3 ms·

"if even Liberal Bastion California could only pass this with a 57% majority, it likely doesn't stand much chance of being passed anywhere else." Not right awa

"if even Liberal Bastion California could only pass this with a 57% majority, it likely doesn't stand much chance of being passed anywhere else." Not right away, but never say never. Having lived through the nightmare prohibition of the 80's and 90's, I am constantly amazed that cannabis is effectively legal (not just for medical purposes but recreationally) in so many places around the US today. I never thought I'd see it in my lifetime. Now psychedelics are on their way to being legalized in some places, and Oregon has decriminalized all drugs. MDMA therapy is very close to being available on a prescription basis (if it isn't already), and that alone has the potential to signal a sea-change in the way the US and the rest of the world sees currently illegal drugs -- especially psychedelics. Psilocybin is next, and once the mainstream culture starts seeing seriously broken people start functioning again after undergoing psychedelic therapy when the traditional medical establishment has so often failed them, they're going to start changing their minds about these substances, just as they have about cannabis.

AdmiralAsshat 5y ago
I'd love to be proven wrong, but I just don't think it's ever going to happen on a federal level, when half of the US Senate consists of people like this guy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NY6UTnS6Z-A https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NY6UTnS6Z-A And he's a "moderate".
- pmoriarty 5y ago
  Lots of people didn't think that segregation would ever end, nor that humans would walk on the Moon, nor expected the Soviet Union to fall... yet they did, surprising a hell of a lot of people by how quickly it happened too. People are bad at predicting the future. Look at what happened with cannabis legalization. Not so long ago it was demonized and considered to be a gateway drug (still is in some places, but a lot of people -- especially younger people and sick people who cannabis has helped -- have seen through that propaganda by now). Then there's the business side of the equation. A lot of formerly anti-drug idealogues jumped on the cannabis money train once it started to get legal in some states. Many of the politicians who are against legalization are also very self-serving opportunists, who may well switch sides once they see there's a profit to be made. Veterans and other people with PTSD and other mental conditions might be able to sway some of these people as well. Once they see that these substances actually have great healing potential and aren't the demon drugs they've been lied to about by the War on Drugs fanatics they might have a change of heart.
  - adventured 5y ago
    > Lots of people didn't think that segregation would ever end, nor that humans would walk on the Moon, nor expected the Soviet Union to fall... yet they did, surprising a hell of a lot of people by how quickly it happened too. It's an important point. The US rapidly legalized gay marriage at the federal level once serious momentum had begun. That's despite only modestly above half of the nation strongly supporting it at the time (according to polls anyway). There has been no war over it, no great social rebellion, no states attempting to leave the union, no mass acts of anti-gay terrorism over it, no religious revolt. Trump had zero political interest in attempting to turn it back, there was nothing to gain from that because there isn't much support for rolling it back. Not much happened at all overall, there have been very few negative events related to it culturally. Only a few years prior to that legalization, the liberal President was still publicly against gay marriage on the campaign trail. Obama changed his position to supporting gay marriage in 2012, shortly after Biden did. Gay marriage was then legalized in 2015. It was nearly unthinkable that that was going to happen as recently as the 2004-2008 political timeframe. In ten years it went from only half of Democrats supporting gay marriage (2005 per Gallup), to being legalized nationally. It's always worth considering how many people answer as they do on polls because they're afraid to be openly out of majority alignment, yet they may support a position quietly or otherwise not oppose it (meaning they'd never actually pose any cultural resistance to change). That's exactly what the case was with marijuana legalization; serious opposition to legalization was never as great as it was portrayed to be. And that may also end up being the case with psychedelics, perhaps with more regulations (I'd expect the public to be more leery than with marijuana).
- dntrkv 5y ago
  That was also 14 years ago when recreational cannabis was illegal in every state. Since then, 18 states have legalized cannabis. It's only a matter of time before it's legal at the federal level.
- mythrwy 5y ago
  He's also in his mid 70's. A decade from now a lot of these folks will no longer hold the reins of power. For better or worse.
- SauciestGNU 5y ago
  I think there are some confounding issues here. First of all, this video was from a time before the utility of medical cannabis was as recognized as it is today. Secondly there's the issue of Romney's faith. Mormonism is very opposed to the use of consciousness-altering substances, so while he may be considered a moderate (although I would disagree with that characterization), his belief system makes him predisposed to opposing drug reform and freedom of consciousness.

