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Illinois enters 21st century with move to legalize recreational marijuana

Wouldn’t you all like to grow money?

Listen; it’s far too late in the game to hold some sort of grudge against marijuana.

The plant, which was not created in a laboratory, and not exploited for some sort of medical gain previous to now, will grow anywhere you plant it.  In the cracks in the sidewalk, in the dirt around the mailbox, and in that unsightly ditch.  It’s not called “weed” for anything.

Yet, despite its very obvious inclusion in the natural world, the United States leaves the plant illegal at the national level.  The only real reason yet to be surmised has to do with the population of incarcerated individuals who could find themselves suddenly imbued with a fantastic case.

In any case, the prohibition of marijuana will likely go down in history as a farce, not unlike alcohol prohibition either.

Now, after several west coast states have joined the revolution, one of the nation’s midwestern powerhouses is jumping on board.

Lawmakers in Illinois on Friday approved a measure legalizing the sale of marijuana to anyone over the age of 21, making it the second state in the Midwest to legalize pot after Michigan.

To date, 11 states, including Illinois, have legalized recreational marijuana, a majority through ballot measures placed before voters. The move by Illinois lawmakers is only the second time a legislature has legalized marijuana, following Vermont in 2018, which passed a measure allowing possession and limited cultivation of cannabis.

For many the argument is as simple as “why can’t we grow any?”, with cannabis and marijuana both thriving in whatever adverse conditions is thrown at them.

The legal ramifications, as archaic as they are, seem to have solidified the situation, at least for the time being.

 

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