Letter to United States Representatives - via SAM 1/21/2121
Dear Representative,
“How should parents and teachers talk to young people about marijuana? We know that the best way to address substance use in our children is to prevent it. So be frank with children about the dangers of marijuana and emphasize how protecting their brains from harm is the best way to ensure a healthy future. “ - Dr. Jerome Adams, United States Surgeon General
- - - - -
As someone who experienced a psychotic breakdown due to marijuana addiction, I urge you NOT to legalize recreational marijuana.
This was back in the early 1970's when THC levels were around 3%. The percentage in today's genetically modified marijuana is far higher.
For me it's meant a 50-year struggle with mental illness, especially with depression and frequent thoughts of suicide. Legitimate scientific research has shown this is often the outcome of a marijuana habit. I have to take the maximum does daily of two separate antidepressants to remain "normal," but even then there are times that I slip.
I can assure you that anyone who claims that marijuana is harmless, doesn’t know what they are talking about.
- - - - -
Those who push for legalization ignore all the readily available research data about marijuana's overt risks, and denigrate people like me as being "Prohibitionists."
Well I stand in good company:
U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Institutes of Health
American Academy of Pediatrics
American Heart Association
American Lung Association
American Medical Association
American Psychiatric Association
Archives of General Psychiatry
Arizona Medical Association
Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health (Canada)
Brown University Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies
Children's Hospital Colorado
Colorado Department of Public Heath and Environment
Columbia University Medical Center
Denver Health and Hospital Authority
Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Newborn Care,
- Ottawa Hospital, Ontario
European Heart Association
European Society of Cardiology
Journal of Addiction Studies
Journal of Adolescent Health
Kaiser Permanente
King’s College, London
thelancet.com/psychiatry
Lawson Health Research Institute (Canada)
MedicineNet.com
Mental Health Association of Maryland
Missouri Medical Society
National Cancer Institute
National Drug and Alcohol Screening Association
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
National Institute on Drug Abuse
Pew Charitable Trusts
Poison Control Center - Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center, Denver CO,
Schizophrenia Bulletin - Oxford Journals
Society of Biological Psychiatry
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
University of Colorado at Boulder
University of Western Ontario
My “Marijuana Links Page” has even more, but you get the point. The reason I know this is because I RESEARCH EVERYTHING I talk about.
- - - - -
Not only does the Marijuana Lobby not research the prolific number of studies, research, articles, and reports about marijuana's many dangers, like I said earlier, they belittle those who sound the alarm as being "Prohibitionists," as if there's something wrong with informing Americans about scientifically proven health risks.
I'm sure you don't see U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams, or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the American Medical Association, or any on the above list as being Prohibitionists - but recreational legalization proponents do.
Who in their right mind would denigrate those working to protect the health of this nation? Why is that? What is the motivation?
It's like they don't want scientifically verified data to be accepted as being the truth by the public, which raises the larger question - Why is the Marijuana Lobby afraid of the truth?
- - - - -
Back in March of 2017, I testified before the Maryland Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee, concerning recreation legalization. The bill's sponsor, William Smith (D) - Montgomery County, began the session by saying that "No one has died from marijuana,” a common rumor.
In my allotted two-minutes, I cited a 2014 study by the American Heart Association, that demonstrated the connection between marijuana and a series of fatal heart-attacks.
The American Heart Association has published a number of articles about marijuana's risks to the cardiovascular system, the first in 2001, so it's not like this is something new. Yet the Marijuana Lobby acts as if this data has never even existed.
When I wondered aloud about what was the scientific research that supported the fact that "No one had died from marijuana," there was only silence in the room.
Senator Smith wasn't lying, he'd been brainwashed by decades of misinformation from NORML, Marijuana Policy Project, and similar groups that work to ensure the profits of the Marijuana Industry, while ignoring the many overt health risks.
Most revealing was afterwards when I exited to the lobby. I was followed by a person who verbally accosted me, saying I was “Rude” for confronting Senator Smith’s statement, and that I needed to learn my “Facts.”
My response was that all I deal in is “facts,” and offered him a copy of my written testimony, saying that it contained over 20 research links about marijuana’s many dangers.