AdmiralAsshat 5y ago

I'd love to be proven wrong, but I just don't think it's ever going to happen on a federal level, when half of the US Senate consists of people like this guy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NY6UTnS6Z-A https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NY6UTnS6Z-A And he's a "moderate".

pmoriarty 5y ago
Lots of people didn't think that segregation would ever end, nor that humans would walk on the Moon, nor expected the Soviet Union to fall... yet they did, surprising a hell of a lot of people by how quickly it happened too. People are bad at predicting the future. Look at what happened with cannabis legalization. Not so long ago it was demonized and considered to be a gateway drug (still is in some places, but a lot of people -- especially younger people and sick people who cannabis has helped -- have seen through that propaganda by now). Then there's the business side of the equation. A lot of formerly anti-drug idealogues jumped on the cannabis money train once it started to get legal in some states. Many of the politicians who are against legalization are also very self-serving opportunists, who may well switch sides once they see there's a profit to be made. Veterans and other people with PTSD and other mental conditions might be able to sway some of these people as well. Once they see that these substances actually have great healing potential and aren't the demon drugs they've been lied to about by the War on Drugs fanatics they might have a change of heart.
- adventured 5y ago
  > Lots of people didn't think that segregation would ever end, nor that humans would walk on the Moon, nor expected the Soviet Union to fall... yet they did, surprising a hell of a lot of people by how quickly it happened too. It's an important point. The US rapidly legalized gay marriage at the federal level once serious momentum had begun. That's despite only modestly above half of the nation strongly supporting it at the time (according to polls anyway). There has been no war over it, no great social rebellion, no states attempting to leave the union, no mass acts of anti-gay terrorism over it, no religious revolt. Trump had zero political interest in attempting to turn it back, there was nothing to gain from that because there isn't much support for rolling it back. Not much happened at all overall, there have been very few negative events related to it culturally. Only a few years prior to that legalization, the liberal President was still publicly against gay marriage on the campaign trail. Obama changed his position to supporting gay marriage in 2012, shortly after Biden did. Gay marriage was then legalized in 2015. It was nearly unthinkable that that was going to happen as recently as the 2004-2008 political timeframe. In ten years it went from only half of Democrats supporting gay marriage (2005 per Gallup), to being legalized nationally. It's always worth considering how many people answer as they do on polls because they're afraid to be openly out of majority alignment, yet they may support a position quietly or otherwise not oppose it (meaning they'd never actually pose any cultural resistance to change). That's exactly what the case was with marijuana legalization; serious opposition to legalization was never as great as it was portrayed to be. And that may also end up being the case with psychedelics, perhaps with more regulations (I'd expect the public to be more leery than with marijuana).
dntrkv 5y ago
That was also 14 years ago when recreational cannabis was illegal in every state. Since then, 18 states have legalized cannabis. It's only a matter of time before it's legal at the federal level.
mythrwy 5y ago
He's also in his mid 70's. A decade from now a lot of these folks will no longer hold the reins of power. For better or worse.
SauciestGNU 5y ago
I think there are some confounding issues here. First of all, this video was from a time before the utility of medical cannabis was as recognized as it is today. Secondly there's the issue of Romney's faith. Mormonism is very opposed to the use of consciousness-altering substances, so while he may be considered a moderate (although I would disagree with that characterization), his belief system makes him predisposed to opposing drug reform and freedom of consciousness.