There is a debate going on whether or not we, as a country, should legalize Marijuana, May Jane, Weed, Bud, and about a 1000 other euphemisms that are used to describe the drug…….we have the Paul boyz and a bunch of people all over the country saying legalize it and tax it (but would that violate the Nordquist pledge?) Anyway there is a situation brewing in South America that could have some impact……
Ever heard of Uruguay? It is a country in South America and they are considering making pot production a national industry….say what?!?
From the Global Post……..
In this peaceful South American country, personal use of marijuana is not a crime but there’s a legal gray area around growing the plant.
Following her release in May last year, lawmakers of the Broad Front, the ruling center-left coalition, sent a bill to Congress that proposed legalizing pot production, with a limit of eight plants per household.
That was similar to a bill put forth by opposition politician in 2010.
Now, a parliamentary commission is expected to begin debating a third, far more radical idea — a state monopoly over the cultivation, commercialization and sale of cannabis.
The bill, introduced by the administration of 77-year-old President Jose Mujica, a former left-wing guerrilla, has caused a stir across Latin America.
Coca-producing Bolivia said it would be open to implementing similar measures. Chilean senators followed by presenting a cannabis legalization bill of their own.
They are the latest to support the softening of anti-drug policies, which has gained momentum from Argentina to Mexico and California.
Mujica believes his plans put Uruguay, a country of just 3.4 million people, “at the vanguard.”
Lately, the “vanguard” does not look too far off for Argentina’s smaller neighbor, at least in a liberal sense. Uruguay is set to legalize abortion, which would make it the only Latin American country other than Cuba to do so, reports The Associated Press.
Could this be the future? A nationalized Marijuana industry…….. Thoughts?