What he did was to turn around and walk back into the hearing room. It wasn’t that he didn’t know the facts, he DIDN’T WANT TO KNOW - because how could anyone with a conscience or moral principles promote a substance that is known to be dangerous, especially to kids and teens?
- - - - -
The American Society of Addiction Medicine has a Public Policy Statement on Marijuana. These concern Addiction, Psychiatric Effects, Altered Brain Development, Cognitive Impairment, Impaired Neural Connectivity, Psychotic Symptoms, Cannabis Use Disorder, and Reduced Workplace Productivity.
Most disturbing is: “ … collectively, these data are sufficient to suggest that children, pregnant women, and youth with still-developing brains should not use cannabis or cannabinoids due to a variety of neuropsychiatric health effects and impacts on cognitive functioning.”
Yet the Marijuana Lobby denies this, constantly spreading the false message that it is a “harmless” drug.
What the Marijuana Lobby is doing, is planting the seeds that will guarantee a “Lost Generation.”
- - - - -
From Colorado, there is already testimony about how the growing number of homeless whose only desire is to get high, are affecting communities, draining support resources, Unless stopped, this will become the fate of the entire U.S. “There’s a large number of homeless people living here, and they’re living in camps that are not different then refugee camps”. - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gs9X2qpGoUY&t=2s
Even worse is the testimony by Dr Steven Simerville, Medical Director of the Nursery at St. Mary-Corwin Hospital in Pueblo Colorado: “ … in the 70s, we knew that if a baby was exposed prenatally to marijuana (2.5% THC), they would see decreased school performance, they would have difficulties in spatial reasoning, they would have difficulties in problem solving, difficulties in short-term memory, and they would be less likely to graduate from high school, and they would suffer from what we call academic underperformance, meaning they should have more potential but don’t live up to it.” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4bcl9FqfIs
As Simerville goes on to say: “We know what it means for teenagers who smoke marijuana (now 15% THC). It means they have exactly the same thing, and they acquire these same issues: decreased spatial reasoning, decreased school performance, decreased IQ, and it's very interesting that you find the same things with teenagers exposed to THC that you filed in newborn babies, down the road.”
“One of the most important things we've learned is that the brain doesn't actually finish developing until the late 20s … The prefrontal cortex is the last part of the brain to mature, and that doesn't happen until 25 to 30 … It means that the neurons that live in that part of the brain are reforming their connections into the final connections that are going to characterize mature adult decision-making, and that happens late in young adulthood.”
- - - - -
And this is only one series of problems that effect kids, teens, and young adults.
I belong to three national groups who work to educate parents about marijuana’s dangers (there are more). Two of them were started by grieving mothers who lost children due to suicide triggered by marijuana psychosis.
Remember, I went and still go through this myself, but I’m one of the lucky ones.
Moms Strong in particular, has stories about the pain, suffering, and grief families have endured because of marijuana. I urge you to visit: https://momsstrong.org/ “They say marijuana doesn’t kill anyone. We wish that were true. These are our stories.”
Both the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, and the U.S. Surgeon General emphasize the connection between marijuana and mental illness.
However, the Marijuana Lobby dismisses this suffering as if it were nothing. Such reckless cruelty. There is absolutely no sense of decency.
- - - - -
Another site, “Johnny’s Ambassadors,” was founded by Laura Stack, after her marijuana addicted son jumped off an eight-story building. - https://johnnysambassadors.org/ “Saving Our Youth from the Harms of Marijuana.”
Her site has several dozen webinar recordings, presented by psychologists, psychiatrists, doctors, and other knowledgable experts.
Again, the Marijuana Lobby dismisses all this, citing that their “experts” say otherwise. They act as if they are more knowledgable and smarter then the CDC, U.S. Surgeon General, and all the other researchers, doctors, scientists, and health experts whose work is to protect this nation’s health.
I’ve even seen where NORML’s reinterpreted legitimate research to make it sound favorable. Then when questioned by the media, they claim they have evidence to back up their claims that marijuana is harmless. Such an incredibly dangerous lie.
These were the “facts” I was accused of not knowing when I testified back in 2017
- - - - -
And then there’s driving.
Rumor has it that one can drive safely while high, however, an article from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety says otherwise: “Fatal Crashes Involving Drivers Who Test Positive for Marijuana Increase After State Legalizes Drug.”
