OAKLAND, Calif., July 12, 2009
High Stakes: A Call to Legalize Marijuana
California Desperately Needs Tax Revenue, Prompting Some to See Green in Making Grass Legal
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(CBS/AP)
In Oakland, Calif., Richard Lee runs a string of businesses, from coffee shops to glass blowing that are helping revitalize the once-decaying downtown.
But Lee's business empire is built on an unusual foundation: Selling marijuana
In the back of his Blue Sky Coffee Shop there's a steady stream of cash buyers, and not just for coffee.
"In the front you get the coffee and pastries, and in the back you get the cannabis," Lee said.
A salesman told customers, "You're welcome to pull the bags out and smell the herb as you like."
What's going on here is illegal under federal law, but permitted under California law that since 1996 has allowed marijuana for medical use.
A dozen other states have similar laws. One customer named Charles said pot is exactly what his doctor ordered.
"So that's what relieves my anxiety and allows me to cope and feel good," he said.
Lee has dubbed his Oakland neighborhood "Oaksterdam" . . . with a nod to Amsterdam and its liberal drug laws. His goal is to make this a tourist destination, with marijuana its main attraction.
"Does that worry people around here?" asked Blackstone.
"No, people around here love it 'cause they see how much we've improved the neighborhood," Lee said.
Next door to where Lee sells marijuana, Gertha Hays sells clothes. She says the dispensary brings people from all walks of life. "There's no particular pothead," she said, "so everyone comes over there."
"So these aren't just druggies in there?" Blackstone asked.
"No, not at all. If you look and see who comes up and down thethe block you'll see it's so diverse," Hays said.
Part of the Oaksterdam neighborhood is a nursery growing a cash crop: Medical marijuana is now estimated to be a $2 to 3 billion business in California.
"Yeah, there's a lot of people making a lot of money," lee said.
(CBS)
"We estimate, overall, [the] California cannabis industry is in the neighborhood of around $15 billion," lee said.
While there is disagreement over the real size of the marijuana market it's big enough to have captured the attention of lawmakers trying to fill a huge hole in the state budget.
Assemblyman Tom Ammiano is pushing legislation to legalize pot so the state can inhale new taxes.
"I thought it was high time, no pun intended, for this to be on the table," Ammiano said. "I'm trying to beat everybody to the punch with the jokes, because I get a lot of 'em," he laughed.
There are many who ridicule the idea, but the state tax board estimates Ammiano's proposed tax of $50 an ounce could bring in $1.5 to 2 billion a year.
"We find that highly unlikely," said Rosalie Pacula, of the Rand Drug Policy Research Center. She says California is likely to be disappointed by the revenue raised on marijuana that now sells for about $150 an ounce.
"If you try to impose a tax that is that high, you have absolutely no incentive for the black market to disappear," she said. "There is complete profit motive for them to actually stay."
The tax proposal, though, has started an unusual political discussion. According to one poll, 56 percent of California voters say marijuana should be legalized and taxed. Even California's Republican governor has not snuffed out talk of legalization.
"No, I think it's not time for that, but I think it's time for debate," Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said. "All of those ideas for creating extra revenues, I'm always for an open debate on it."
Of course, Governor Schwarzenegger, from his earlier life, does have some experience . . .
. . . as does the president himself.
"I inhaled, frequently," Mr. Obama admitted on the campaign trail, in a nod to President Bill Clinton's earlier quasi-admission. "That was the point."
And while the president says he is opposed to legalizing pot ("No, I don't think that is a good strategy to grow our economy"), his administration has ordered the DEA to stop raiding state-approved medical marijuana dispensaries.
It's a big change from decades of viewing the plant as the indisputable evil portrayed in the 1936 film "Reefer Madness."
But that old image has been going up in smoke for decades.
It was along for the trip in 1969 in the movie "Easy Rider," and on the cover of Life Magazine. On TV today it's just a part of suburban life in the series "Weeds."
And then there's the growing recognition of marijuana as medicine.
