When Gil Kerlikowske was tapped to be the country’s drug czar there was plenty of hope among potheads everywhere.  After all, he was the police chief of Seattle, a pot friendly city that hosts an annual festival, Hemp Fest, which pretty much consists of people just walking around and openly smoking pot.  Rather than order his officers to rain down baton blows on stoned citizens Kerlikowske simply let the people have their fun.  But now it appears he’s taken on a more czar-like position on the matter saying, “Marijuana is dangerous and has no medicinal benefit.” Continue Reading

Since marijuana is always a popular subject, here is a historical look at marijuana’s illegalization.  Enjoy, pass it along, comment.

The Weed Controversy

Once the 1930s rolled around, and the prohibition of alcohol had failed tremendously, there was a feeling of defeat in most prohibitionists’ minds.  One of the jaded prohibitionists, Harry J. Anslinger, quickly found himself at the forefront of yet another prohibition movement in the United States.  During the latter years of alcohol prohibition, many Southwestern states were pushing for a law against marijuana as a means to persecute the Mexican immigrants who offered cheap labor during the Depression.

In response to the public’s outcry for action, the Federal Bureau of Narcotics (FBN) was founded in 1930 as an agency of the United States Department of Treasury.  Secretary of the Treasury, Andrew Mellon, felt his nephew-in-law, Harry J. Anslinger, was the perfect candidate for the job of FBN commissioner.  While Anslinger was upset over the failure of the prohibition of alcohol, the cries for action against marijuana enabled Anslinger to focus his attention on a new scapegoat substance: Marijuana. Continue Reading