.......Exposed........Exposed........Exposed........Exposed........Exposed........???????????...>>> UNBELIEVABLE...USA UNDERCOVER....GIANT MARIJUANA.... HEAVEN..???????????????... DRUGS..HEAVEN...???????????????>> WHAT ACTUALLY DID THE EMPERORS..BIZ.MEN... BECOME A BROKER OF DRUGS..FOR.... POISONING..N KILLING THE MASTER..BRAIN.. OF PEOPLE... OF AMERICA.. N OTHER PEOPLE..FOR JUST GETTING.. MONEY..N BIG PROFIT...????>>>> ..............??????????????? SOO.. WHERE THE COMMON-SENSE..OF THE LEADER AND OTHER INTELECTUAL N INTELIGENT PEOPLE..OF AMERICA...>> ..ITS.. SOOO VERY DANGER...??? ..... ITS SO.. THE MEN BECOME.. .... THE GHOST.. OF FANTACY... PROFIT... N KILLING PEOPLE..BY NEW BIG DANGEREOUS...DRUGS.. THE NEWEST MODEL... MARIJUANNA..?????>>> COME ON..THE WISE PEOPLE... OF AMERICA...>> WAKE UP......WAKE UP......WAKE UP......WAKE UP.........>

Exposed:

Warren Buffett's Secret Marijuana Stash

Why is the "world's greatest investor" stockpiling barrels of weed?

And could this daring move result in an explosive wave of $200 billion in marijuana profits for savvy investors?

Dear Reader,

In the heart of Denver’s "marijuana zone" sits a string of secret warehouses...

Together, they supply 120 metric tons of premium-grade marijuana — an estimated $700 million value.

Not much is known about what goes on here. They don’t advertise their names or locations. As Bloomberg reports, "the operations are still somewhat secretive."

But it’s not because they’re growing weed... now legal in Colorado.

Instead, my research shows it’s due to an incontrovertible link between these grow operations and "the world’s greatest investor."

The details of which could change everything you think you know about the explosive marijuana market.

All while minting you a fortune, as $200 billion in untapped wealth is unleashed onto the markets.

I even caught an image of this secret grow operation...

Now, before I go forward, let me make one thing clear: The details of this story are highly sensitive.

I doubt one in 1,000 Americans are privy to Buffett’s marijuana holdings.

And when Bloomberg reporters attempted to contact the normally chatty billionaire about it, he refused to comment.

But after I caught wind of this controversial story, I led a team to conduct a full-scale investigation...

And thanks to my extensive contacts inside the legal cannabis industry, I’ve gotten to the bottom of Buffett’s weed stash...

Why the "world’s greatest investor" has ties to warehouses stockpiling metric tons of marijuana...

And why this could hand life-altering profits to investors who are privy to the details.

Using history as a guide, we could see nothing less than short-term gains of 2,850%.

Which is why Buffett is far from alone.

As it turns out, the "smart money" is buying marijuana by the forklift.

Earlier this year, billionaire PayPal founder Peter Thiel staked over $75 million on marijuana holdings.

The LA Times reports Thiel is positioning himself for the inevitable end of prohibition.

And now dozens of big-name investors are following closely behind.

Like George Soros, who recently staked a fortune on the ground floor.

MarketWatch reports the billionaire is working with Big Food conglomerates to develop mass-scale growing operations...

And then there’s Tesla’s Elon Musk.

All told, Musk pocketed $133 million from this industry before it even launched.

In fact, this ground-floor opportunity is so lucrative that former Microsoft executive Jamen Shively — who worked directly with Bill Gates — left the software giant to begin a marijuana start-up.

According to Shively (a.k.a. the "Bill Gates of Cannabis"), the industry is on track "to create more millionaires than Microsoft."

"This Will Create More Millionaires Than Microsoft"

— Former Microsoft Exec Jamen Shively

Troy Dayton, CEO of the hedge fund ArcView Group, agrees, saying, "These are exciting times, new millionaires and potential billionaires are about to be made."

And it’s already happening...

Consider Colorado.

Since legalizing pot three years ago, the state has produced 4,873 new millionaires.

That’s a rate of almost five new millionaires a day!

CNN calls them "the New Marijuana Millionaires."

People who are waking up overnight to find they are sitting on a mountain of riches.

• Take Jeffery Moss, a 40-year-old Northern Washington farmer. Last year, he couldn’t afford a car and had to rely on his parents for money and his friends for meals. Now, legalization has made him a millionaire on his marijuana holdings... virtually overnight. In fact, since the state law passed last year, he’s grossed $5 million.

• Then there’s Carry Vincetti, 33, who left her job as a paralegal to join the "Green Rush" — not to sell marijuana, but as a consultant to start-up cannabis entrepreneurs. With so many people looking to make a killing on the Green Rush, her own business is booming. So far, she’s raked in a $2 million fortune.

• And there’s Allen Gustov, who lost all of his savings investing in a music venture. He and wife were sleeping on cardboard furniture and had a baby on the way when they moved out to Anaheim, California and opened a marijuana business. They went from being almost homeless to raking in over $1 million last year.

The examples go on and on.

Now you can join these brand-new millionaires — without starting a business... owning a farm... or ever touching an ounce of marijuana.

In fact, in order to make a fortune from the cannabis boom...

• You don’t have to live in a state where marijuana is legal.

• You don’t have to sign any petitions or do any political advocacy.

• And you don’t have to have anything more than $25 to invest.

