Editorial: Marijuana needs to be legalized in Georgia, for more than one reason

We’ve reached that point again where we’re hopeful. Maybe they might change their minds and legalize weed… besides, they’ve got nothing to lose.

According to Forbes, New Frontier Data projects that by 2020 the legal marijuana market will have created more jobs than the manufacturing industry. In fact, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there will be more jobs created in that field than in the utilities and government industry as well.

Sadly, the majority of those jobs will not be coming to Georgia. Why you ask? Who knows.

Marijuana sales in 2016 totaled to $6.7 billion, according to Forbes. Think about how much money the state of Georgia could make off taxing this industry that has proven to be a money-maker. Instead of regulating the recreational use of marijuana, we have completely said the use outside of certain medical conditions is prohibited. Our state is doing this for the sole reason of “we don’t want our people getting high.”

Sure there are what some view as “legitimate reasons” that marijuana legalization is bad for us. According to a 2016 Georgia State School of Public Health  study, “the longer a person smokes marijuana or cigarettes, the more likely they are to experience metabolic disorders that increase the risk of heart disease and diabetes.”

But here’s what’s funny about the study: while both products seem to have the same effects after prolonged periods of usage, one has been legal since the founding of America and one continues to haunt us with is prohibition.

And furthermore, marijuana’s often proved itself a noteworthy medical advance.

We’re not saying that weed’s a miracle worker: it is not concluded that cannabis cures cancer, and that is not the notion that is being suggested. There are claims and evidence, however, that cannabinoids (THC, CBD, CBG and CBC) help and improve the conditions of cancer for some people.

Cannabinoids “affect the user by interacting with specific receptors, located within different parts of the central nervous system,” according to learnaboutmarijuanawa.org/.

There are studies that show that cannabinoids stop and reduce the growth of cancer and have proven to promote apoptosis, the death of tumor cells, while stopping angiogenesis, aiding production to the tumor, according to ncbi.nlm.nih.gov.

There are cases where cancer victims resort to using “Phoenix Tears” as a treatment method. This method was established by Rick Simpson, who create the oil himself out of the resin left over from smoking the combination of different Indica strains and high quality oils, according to phoenixtears.ca/. The Hemp oil has 90 percent of THC levels in it, and is non-addictive.

There are several testimonials and cases of the oil “curing” or reducing tumors within the body, one can view these cases on phoenixtearsfoundation.com/. They all state that their tumors decreased or disappeared in illnesses like breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, lung cancer and others.

This oil, among the medicinal usage of cannabis for the control of seizures, arthritis, glaucoma, headaches, chemo discomfort and other conditions, are approaches that several people have chosen to take. However, the purchasing of medicinal marijuana is regulated so harshly in Georgia and among the U. S., according to mpp.org/states/georgia/, that many patients don’t have access to cannabinoids for treatment.

Because it is illegal to produce, sell or purchase hemp oil, cannabinoids or medicinal marijuana, the opportunities for the sick to take their desired methods of medical care, that are effective, have become limited.

But knowing Georgia, things around here won’t change for a while.