On Tuesday, Democratic primary voters in South Carolina approved a non-binding medical marijuana question. With all counties having reported, the unofficial results show the question was supported by an overwhelming 75%-25% margin! The question asked voters if “medical marijuana [should] be legalized for use in cases of severe, chronic illnesses when documented by a physician.” While this was a non-binding question, meaning it does not change the law at all, the overwhelming support sends a clear…

The U.S. Conference of Mayors unanimously passed a resolution on Monday, June 24 criticizing the failure of marijuana prohibition and demanding that the federal government respect states’ and cities’ marijuana laws. The resolution, “In Support of States Setting Their Own Marijuana Policies Without Federal Interference,” calls for the Obama administration to allow states and localities to “set whatever marijuana policies work best to improve the public safety and health of their communities.” The…

It’s no secret that younger people are typically more in favor of changing our country’s failed marijuana laws than older people, but marijuana use among seniors is on the rise. According to surveys from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration use among people 50 and older who report using marijuana in the prior year went up from 1.9 percent in 2002 to 2.9 percent in 2008. Marijuana use among 55- to 59-year-olds has more than tripled during that same time period (1.6 percent…

There is a great article in today’s Washington Post about the momentum behind marijuana policy reform. You can read the full version on their Web site. We need to encourage the media to produce fair and balanced coverage of this issue -- something they haven’t always done but are slowly beginning to. Please share this article with your friends and family or vote for it on digg.com: http://digg.com/educational/Support_For_Legalizing_Marijuana_Gaining_Ground_Rapidly

A new Gallup poll released today shows 44% support for making marijuana legal in the U.S., a record high for this particular poll. The poll also shows 53% support in the west. While we’ve seen higher numbers in the past, and the level of support varies from poll to poll, this recent number shows a trend that’s undeniable: Americans are quickly realizing that taxing and regulating marijuana is preferable to prohibition. The chart below shows the change in attitudes among various groups. Notice that…

Yesterday marked the first time in history that a nationwide poll showed majority support for taxing and regulating marijuana (at 52%).  The poll, conducted by Zogby International at the end of April, was also one of the largest sample sizes of any national polls on the subject, with almost 4,000 respondents and a margin of error of +/- 1.6%. This poll, in combination with recent trends, is further evidence that Americans are quickly realizing the value of taxing and regulating marijuana. Congress,…

After MPP passed the medical marijuana ballot initiative in Michigan and the marijuana decriminalization ballot initiative in Massachusetts -- both on November 4 -- I thought the MPP staff might get a little downtime to regroup for the 2009-2010 election cycle. Not so. In the last four months, the MPP staff and our allies have been working almost nonstop to respond to -- and take advantage of -- the many opportunities that have been presenting themselves across the country. I've never seen so much…

Good news for people who don't like their local governments wasting time and money challenging laws they don't like in futile court battles: For the second time, a California court -- in this case, the Fourth District Court of Appeals -- has tossed challenges to the state's medical marijuana laws by the counties of San Diego and San Bernardino. San Bernardino taxpayers had already footed the bill for about $60,000 in salaries alone for this misguided legal adventure when it got tossed the first…

The New York Senate adjourned yesterday, effectively ending this year's legislative session, but that will come as no relief to seriously ill New Yorkers who rely on medical marijuana to ease their suffering. The senators went home without considering a bill that would have allowed people like Burton Aldrich, a Kingston quadriplegic who needs medical marijuana to control his spasms and constant pain, to use the drug with a doctor's recommendation without fear of arrest. It's difficult to explain…