We all assume that legalization of medical marijuana will one day lead to legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes as well. If anything, legalizing it for medical purposes almost guarantees progress in that area. So, in July, 2013, New Hampshire legalized medical marijuana. It was a historical moment for New Hampshire and one that passed legislature with a huge amount of support. Since then, officers were given an 18-month deadline to implement regulations regarding marijuana cultivation and distribution. In addition to that, the registry program demanded rules of its own, meaning that medical marijuana patients have to obtain a medical marijuana card.
Registry & Regulations
The registry has to be established by July, 2014. With the card, patients will be able to possess up to 2 ounces of marijuana. Hopefully, that also means that they won’t be incarcerated. However, if you don’t have the card, it doesn’t matter if you have Lou Gehrig’s disease, cancer or MS. Without a medical marijuana card, you will still go to jail if you’re caught with weed. Being the 19th state to legalize medical marijuana doesn’t exactly mean they’ll be taking the easy route when it comes to implementing marijuana regulations but they will have other states to learn from. Basically, all they should do is pick out the stuff that actually works and disregard what led to the crackdown of California’s medical marijuana program.
At the time this article is being written, New Hampshire hasn’t even implemented its medical marijuana regulations yet. However, they do seem to be in a hurry when it comes to legalize recreational marijuana. The whole thing should be up for a vote this week. The vote should have been cast last week but the legislators ran out of time, if you can believe that. Marijuana supporters were pretty disappointed the voting was postponed. If, by some chance, the bill actually passes, it would legalize 1 ounce of marijuana per individual, if that individual is below 21 years of age. Anyone over 21 would also be permitted to cultivate up to six plants of cannabis at home. Obviously, if you were caught selling what you cultivated without a specific license, that wouldn’t go down well.
Pro’s and Con’s
What is really interesting about this is that Steve Vaillancourt, a State Rep., is being very supportive of the entire bill because it has been modeled after Colorado and Washington, which are becoming examples in terms of implementing marijuana regulations. Obviously, upon legalization, weed would become taxable as well and that means that most of the profits that ended up in the hands of drug cartels would now go to the state. In short, society as a whole would benefit from it to a great extent. On the other hand, cannabis opponents claim marijuana is bad for health and could easily lead to other drugs. We still believe that, if used in moderation, marijuana could have a positive effect on human life.
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