And The Winner Of The 2016 Election Is WEED!By Alice Salles Prohibitive anti-marijuana laws across the country suffered a major setback on November 8, when voters in California, Massachusetts, Maine, and Nevada approved the legalization of recreational cannabis. Arizona, however, wasnt as pro-freedom, as just over 52 percent of Grand Canyon state voterssaid no to Proposition 205. A powerful lobby backed the opposition in that state. In Florida, Arkansas, Montana, and North Dakota, voters passed medical marijuana laws, allowing patients suffering from certain medical conditions to have access to cannabis. Before the election, 25 states already had medical marijuana laws on the books. According to the executive director of Marijuana Policy Project, Rob Kampia, the overall positive outcome shows [m]ost voters do not think otherwise law-abiding citizens should be criminalized for using a product that is much safer than alcohol. Instead of going after individuals for their marijuana use, Kampia added, there is a general consensus that law enforcement should be using taxpayer-backed resources to [fight] serious crimes instead. Erik Altieri, executive director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), wrote in a blog post that the 2016 election day dealt another body blow to our nations costly, failed, and discriminatory policy of marijuana prohibition. With regard to those who thought 2012 and 2014 efforts to legalize marijuana were a passing fad, Altieri continued, it is now clear that they were mistaken. While many mightclaim this wave of victory means Americans are finally realizing individuals should be free to access marijuana if they desire, others believe it could also help patients taking prescription drugs. In states where medical marijuana laws have been on the books for some years, the number of patients on prescription painkillers has dropped considerably when compared to states with marijuana prohibition laws still in place. As scientific evidence shows marijuana has beneficial medical effects, the country is becoming warmer to the idea of effectively nullifying the federal rules on the plant. And if 2016 is, indeed, a tipping point for marijuana reform, as a spokesperson for the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) said in an interview, 2017 could see residents in at least three more states passing similar rules. This article (And the Winner of the 2016 Election Is WEED!) is free and open source. You have permission to republish this article under a Creative Commons license with attribution to Alice Salles and theAntiMedia.org. Anti-Media Radio airs weeknights at 11 pm Eastern/8 pm Pacific. If you spot a typo, please email the error and name of the article to edits@theantimedia.org. Unfortunately here in Missouri, home of big alcohol, tobacco, painkillers, and meth, we will be the last ones to have legal access to pot. This is one aspect of conservatism that really sucks. Its the same here in NC. But this isnt an aspect of conservatism. Rather its Big Gov + Big Pharma that made weed illegal. Our government is the biggest (illegal) drug pusher, by which they dope up its citizens, keep the prison/industrial complex full and make billions for black ops projects. And its well known why Big Pharma wants weed illegal. I think many states are seeing the taxes they can collect with medical and/or recreational weed which are enormous and theyre starting to revolt! Hemp production would be a terrific boost to our economy and manufacturing. Yup, same deal here in Indianapolis, Lillys corporate HQ dont ya know. Cloud, meet Silver Lining. We can start calling CA/OR/WA The Green Coast now. Hemp is a complete eco system. All the way from soap, shampoo, to bed sheets to paper and beyond. 