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The Tennessee Conservative Staff –
With departments of the federal government discussing a potential schedule change for cannabis, many Tennesseans are waiting to see how those changes will affect the status of the drug in the state.
Currently, cannabis is classified as a Schedule I drug, placing it in the same category as heroin, LSD, and ecstasy, but not every legislator believes it should be.
“It’s a little bit of an overstep, I think. If you look at the history of marijuana, I don’t want somebody out driving heavy equipment or flying an airplane or what have you, but it’s nowhere near in the game of heroin. You don’t find people in a coma in their car from smoking weed,” said Congressman Tim Burchett.
That may change, however, after the federal Department of Health and Human Services’ memo to the Drug Enforcement Administration last week. In the memo, HHS recommended that the schedule be changed to lessen the harsh regulations against cannabis.
While changing the schedule of the drug does not automatically make it legal, it does open it up for additional research, interstate commerce, and tax breaks. Many believe this, however, will make it much more likely to be fully legalized in the future.
“It’s going to get there, we know it,” Burchett said.
Burchett noted that he favored legalizing marijuana, stating that overcrowded prisons would benefit from the change.
“We’re filling up our jails with these folks, and honestly, poor folks wouldn’t get the same representation as someone I grew up with,” said Burchett. “I think we’ve got some bigger problems in this world.”
Others argue for legalization for medicinal purposes, but not every lawmaker is ready to jump into allowing full access to the drug. This is evident as the push is shut down each year in the legislature.
“Anything good you need from marijuana, anything good you think can come from marijuana, you can get from hemp,” said State Representative Chris Todd. “So, I am 100% against any kind of legalization of marijuana.”
Delta-8 and Delta-10, which are derived from hemp, are already legal in Tennessee.
4 Responses
If you think your hemp derived product is good, I suggest you take some and go get a blood test. It’s not just hemp! Marijauna is a all natural substance, which is just now being shown to have values we were unaware of just a decade. Hemp is good for paper replacement, fabric and many other things, but all the chemicals added to it make it undesirable for consumption..
Genesis 1:29
And God GOD!! said, Behold, I have given you(for your judicious responsible use) every EVERY!! herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, AND(also) every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
Sadly, most “Christian” Republicans are against God here.
Dim-wits are looking at tax revenue and prisons.
I agree regarding incarceration.
What I don’t hear or see are discussions on BRAIN DAMAGE.
A’La Beavis and Buthead.
Marijuana should be treated the same as alcohol.
I insist the legislature take a good hard look at the repercussions in those states that have legal Marijuana.
It’s has to be sold/provided & controlled somehow, someway, the property values collapsed in near by neighborhoods.
Created another slum.
Way past time for this to be a issue, legalize across the board. Use the tax and relive retired folks of their resident property tax. A lot of other things as well.