take the Senate in November.

With legalization comes regulation, standardization, trusting some regulatory authority to monitor labelling and such.
That will result in Big Tobacco getting into the MJ growing business, pushing out all the specialty growers who can’t handle the high (heh-heh) variable expenses.

Beer, wine and spirits companies are also a good fit and we have seen that already with Constellation Brands. Also confectioners.

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They don’t need any Republicans, Kamala is the tiebreaker. While it’s possible, filibustering a bill with like 70+% popular support seems inane. A legalization bill passed the House last year, I think, but can’t make it for a Senate vote. I think Manchin won’t support it, which is more of a problem than no Republicans supporting it.

One would think this would get more attention from teh Democrats since, historically, marijuana prohibition has been a major driver of inequity in incarceration rates as well as a major driver of high incarceration rates overall. At state and local levels, Democrats have been pursuing various policing and incarceration reforms like cashless bail and reducing focus on various misdemeanor crimes. Legalization seems like a less controversial tool to a similar end. With the high public support for it, it seems probable that at least 1 Republican Senator would vote yes, but it’s not even up for a vote in the Senate. I guess they have better things to do. Such a shame!

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