"Marijuana has been a medicine for 5,000 years," said Dr. Donald Abrams of San Francisco General Hospital. "It's only for the last 70 years that it hasn't been a medicine in this country."
Dr. Abrams has been studying marijuana for twelve years and is convinced it is both effective and safe.
"I think marijuana is a very good medicine," he said. "I'm a cancer doctor. I take care every day of patients who have loss of appetite, nausea, pain, difficulty sleeping and depression. I have one medicine that can treat all of those symptoms, instead of five different medicines to which they may become addicted.
"And that one is marijuana, and they're not gonna become addicted to it?" Blackstone said.
"That's correct," said Dr. Abrams.
But those who have been fighting the war on drugs say that, just because marijuana may be medicine, that doesn't mean it should be legal.
"There's just no doubt about it that the drug cartels and the drug organizations are very much involved in the production and sale of marijuana, said Roy Wasden, police chief in Modesto, Calif., where a lot of marijuana is grown.
"You can be out walking through the national forest, and if you hike into one of these marijuana grows, you'll be at great risk," he said.
And drug fighters warn aging boomers that marijuana isn't the gentle weed they remember. Today's pot is a whole different kettle of fish
"The marijuana of the 1960s and Woodstock is not what's being sold on the streets in the United States today, said Chief Bernard Melekian, head of the California Police Chiefs Association. "The narcotic portion, the THC of marijuana in the '60s, hovered around one or two percent. THC today is around 27 to 30 percent.
"You have a very significantly different plant."
Teaching people to grow that plant is another one of Richard Lee's businesses.
Lee runs Oaksterdam University, where students also learn how to stay within the state's medical marijuana laws.
"So you can't plant those seeds until you know what the law is?" Blackstone asked.
"Right," said Lee. "Vote today and get high tonight."
Students like Darnell Blackman and Barbara Kramer see an opportunity to do good . . . and to do well . . . by growing marijuana.
"Just like aspirin or ibuprofen or any of those other medications, cannabis is just another way of helping people," said Blackman.
"I thought maybe there was some way that I could get in the ground floor, get ahead of the curve on where this industry might be going," said Kramer.
There are still plenty of obstacles before it's a legal industry. Chief Wasden says this is no time for a surrender in the war on drugs.
"Fewer kids are using drugs today," he said. "We're not losing the war on drugs. Kids are starting to understand the negative, negative consequences of drug abuse. Do we need to introduce another dependency-driven substance into our community when in fact we're making progress?"
But in the community now known as Oaksterdam, the drug warriors are nowhere to be seen . . . as a whole neighborhood goes to pot.
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- hell yea man finally somebody who isnt downing pot thats great
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- disagree on this one it dosnt make you lazy and hungry all the time you callin evryone who smokes a bum? hahaha **** YOU not evryone is and iv been around it all my life and doin great. legalizing it would acually help if you stop to think about it and quit hateing on pot gah you people are such haters. quit tha hateing damn have you ever even tried it hell you mite enjoy it i agree crack, cocaine, meth all that ***** stupid and nobody should do it but marijuana isnt bad so get off the stoner societies nuts and acually try it before throwing out all your little opinions. its just **** up how u sit there n say blah blah blah pots horrible when if this **** up country would get off their LAZY ***** n tax the ***** we wouldnt be BROKE ******* i think im done now think bout ***** before u go sayin ***** about it HATER
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- i disagree its people like you who need 2 smoke a bowl n chill out marijuana isnt bad it dosnt kill it just makes you happy for awhile n this "goverment" is a bunch of bull land of the free my ASS we arent free we have more laws than anybody in this world i think its really ****** up but hey guess thats mine and HALF OF AMERICAS oppinon bye bye
