Dirty tricks and false information as alcohol industry discourages cannabis legalization

The Free Thought Project has uncovered some pretty damaging information when going through a WikiLeaks dump of DNC info.

The powerful Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA) is spreading paranoid misinformation in an effort to discourage more states from legalizing cannabis. A political newsletter was found to contain a paid advertisement from the WSWA saying that legislators should be cautious about legalization because it leads to increased traffic fatalities.

What many people don’t know is that the information regarding increased traffic fatalities in certain states needs to be taken with a pinch of salt. It’s all too easy to ignore the real facts when looking at absolute figures. For example, THC remains in the system long after a person is high or “impaired”.

Thus, people in car accidents are more likely to test positive for cannabis use in states where legal cannabis use is accepted. They aren’t necessarily high. They just have THC in their bloodstream. More people use it in states where it is legal, but is cannabis really increasing motor accidents? The real facts show a different picture.

What the WSWA chose to ignore in its scare-tactics campaign The original research producing the finding that the WSWA used contained some very important caveats. If these are taken into account, a different picture emerges. Here’s the real truth: MOST people who caused accidents who were found to have consumed cannabis had also been using alcohol or other drugs at the time of the crash. ONLY 1.8% of car accidents occurred when drivers had used cannabis and nothing else.

Why keep cannabis illegal? Follow the money The Free Thought Project offers a convincing argument as to why certain powerful sectors are eager to keep cannabis illegal. It lists 5 organizations that would certainly suffer if people were allowed to use marijuana legally. Here’s it’s filthy five:

Police Unions: With so many people being arrested for cannabis possession, it’s easy to see that jobs are being created in the process. With cannabis legalization, law enforcement would have to find enough real criminals to justify its personnel numbers.

Prison Guard Unions: Less prisoners would mean less jobs. No union wants a state of affairs in which its members become redundant. For them, it’s much better to have lots of people locked up.

Private Prisons: When all your money is made by locking people up, having more people behind bars is good business. Legalize marijuana, and a heck of a lot less people would end up in jail, and that’s bad for the bottom line.

Alcohol companies: What would they do if people could legally get high in a different way? What’s more, what if that way was already proven to be safer than your way? Here’s another sector that might lose big money if cannabis were legal.

Big Pharma: Pharmaceuticals are expensive, and there’s a lot of potential in cannabidiol and THC. Already, meds containing cannabinoids are legally prescribed by doctors in any state. But if medical cannabis were legal, they’d have to compete with a plant that grows out of the ground. No wonder big pharma doesn’t like the idea of legal cannabis!