Nat Wienecke, senior vice president for federal government relations at the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCIAA), described the data coming out of states like Colorado as “really frightening.” He said: “Road accidents are up, the homeless rate is up, vagrancy is up – all sorts of social issues have evolved in Colorado since the state legalized cannabis for recreational-use.”
In 2018, analysts for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the Highway Loss Data Institute, estimated that the frequency of crash claims per insured vehicle year rose a combined 6% following the start of retail sales of recreational marijuana in Colorado, Nevada, Oregon and Washington.
- - - - -
In a related incident, in Maryland, 16 people were killed in an Amtrak accident that occurred in the town of Chase, Baltimore County. The National Transportation Safety Board determined that “the probable cause of this accident was the failure, as a result of impairment from marijuana, of the engineer of Conrail train ENS-121 to stop his train.”
- - - - -
This was back in 1987, yet the Marijuana Lobby and its supporters still claim to this day, that marijuana is harmless.
In fact this morning, I saw a tweet from the Maryland Delegate Jazz Lewis (D - 24th District) who’s sponsoring a bill designed for the unconditional legalization of recreational marijuana in Maryland:
“We must face the facts that our prohibition of cannabis failed, and always did far more harm than good. It is time that we have comprehensive legislation that seeks to not only legalize cannabis but also better those who have suffered because of our government's past failures.” - J.L.
The “facts” that Delegate Lewis is referring to, are the assumptions and misstatements by the Marijuana Lobby.
With regard to all the research data and statistics that is now available, it is clear that it’s the reckless efforts to portray marijuana as being harmless that is causing the real harm - harm that Marijuana Industry doesn’t want Americans to know about.
This is just like the denial of the tobacco industry, when the link to cancer and heart disease started to become apparent.
In the case with marijuana, the evidence is already known. Deniers will claim that because of it being a Schedule 1 drug, not enough research can be done.
The truth is however, that plenty of data is available to read online right now, and more is always coming forth.
My Marijuana-Links-Page has over 200 research links, personal testimonies, and news articles. I know of other concerned organizations that have over 1,000.
With regard to: “… better those who have suffered because of our government's past failures.” The failure is that the government’s been mislead by the Marijuana Industry and its lobbyists.
It’s an overt case of Profit vs. People.
- - - - -
The FDA has this statement about marijuana: “To date, the FDA has not approved a marketing application for cannabis for the treatment of any disease or condition. The agency has, however, approved one cannabis-derived drug product: Epidiolex (cannabidiol), and three synthetic cannabis-related drug products: These approved drug products are only available with a prescription from a licensed healthcare provider. Importantly, the FDA has not approved any other cannabis, cannabis-derived, or cannabidiol (CBD) products currently available on the market.
Not only is the FDA doing its job, I’m sure it remembers how by saying “NO!” it reduced the horror of the Thalidomide Tragedy in the U.S., that had effected so many other countries.
- - - - -
I think it’s time for legislators to take a stand for an America that values having a clear mind, especially with regard to our children - who will become our nation’s future leaders.
As the United Negro College Fund states, “A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste.”
It now has even more significance in today’s world, then when it began in the 1970’s.
- - - - -
As this new Congress gets underway, it is crucial that you understand that legalizing the commercial sale of marijuana is a reckless ploy that will only benefit the marijuana industry and its investors from Big Tobacco, Big Pharma, and alcohol conglomerates.
Legalization would allow the advertising and sale of 99% potency concentrates and kid-friendly pot gummies, ice creams, and sodas that have recently come under scrutiny for causing massive increases in emergency room visits in legalized states and have been shown to increase the risk of psychosis. Furthermore, it opens the floodgates for institutional investors and Big Tobacco to swoop in and buy up the marijuana industry.
As it stands, the reality is that marijuana legalization has failed to measure up to the many promises of its promoters. It does not result in social justice or equity, tax revenues do not make up for the social costs related to increased substance abuse and drugged driving, and the illicit market continues to proliferate.
All this, while the country is reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic - which has already taken several hundred thousand American lives.
Big Pot has spent millions of dollars on lobbyists who have written bills to help turn the industry into the next Big Tobacco, all at the expense of public health, safety, social justice, and common sense. Don't let them expand their addiction-for-profit scheme.