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- Alright.. stop for a second and think. If only the half of you people were not so ignorant and unrealistic about marijuana. Weed is 100x better than alcohol. People drink and drive and kill others. People drink and drink and drink and whats next? Their liver is shot. Good luck with life with a shot liver. That's not even the half of it. When a kid/teen drinks the results are always bad. Girls act like total ***** until they are throwing up everywhere and it makes the guys think they are invincible, ending up in stupid ****.(take it from me, only 17) On the contrary, marijuana has never killed anyone. I have never once heard on the news a family being killing by a stoned driver? It makes me laugh. People have their choices..its called freedom. If I want to sit there and smoke my "dope" (is that what you people call it?) all day, then I should be able too. Its a plant. God has put it here for a reason. If California legalized marijuana, I would be there in a heartbeat ready to empty my pockets. I'll be the first to admit to this. It would be a great idea. Then as California gets out of the hole, (making a fool of all you ignorant people) more and more states, like Michigan, would legalize the drug. I am waiting for the day. :]
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- WAKE UP AMERICA,,,,,,IF IT IS LEGAL WE ALL WILL SAVE IN TAXES,,,,BESIDES BUSH BROUGHT BACK THE "H" DRUG TO THIS COUNTRY DID HE NOT.....LOOK AT ALLL THE BALLLONS ON LA'S STREETS,,,PROOF ENOUGH,,,,,THE h DRUG KILLS POT DOES NOT
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- Boooz is legal and it kills every hour,,,POT does not and it also does not make ya lazy it makes you creative not rude,,,,also get things done,,,,,cigarreets stink and kill you yet you smoke it,,,,,our government makes money on it drug dealers do too yet the american public pay the taxes used to house and incarcerate(SP) many which costs us tons a year ,,,if we lagalize drugs it will become boring for most and keep our kidds safer.POT is not a bigggy,,,besides GOD out it here did he not it grows from our ground and you can smoke it straight from the plant yet the rest of the crappp like booooze has to be made. The drugs your doctor gives you kills you faster then anything else and they will not tell you that as they make tons of money off of us to kill us with all thier stupid pills. NO ONE has ever died from smoking a joint,,,as far as all your religious groups I am sure most drink and evern smoke pot opppps did I say so caal ed christians,,,wake up I know GOD will spark one up for me when we have a talk when i get to the pearly gates so we will have a good buzz and have a chatt about this stupid world full of control freaks......GO AWAY CONTROL FREAK WORRY ABOUT YOURSELF AND LEAVE EVERYONE ELSE ALONE.
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- Why is it such an issue,,,,cause our government makes way tooo much money from it being illegal as opposed to it being legal,,,tooo many shallow people NO ONE HAS EVER DIED FROM POT,,,,,now booooz daily ciggarretts daily,,,,,,,,but POT no one,,,,,,,,wake up folks and if you have not ever burned one try it before you put it down or go to your next fricking happpy hour and get drunk, know before you speak. legalize it and save money on taxes
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- It is political suicide NOT to support bill HR2943, and that the American people do not wish to see someone in office who puts their own reputation in front of the efficacy of the country's economy and law enforcement, as well as a basic sense of morality found within the constitution of the United States.
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- Cailifornia needs to legalize Pot and Opiates , then charge for supervised use so it can get it's self out of debt.
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- Drugs and the financial collapse of the United States
By: Nimo
Bear with me here its all connected. The drug war has cost one trillion tax dollars, when you add to that the lost productivity of the millions of working tax payers destroyed, and unemployable, after being convicted it is much more. Many of the convicts are no longer productive, they are now economic liabilities of the state for life. If economics is your priority, last year over 700,000 Americans were prosecuted for marijuana crimes the vast majority for possession. Most of the people arrested for marijuana and many other drugs have jobs and pay taxes, they function well in society. After being convicted they can no longer find good jobs or contribute to the economy or society, in the ways they could have. What do think they will do to survive. The drug war is actually creating more of the very criminals Americans are so concerned about. Give an American a good job and some hope and you will have less crime and less organized crime, it really is not that hard to understand.
The drug war is a civil war with one faction imposing its will at gun point and great cost on the other. You do not have to approve of drug use, but the drug war is worse than the drugs. There are more drugs, stronger drugs, they are cheaper and anyone even kids can get them, that is the reality of the drug war. Regulation, honest education, and treatment is better. What have you got for your trillion dollars, For 10% of what it now cost just in tax dollars to wage the drug war, you could get a much better result. Then add the benefit of productive Americans instead of economic liabilities and I believe you will get more than your 10% investment back, in taxes and consumer spending.
