Feb 01, 2013
Federal, Katie Hooks, legalize, poll, reason, regulation
A national poll released this week by Reason Magazine found that a majority of adults want to see marijuana reform, and that they want the federal government to respect state laws concerning marijuana.
Some highlights, courtesy of Katie Hooks:
- 72 percent of Americans say the federal government should not arrest marijuana users in states like Colorado and Washington that have legalized the drug.
- 68 percent of Americans say the federal government should not arrest marijuana growers in states that have legalized the drug.
- 64 percent say the federal government should not arrest marijuana sellers in states that have legalized the drug.
- 53 percent say they agree with the statement that "marijuana should be treated the same as alcohol."
- 49 percent say they oppose legalizing marijuana for recreational use and 47 percent support legalizing it. That finding is within the poll’s margin of error, which is plus or minus 3.8 percent.
It is important to note the discrepancy in these last two results. Often times, when people hear the word “legalize,” they assume that this means making marijuana legal with no regulations or systems in place to govern the distribution and use of the substance. This could easily explain why more respondents agree with treating marijuana like alcohol than with “legalizing marijuana.” Fortunately, every serious effort to make marijuana legal in states around the country has been careful to include provisions that would establish a well-regulated cultivation and distribution system.