This is how we reach the tipping point for weed legalization.
Once enough money gets behind it and there is a potential jackpot then it'll happen.
For instance.
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/greg-engel/why-im-leaving-big-pharma_b_6838474.html
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3. Ground-breaking, global potential. Today, as big pharma struggles to differentiate itself beyond incremental advances in treatment, to gain reimbursement for promising but costly therapies, and to rationalize the high price tag for biologics to treat rare diseases, the helping professions need to be open to alternative treatment options that have huge potential to radically transform the lives of patients suffering from a wide range of conditions.
Medical cannabis has that potential. We all agree we need more scientific evidence to help us understand how medical cannabis can benefit patients. I believe the industry is poised to play an important role in that pursuit. By investing in state-of-the-art facilities and world-class teams, we will be able to study the plant and support new clinical research, such as how medical cannabis may help people suffering from conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder.
Oh and BTW I don't typically indulge because sadly it's against the law and working as a Government contractor very often I have to deal with the realities of the occasional piss test. At least when I start a new contract.
I would like nothing better than to have a nice dubie and a frosty one by the campfire on Friday and Saturday nights but I gotta feed the monkey.
And the numbers are shifting
http://www.ibtimes.com/when-will-marijuana-be-legal-us-americans-weigh-future-legalized-weed-1886282
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Public opinion about marijuana legalization has shifted in recent years. In 2006, just 32 percent of Americans said they favored legalizing pot across the country. Today, that figure has jumped to 53 percent, according to a recent Pew Research Center poll. Millennials -- people born between 1981 and 1997 -- were the most likely to support legalization efforts, by a margin of 68 percent. Fifty-two percent of Americans born between 1965 and 1980 -- the generation known as Gen X ? said they thought weed should be legal in the U.S.
And the news is in from states where it's legal
http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/19/opinion/miron-marijuana-legalization/
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Do these developments mean that full legalization is inevitable?
Not necessarily, but one would hope so. Marijuana legalization is a policy no-brainer. Any society that professes to value liberty should leave adults free to consume marijuana.
Moreover, the evidence from states and countries that have decriminalized or medicalized marijuana suggests that policy plays a modest role in limiting use. And while marijuana can harm the user or others when consumed inappropriately, the same applies to many legal goods such as alcohol, tobacco, excessive eating or driving a car.
Recent evidence from Colorado confirms that marijuana's legal status has minimal impact on marijuana use or the harms allegedly caused by use. Since commercialization of medical marijuana in 2009, and since legalization in 2012, marijuana use, crime, traffic accidents, education and health outcomes have all followed their pre-existing trends rather than increasing or decreasing after policy liberalized.
The strong claims made by legalization critics are not borne out in the data. Likewise, some strong claims by legalization advocates -- e.g., that marijuana tourism would be a major boom to the economy -- have also not materialized.
The main impact of Colorado's legalization has been that marijuana users can now purchase and use with less worry about harsh legal ramifications.