A CBS News poll conducted over the weekend has found that 41% of Americans support marijuana legalization, while 52% oppose, and 7% are undecided. The figure matches that of a January CBS News poll. Support dropped to 31% in an April CBS News poll before rebounding this month.
The figure is in line with other recent public opinion polls on the topic. A February Rasmussen Reports poll had support for legalization at 40%, a February Zogby poll had support for legalization at 44%, and an April ABC News/Washington Post poll found 46% supported "legalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use." The high-end outlier is an April Zogby poll with 52% saying marijuana should be "legal, taxed, and regulated."
In the latest CBS News poll, there was bare majority support for legalization among people under 35 (52%) and liberals (55%), the only regional, demographic, or political groups where majorities supported legalization. Support was higher among men (44%) than women (39%) and higher in the West (46%), Northeast (44%), and the Midwest (43%) than in the South (35%).
The latest CBS News poll was conducted among a random sample of 944 adults nationwide via telephone interviews. The margin of error for the entire sample is plus or minus three percentage points.
The polling comes as attention is focused on marijuana legalization like never before. But it suggests that despite decades of effort, the marijuana reform movement is not quite to the Promised Land yet.
Totally agree. Now how about
Totally agree. Now how about Michael Phelps?
If an Olympian gold medal winner is a 'pothead'; what does that say about the stigma surrounding marijuana use?
*Steve Jobs made apple while smoking pot
*That guy who found CNN smoked pot regularly
*Nearly half of Americans (around 48%) are now saying in polls and online that they agree marijuana should be taxed to help us out in this financial crisis.
http://www.azcentral.com/business/articles/2009/07/15/20090715biz-legali...
$1.4billion would be collected in the first year through tax ($50 an ounce bags) if California legalized soon; and its been predicted that treating marijuana like its much more damaging and intoxicating cousin Alcohol would dramatically decrease the funding for all illegal drug cartels and terrorists (that the government are fighting).
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For more, watch THE UNION; a documentary on all of this.
Now I've gone on quiet a bit, haven't I? But I say it's time we ignore what the most profitable industry in the united states (pharms) wants and legalize this beautiful plant. The Pharmaceutical Industry cannot compete with what experts call "the most wide-ranging natural medicine in the world".. Cannabis! You can grow it at home, and they can't patent it!
At least start with legalizing hemp, which is by and large the most durable natural fiber on the face of this planet. Not to mention that it's a natural fuel, paper and medicine too.
I'll let you think on that for a while...
Legalizing marijuana
I have been a emergency room nurse for roughly 15 years. Never in my career have I seen a death caused by someone who had smoked marijuana. But I can't even remember the number of people who have been killed or seriously injured due to someone drinking and driving. I myself smoked marijuana during my early 20's. The old myth that marijuana leads to harder drugs is unfounded. I occasionally will smoke a little when I am on vacation (1-2 times a year) but am fearful to do it very often because of my job & the potential to loose my nursing license, but believe me if it was legal I would smoke it some. I have severe arthritis and have a friend who also has severe arthritis and he swears that smoking a marijuana joint once a week has helped his joint pain and stiffness to the point he doesn't have to take prescription medications for it. I am your typical middle class American. I work every day, own my own home and pay my bills. If I am responsible enought to take care of myself and not depend on handouts from the government then I should be allowed to make my own decisions regarding the recreational use of marijuana without fear of legal actions.
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