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Former
governor and pro wrestler Jesse Ventura’s “Manifesto” argues
that widespread weed legalization would benefit the country.
A few of our
country’s most notable Founding Fathers ― think George
Washington, Thomas and John Adams ― grew the cannabis
plant, hemp, as a multipurpose crop, while colonists from that time
could pay their taxes with the plant. Betsy Ross sewed her American
flag from hemp.
“How
could it be any more all-American than that?” Jesse Ventura asked
with a laugh while talking on the phone with The Huffington Post
in of his book, Jesse Ventura’s Marijuana Manifesto.
“If
George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were alive today, they’d
both be raided by the DEA,” said Ventura, a former Minnesota and
professional wrestler. “They’d be doing 10 to 12 years in the
federal prison for being major drug dealers. Now, does anyone besides
Jesse Ventura see something wrong with that picture?”
Ventura’s
book, co-written with Jen Hobbs, makes the case for marijuana
legalization in the United States. In it, Ventura provides personal
anecdotes, reported stories and gathered statistics on the pros, like
potential economic boosts for state governments and health benefits
with consumption. For example, a recent Harvard blog explained
marijuana’s usefulness for AIDS and cancer patients to stimulate
appetite or stave off nausea.
“I’d
rather have someone take a hit of marijuana than be on Prozac,”
said Ventura. His book also advocates for the societal negatives that
would be lost with legalization, such as an end to the collateral
damage of the “War on Drugs” and a decreased reliance on
expensive pharmaceuticals for conditions that Ventura claims can be
treated with marijuana instead.
“In
the case of marijuana, you could grow it in your backyard, poor
people could have access to it and they wouldn’t necessarily have
to pay the government after the initial investment,” said the
former governor, explaining that an obstacle for legalization is
opposition from government or pharmaceutical companies that would no
longer earn profits from this form of treatment. For example,
controversial pharmaceutical company Insys Therapeutics contributed
$500,000 to fight an Arizona ballot measure that would legalize
recreational marijuana just this September.
Ventura is a
veteran Navy SEAL who particularly wants the drug legalized for the
potential benefits with aiding PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder).
FX comedy “You’re The Worst” depicted this issue in its most
recent season, showing a veteran struggling with the side effects and
ineffectiveness of prescribed meds, only to find relief through
smoking marijuana.
“This
plant is unbelievable,” said Ventura. “You’re not going to
overdose ... maybe over a period of months, you might gain some
weight.” He started laughing. “You might be overindulging in your
eating habits, maybe. It could happen I suppose. Maybe they’ll
blame obesity on it.”
The recent
presidential election may have affected the previously
inevitable-seeming legalization of marijuana in this country, despite
four states voting on Nov. 8 to allow recreational use and four more
rolling back restrictions.
President-elect
Donald Trump’s nomination of Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) for
attorney general could signal a hard stop to, and possible reversal
of, drug policy reforms.
Despite being
a member of the Independent Party and holding onto frustration that
Trump won the presidency while losing the popular vote, Ventura
remains hopeful the president-elect won’t get in the way of
legalization.
“He’s
indicated that he wants to leave it up to states’ rights, which is
fine,” said Ventura. “Let each state decide whether they want
marijuana legal or not, and I guarantee you eventually all 50 will do
it because of the money.” Colorado, a state where recreational
marijuana use is legal, saw $66 million in marijuana sales tax over
the last year.
Trump is
actually a fellow WWE Hall of Famer, thanks to appearances in
“WrestleMania,” but that hasn’t earned him any points with
Ventura. “Some people are in the Hall of Fame that I don’t
personally think belong there,” said Ventura. “Vince [McMahon,
chairman and CEO of WWE] cheapens it by doing that, but what the
hell, he created it, so it’s his Frankenstein anyway.”
With Ventura
hearing that another WWE Hall of Famer, Dwayne “The
Rock” Johnson had not ruled out his own presidential run, Ventura
claimed he wanted to join the ticket as Johnson’s vice president.
“Put
the word out, have him get in touch with me, because if he would run
as an Independent, I would run with him,” said Ventura. “Wouldn’t
that be something? Then we could have wrestlers take over the
country.”
Story
Source: The above story is based on materials provided
by HUFFINGTONPOST
Note:
Materials may be edited for content and length
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