“How should parents and teachers talk to young people about marijuana? We know that the best way to address substance use in our children is to prevent it. So be frank with children about the dangers of marijuana and emphasize how protecting their brains from harm is the best way to ensure a healthy future. “ - Dr. Jerome Adams, United States Surgeon General
- - - - -
As someone who experienced a psychotic breakdown due to marijuana addiction, I urge you NOT to legalize recreational marijuana.
This was back in the early 1970's when THC levels were around 3%. The percentage in today's genetically modified marijuana is far higher.
For me it's meant a 50-year struggle with mental illness, especially with depression and frequent thoughts of suicide. Legitimate scientific research has shown this is often the outcome of a marijuana habit. I have to take the maximum does daily of two separate antidepressants to remain "normal," but even then there are times that I slip.
I can assure you that anyone who claims that marijuana is harmless, doesn’t know what they are talking about.
- - - - -
Those who push for legalization ignore all the readily available research data about marijuana's overt risks, and denigrate people like me as being "Prohibitionists."
Well I stand in good company:
U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
National Institutes of Health
American Academy of Pediatrics
American Heart Association
American Lung Association
American Medical Association
American Psychiatric Association
Archives of General Psychiatry
Arizona Medical Association
Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health (Canada)
Brown University Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies
Children's Hospital Colorado
Colorado Department of Public Heath and Environment
Columbia University Medical Center
Denver Health and Hospital Authority
Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Newborn Care,
- Ottawa Hospital, Ontario
European Heart Association
European Society of Cardiology
Journal of Addiction Studies
Journal of Adolescent Health
Kaiser Permanente
King’s College, London
thelancet.com/psychiatry
Lawson Health Research Institute (Canada)
MedicineNet.com
Mental Health Association of Maryland
Missouri Medical Society
National Cancer Institute
National Drug and Alcohol Screening Association
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
National Institute on Drug Abuse
Pew Charitable Trusts
Poison Control Center - Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center, Denver CO,
Schizophrenia Bulletin - Oxford Journals
Society of Biological Psychiatry
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
University of Colorado at Boulder
University of Western Ontario
My “Marijuana Links Page” has even more, but you get the point. The reason I know this is because I RESEARCH EVERYTHING I talk about.
- - - - -
Not only does the Marijuana Lobby not research the prolific number of studies, research, articles, and reports about marijuana's many dangers, like I said earlier, they belittle those who sound the alarm as being "Prohibitionists," as if there's something wrong with informing Americans about scientifically proven health risks.
I'm sure you don't see U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams, or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the American Medical Association, or any on the above list as being Prohibitionists - but recreational legalization proponents do.
Who in their right mind would denigrate those working to protect the health of this nation? Why is that? What is the motivation?
It's like they don't want scientifically verified data to be accepted as being the truth by the public, which raises the larger question - Why is the Marijuana Lobby afraid of the truth?
- - - - -
Back in March of 2017, I testified before the Maryland Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee, concerning recreation legalization. The bill's sponsor, William Smith (D) - Montgomery County, began the session by saying that "No one has died from marijuana,” a common rumor.
In my allotted two-minutes, I cited a 2014 study by the American Heart Association, that demonstrated the connection between marijuana and a series of fatal heart-attacks.
The American Heart Association has published a number of articles about marijuana's risks to the cardiovascular system, the first in 2001, so it's not like this is something new. Yet the Marijuana Lobby acts as if this data has never even existed.
When I wondered aloud about what was the scientific research that supported the fact that "No one had died from marijuana," there was only silence in the room.
Senator Smith wasn't lying, he'd been brainwashed by decades of misinformation from NORML, Marijuana Policy Project, and similar groups that work to ensure the profits of the Marijuana Industry, while ignoring the many overt health risks.
Most revealing was afterwards when I exited to the lobby. I was followed by a person who verbally accosted me, saying I was “Rude” for confronting Senator Smith’s statement, and that I needed to learn my “Facts.”
My response was that all I deal in is “facts,” and offered him a copy of my written testimony, saying that it contained over 20 research links about marijuana’s many dangers.
What he did was to turn around and walk back into the hearing room. It wasn’t that he didn’t know the facts, he DIDN’T WANT TO KNOW - because how could anyone with a conscience or moral principles promote a substance that is known to be dangerous, especially to kids and teens?
