End Marijuana Prohibition

Cannabis is not benign, but it is no more harmful than other legal substances. Is it worth the continued criminalization of innocent americans? According to scientists at the National Institutes of Health, the dependence rate of cannabis is 9%. Caffeine has the same 9%, alcohol is a 15%, and tobacco is a 32%. The American Medical Association in 2009 issued a position paper stating, “smoked cannabis reduces neuropathic pain, improves appetite and caloric intake especially in patients with reduced muscle mass, and may relieve spasticity and pain in patients with multiple sclerosis.” And a 2010 study published in Pharmacology, Biochemistry, and Behavior found regular cannabis users’ performance accuracy on episodic memory and working memory tasks “was not significantly altered by marijuana.”