If drugs were legal would you run out and do them. Most people would not, people who want to use drugs can get them very easily right now
Violence is escalating around the world, Mexico being a prime example. The drug war has made a health issue into a huge criminal problem. We have over 2 million Americans in prison now, that is 6 times the world median. We have 5% of the worlds population with 25% of the worlds prisoners.
No one has ever died from an overdose of Marijuana. Alcohol diseases killed 150,000 last year, tobacco 450,000, while marijuana is actually used to treat countless diseases.
Open your eyes and your mind, help unite Americans. The drug war is an ongoing problem, has failed, and is destructive to Americans and America. Yes drugs are a problem, a health problem, help your brother instead of destroying him you may just need him.
Make no mistake this is about profits but not just for dealers and organized crime. The prison industrial complex, the pharmaceutical industry and law enforcement, depend on the drug war. and reap billions of tax dollars from it. Politicians can not throw enough of your money away on it, so much time has passed that the raw data is there for all to see. The numbers and results speak for them self. Let me say it again what have you got for your trillion dollars???..any questions? - Reply to this comment
- Thumbs up to CBS news for appearing to join the 21st century! Yes on A.B. 390 save California!!
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- Over himself, over his own body and mind, the individual is sovereign.
The only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community, against his will, is to prevent harm to others. His own good, either physical or moral, is not sufficient warrant. The only freedom which deserves the name is that of pursuing our own good in our own way, so long as we do not attempt to deprive others of theirs, or impede their efforts to obtain it. Each is the proper guardian of his own health, whether bodily, or mental or spiritual. Mankind are greater gainers by suffering each other to live as seems good to themselves, than by compelling each to live as seems good to the rest. - Reply to this comment
- As I am a person who use to drink I realize that alcohol is actually a more dangerous drug. If any have noticed you will find alot of crimes against others are commited by people who drink and not people who smoke marijuana. i think it should follow laws of alcohol as in only people over 21 can consume and a level of deciding if you are under the influence while driving. I have seen many fights in bars but at parties where people smoke they are mellow people just having a good time.
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- Here is what I gather from my intelligence:
A Controlled Substance in the United States of America: Completely the opposite. Not controlled at all, therefore the black market controls the substance. Alcohol prohibition was overturned for this fact alone, the alcohol being produced by the black market was highly poisonous compared to what we REGULATE and TAX presently.
It's black and white. Very simple to understand without all of the propaganda.
I was 10 years old and in the D.A.R.E. program when I first experienced CANNABIS. (not marijuana as the government likes to call it)
Why was I able to do this? Because it is the complete polar opposite of being CONTROLLED by the government.
Everything the Federal Government "controls"... is utterly lacking the control that is so desperately needed. Sounds like a complete failure of democracy in the simplest of terms.
Age 22, can't get a job to save my life because the economy is completely ruined. (It's made up in the first place) Federal Reserve Notes? Sounds more like an I.O.U. to me. Where is the value of the dollar? Long gone. - Reply to this comment
- LEGALIZE AND TAX! The drug war has been an utter failure... There have been over 100 million who have used it and know that it isn't worth all of the bloodshed (6,000 lives lost in Mexico this year already). You know why prohibition of alcohol did not work? Because people who had drank it knew that it was not harmful in moderation and was their right to consume, feeding a violent black market for the illegal intoxicant. THE SAME EXACT GOES FOR MARIJUANA!!! It is even impossible to overdose on!!! Not so for alcohol or any pain killer that you can buy over the counter! This war against marijuana makes absolutely no sense!
- Reply to this comment
- Here is what I gather from my intelligence:
A Controlled Substance in the United States of America: Completely the opposite. Not controlled at all, therefore the black market controls the substance. Alcohol prohibition was overturned for this fact alone, the alcohol being produced by the black market was highly poisonous compared to what we REGULATE and TAX presently.