- - - - -
The American Society of Addiction Medicine has a Public Policy Statement on Marijuana. These concern Addiction, Psychiatric Effects, Altered Brain Development, Cognitive Impairment, Impaired Neural Connectivity, Psychotic Symptoms, Cannabis Use Disorder, and Reduced Workplace Productivity.
Most disturbing is: “ … collectively, these data are sufficient to suggest that children, pregnant women, and youth with still-developing brains should not use cannabis or cannabinoids due to a variety of neuropsychiatric health effects and impacts on cognitive functioning.”
Yet the Marijuana Lobby denies this, constantly spreading the false message that it is a “harmless” drug.
What the Marijuana Lobby is doing, is planting the seeds that will guarantee a “Lost Generation.”
- - - - -
From Colorado, there is already testimony about how the growing number of homeless whose only desire is to get high, are affecting communities, draining support resources, Unless stopped, this will become the fate of the entire U.S. “There’s a large number of homeless people living here, and they’re living in camps that are not different then refugee camps”. - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gs9X2qpGoUY&t=2s
Even worse is the testimony by Dr Steven Simerville, Medical Director of the Nursery at St. Mary-Corwin Hospital in Pueblo Colorado: “ … in the 70s, we knew that if a baby was exposed prenatally to marijuana (2.5% THC), they would see decreased school performance, they would have difficulties in spatial reasoning, they would have difficulties in problem solving, difficulties in short-term memory, and they would be less likely to graduate from high school, and they would suffer from what we call academic underperformance, meaning they should have more potential but don’t live up to it.” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4bcl9FqfIs
As Simerville goes on to say: “We know what it means for teenagers who smoke marijuana (now 15% THC). It means they have exactly the same thing, and they acquire these same issues: decreased spatial reasoning, decreased school performance, decreased IQ, and it's very interesting that you find the same things with teenagers exposed to THC that you filed in newborn babies, down the road.”
“One of the most important things we've learned is that the brain doesn't actually finish developing until the late 20s … The prefrontal cortex is the last part of the brain to mature, and that doesn't happen until 25 to 30 … It means that the neurons that live in that part of the brain are reforming their connections into the final connections that are going to characterize mature adult decision-making, and that happens late in young adulthood.”
- - - - -
And this is only one series of problems that effect kids, teens, and young adults.
I belong to three national groups who work to educate parents about marijuana’s dangers (there are more). Two of them were started by grieving mothers who lost children due to suicide triggered by marijuana psychosis.
Remember, I went and still go through this myself, but I’m one of the lucky ones.
Moms Strong in particular, has stories about the pain, suffering, and grief families have endured because of marijuana. I urge you to visit: https://momsstrong.org/ “They say marijuana doesn’t kill anyone. We wish that were true. These are our stories.”
Both the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, and the U.S. Surgeon General emphasize the connection between marijuana and mental illness.
However, the Marijuana Lobby dismisses this suffering as if it were nothing. Such reckless cruelty. There is absolutely no sense of decency.
- - - - -
Another site, “Johnny’s Ambassadors,” was founded by Laura Stack, after her marijuana addicted son jumped off an eight-story building. - https://johnnysambassadors.org/ “Saving Our Youth from the Harms of Marijuana.”
Her site has several dozen webinar recordings, presented by psychologists, psychiatrists, doctors, and other knowledgable experts.
Again, the Marijuana Lobby dismisses all this, citing that their “experts” say otherwise. They act as if they are more knowledgable and smarter then the CDC, U.S. Surgeon General, and all the other researchers, doctors, scientists, and health experts whose work is to protect this nation’s health.
I’ve even seen where NORML’s reinterpreted legitimate research to make it sound favorable. Then when questioned by the media, they claim they have evidence to back up their claims that marijuana is harmless. Such an incredibly dangerous lie.
These were the “facts” I was accused of not knowing when I testified back in 2017
- - - - -
And then there’s driving.
Rumor has it that one can drive safely while high, however, an article from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety says otherwise: “Fatal Crashes Involving Drivers Who Test Positive for Marijuana Increase After State Legalizes Drug.”
