BREAKING: Congress acts on bill to decriminalize marijuana

Today Representative Barney Frank (D-Mass.) introduced legislation to decriminalize the possession of up to 100 grams of marijuana and the not-for-profit transfer of one ounce of marijuana.Congressman Frank's legislation would decriminalize the possession of up to 100 grams of marijuana and the not-for-profit transfer of one ounce of marijuana. It would not affect laws prohibiting drug sales or the cultivation of marijuana, and it would not affect state or local laws regulating marijuana possession."It's time for the politicians to catch up with the public on this [issue]," Congressman Frank said. "The notion that you lock people up for smoking marijuana is pretty silly."The bill incorporates the basic recommendation of the National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse (also known as the Shafer Commission). The commission, which was administered by the White House and published its findings in 1972, recommended that then-president Richard Nixon decriminalize possession of marijuana in amounts that constituted "simple possession."Thirty-six years later, Rep. Frank will try to do just that. Why support this legislation?- Currently, 1 out of every 100 Americans is behind bars, and many of these prisoners are non-violent drug offenders.- Arresting, prosecuting, and incarcerating people simply for possessing marijuana for personal use is an illogical waste of our government's limited resources.- Each year, more than 700,000 people are arrested for marijuana offenses, costing American taxpayers more than $7 billion annually. Despite this, marijuana is still easily available, both to adults and minors.- The money saved from ending marijuana prohibition could provide health insurance each year to 4.5 million uninsured children in the U.S. This legislation would be an important first step towards that.

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