It's black and white. Very simple to understand without all of the propaganda.
I was 10 years old and in the D.A.R.E. program when I first experienced CANNABIS. (not marijuana as the government likes to call it)
Why was I able to do this? Because it is the complete polar opposite of being CONTROLLED by the government.
Everything the Federal Government "controls"... is utterly lacking the control that is so desperately needed. Sounds like a complete failure of democracy in the simplest of terms.
Age 22, can't get a job to save my life because the economy is completely ruined. (It's made up in the first place) Federal Reserve Notes? Sounds more like an I.O.U. to me. Where is the value of the dollar? Long gone. - Reply to this comment
- I am writing to show others that the stereo-typical marijuana user is not unintelligent, forgetful, irresponsible, rude, unsuccessful, et cetera and does not possess any other undesirable traits simply because they use marijuana.
I am a senior in college studying photojournalism with a 4.0 grade average. I am also 18 years old. I have three jobs--all of which are professional and pay quite well. I struggled with anorexia and bulemia for several years. I am the oldest of six children. I live on my own, pay all of my bills (on time) each month and I regularly attend work and class. In the eyes of society I am deemed sucessful. Yet, I smoke marijuana on a daily basis. I use marijuana to help control my eating disorders and to help destress from everyday life. I do not have a medical marijuana perscription because it is not available in the state in which I reside. Thus, I am forced to purchase marijuana at exorbent prices from people that can best be described as 'sketchy'.
I speak for myself and many friends, acquaintances and family members when I say that marijuana should be legalized and then regulated. I know most regular users of marijuana would hapily pay a reasonable tax so that they could purchase marijuana legally without fear of fines, jailtime, or criminal records. Most regular users would also hapily pay reasonable taxes to ensure they had access to a quality product.
Marijuana has not made me unintelligent, forgetful, irresponsible, rude, or unsuccessful. In fact, it has helped me to become a more balanced person. I am able to regulate my weight. I can destress after a twelve hour work day. I can treat migrains without spending a fortune; and I can ease an upset stomach within five minute.
Yes, marijuana can be overused, just as any other drug (caffine, nicotine, alcohol, et cetera), but it is up to each individual person to regulate their use of such drugs--not the government. Tell your legislators to legalize marijuana and in doing so, give American's back their freedom of choice, help the economy, help those suffering physically and mentally, and stop funding 'sketchy' people. - Reply to this comment
- My husband had daily migraines for almost 3 years. When shots of phenergen didn't keep him from vomiting weed did. Say what you want it works. I have a son with serious anger problems it's called intermittent explosive disorder, and he stays calmer smoking weed than taking the legal drugs the dr. gives him.Drinking alcohol causes more problems than weed and I know I've lived with both.My first husband was an alcoholic and domestic violence was the issue.I would rather live with a "pothead" any day over an alcoholic. How often do you hear of crimes being committed by people who are high on weed? They are usually setting home chillin on the couch eating a bag of chips.
- Reply to this comment
- My husband had daily migraines for almost 3 years. When shots of phenergen didn't keep him from vomiting weed did. Say what you want it works. I have a son with serious anger problems it's called intermittent explosive disorder, and he stays calmer smoking weed than taking the legal drugs the dr. gives him.Drinking alcohol causes more problems than weed and I know I've lived with both.My first husband was an alcoholic and domestic violence was the issue.I would rather live with a "pothead" any day over an alcoholic. How often do you hear of crimes being committed by people who are high on weed? They are usually setting home chillin on the couch eating a bag of chips.
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- @Turbidite
"From reading the desperate pro-pot comments I get the distinct impression that marijuana must indeed be quite addictive."
If the government made ice cream illegal I am sure that there would be many people making pro-ice cream comments. Does this mean that ice cream is addicting? No. It means that people should have the right to enjoy ice cream if they choose to. Simply being passionate about an issue does not mean that addiction is a motive. - Reply to this comment
Best-selling author Mitch Albom on his first nonfiction work since "Tuesdays with Morrie."