Nat Wienecke, senior vice president for federal government relations at the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCIAA), described the data coming out of states like Colorado as “really frightening.” He said: “Road accidents are up, the homeless rate is up, vagrancy is up – all sorts of social issues have evolved in Colorado since the state legalized cannabis for recreational-use.”
In 2018, analysts for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the Highway Loss Data Institute, estimated that the frequency of crash claims per insured vehicle year rose a combined 6% following the start of retail sales of recreational marijuana in Colorado, Nevada, Oregon and Washington.
- - - - -
In a related incident, in Maryland, 16 people were killed in an Amtrak accident that occurred in the town of Chase, Baltimore County. The National Transportation Safety Board determined that “the probable cause of this accident was the failure, as a result of impairment from marijuana, of the engineer of Conrail train ENS-121 to stop his train.”
- - - - -
This was back in 1987, yet the Marijuana Lobby and its supporters still claim to this day, that marijuana is harmless.
In fact this morning, I saw a tweet from the Maryland Delegate Jazz Lewis (D - 24th District) who’s sponsoring a bill designed for the unconditional legalization of recreational marijuana in Maryland:
“We must face the facts that our prohibition of cannabis failed, and always did far more harm than good. It is time that we have comprehensive legislation that seeks to not only legalize cannabis but also better those who have suffered because of our government's past failures.” - J.L.
The “facts” that Delegate Lewis is referring to, are the assumptions and misstatements by the Marijuana Lobby.
With regard to all the research data and statistics that is now available, it is clear that it’s the reckless efforts to portray marijuana as being harmless that is causing the real harm - harm that Marijuana Industry doesn’t want Americans to know about.
This is just like the denial of the tobacco industry, when the link to cancer and heart disease started to become apparent.
In the case with marijuana, the evidence is already known. Deniers will claim that because of it being a Schedule 1 drug, not enough research can be done.
The truth is however, that plenty of data is available to read online right now, and more is always coming forth.
My Marijuana-Links-Page has over 200 research links, personal testimonies, and news articles. I know of other concerned organizations that have over 1,000.
With regard to: “… better those who have suffered because of our government's past failures.” The failure is that the government’s been mislead by the Marijuana Industry and its lobbyists.
It’s an overt case of Profit vs. People.
- - - - -
The FDA has this statement about marijuana: “To date, the FDA has not approved a marketing application for cannabis for the treatment of any disease or condition. The agency has, however, approved one cannabis-derived drug product: Epidiolex (cannabidiol), and three synthetic cannabis-related drug products: These approved drug products are only available with a prescription from a licensed healthcare provider. Importantly, the FDA has not approved any other cannabis, cannabis-derived, or cannabidiol (CBD) products currently available on the market.
Not only is the FDA doing its job, I’m sure it remembers how by saying “NO!” it reduced the horror of the Thalidomide Tragedy in the U.S., that had effected so many other countries.
- - - - -
I think it’s time for legislators to take a stand for an America that values having a clear mind, especially with regard to our children - who will become our nation’s future leaders.
As the United Negro College Fund states, “A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste.”
It now has even more significance in today’s world, then when it began in the 1970’s.
- - - - -
As this new Congress gets underway, it is crucial that you understand that legalizing the commercial sale of marijuana is a reckless ploy that will only benefit the marijuana industry and its investors from Big Tobacco, Big Pharma, and alcohol conglomerates.
Legalization would allow the advertising and sale of 99% potency concentrates and kid-friendly pot gummies, ice creams, and sodas that have recently come under scrutiny for causing massive increases in emergency room visits in legalized states and have been shown to increase the risk of psychosis. Furthermore, it opens the floodgates for institutional investors and Big Tobacco to swoop in and buy up the marijuana industry.
As it stands, the reality is that marijuana legalization has failed to measure up to the many promises of its promoters. It does not result in social justice or equity, tax revenues do not make up for the social costs related to increased substance abuse and drugged driving, and the illicit market continues to proliferate.
All this, while the country is reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic - which has already taken several hundred thousand American lives.
Big Pot has spent millions of dollars on lobbyists who have written bills to help turn the industry into the next Big Tobacco, all at the expense of public health, safety, social justice, and common sense. Don't let them expand their addiction-for-profit scheme.