You just need to buy in now before the end of marijuana prohibition. And not in some shady penny stocks. Instead, I’ve identified three super-safe companies that are banking on the "Green Rush."

They don’t all grow or own weed, but they provide services that benefit those who do.

These are ancillary companies raking in the lion’s share of marijuana profits by providing software, real estate, and technology to growers.

Just like people who struck it rich in the Gold Rush by selling picks and shovels... not mining... these companies will spin off a new wave of millionaire investors.

To be sure, I’ve been to their operations and seen their sites. I’ve met their managers and workers.

I’ve pulled up the curtain on the quarterly earnings report and seen their real profit potential.

In short, I’ve gotten the inside scoop that you won’t hear from analysts sitting behind a desk.

Using history as a guide, they could deliver nothing less than 2,850% profits moving forward.

And that’s just over the next 12 months.

It’s happened before — when the government ended Prohibition...

When Atlantic City legalized gambling in the 1970s...

And other similar historic moments — what I call "crossover events."

This is when formerly illegal industries become legal... and already established companies with loyal customers generate fortunes — as do their investors.

Now, the exact same circumstances are setting us up for astronomic gains once again.

I’ll show you why these profits are inevitable... when to expect them... and what to buy.

But before I do, allow me to introduce myself...

I've Been on the Front Lines of the Billion-Dollar "Green Rush" For a Decade Now

Hi, my name is Jimmy Mengel.

I’ve been on the front lines of America’s billion-dollar "Green Rush" for the better part of a decade.

And even though the market is still only legal in some places...

I’ve shown my readers big gains on some of the hottest emerging marijuana plays.

Like a biotech developing marijuana treatments that we bought and sold for 93% gains in seven months.

Or a Canadian marijuana delivery company that handed us 73% gains in seven months.

Another company I recommended four months ago has doubled since then.

And I’ve given six-figure presentations in front of Silicon Valley bigwigs seeking my outlook on this explosive market.

I’ve even hobnobbed with the likes of famous TV host Montel Williams, who benefited from medical marijuana to treat his multiple sclerosis... and is now benefiting financially from his medical marijuana dispensary, too.

Recently I toured the facilities of Canada’s dominant medical marijuana firm... now poised to make a small fortune for investors. 

All because I’m confident of one simple thing...

Legal marijuana is the kind of once-in-a-lifetime mega-trend that delivers "big wins"...

The kind you can retire early on, with more money than you know what to do with.

You see, we hardly ever see the birth of a new billion-dollar industry or the opportunity to get in before these profits are unlocked...

Much less one where money is already there under the surface.

That’s what makes the emergence of America’s newest and most lucrative industry — legal marijuana — the most extraordinary profit opportunity I’ve ever seen...

And because marijuana legalization is unfolding state by state, we have the rare opportunity to buy in before prohibition completely ends.

If you know the stories of alcohol millionaires like Joe Kennedy, then you know just how lucrative this can be...

And why Silicon Valley is now scrambling to join the "Green Rush."

In fact, at my recent Money Show presentation, I spoke to early VC investors in companies like Uber, Reddit, and Tesla Motors.

All are pouring capital into emerging marijuana start-ups... and see even bigger opportunity than anything Silicon Valley has delivered since the iPhone.

The Financial Times now calls marijuana "Silicon Valley’s hot new sector."

And as the LA Times puts it, "They’re leveraging the legalization of marijuana into a windfall."

So are Fortune 500 corporations.

This includes companies previously opposed to marijuana legalization, like...

• Big Tobacco
• Big Ag
• Big Pharma

All are now getting a piece of the action.

All are putting down billions outside the purview of the government or the media.

Cannabis is even moving to Wall Street, where it could soon be traded just like any commodity.

The CEO of VC firm Privateer Holdings predicts, "Six to 12 months from now there will be investment banks who will have analysts following cannabis like they follow healthcare or agricultural commodities."

These "smart money" moves all point to one unavoidable conclusion...

The time to (legally) pocket massive profits from marijuana is now.

And for good reason...

Over the last 24 months, the legal market has surged from zero to a $2.7 billion industry.

A newly released market report even called legal marijuana:

"America's Fastest-Growing Industry"

— Troy Dayton, CEO of the ArcView Group

Smartphones came in a distant second.

Last year, sales skyrocketed 74%.

The year before, 64%.

No market has taken off at this rate since the tech boom began in the early '90s.

But moving forward, this will look like a drop in the bucket.

Think about it...

Medical marijuana is legal in 23 states...

Recreational use in a mere four states.

Four others have decriminalized it.

And these are just the first dominos to fall.

New laws are rapidly advancing in half of all 50 states, red and blue alike.

The customers already exist. The market is already there. The profits are just now being tapped.

Which is why this millionaire growth story is only just beginning.

And why the 2016 elections will unlock the marijuana industry’s untapped profit potential...

I’m talking about the imminent end of marijuana prohibition, thanks to a series of little-known bills on the state and federal levels.

Now, that may sound like a bold prediction, but the writing is on the wall. Anyone who’s paying attention can see it.

Explosive Profit Catalyst:
The Imminent End of Prohibition in 2016

Presidential candidates are behind legalization on both sides of the aisle.

At least 17 states are lined up to fully legalize marijuana.

And more are joining the wave, no matter who wins the White House.

The political consensus is growing.

Pew Research polls show 53% of the American public supports legalization.

63% of Republicans under 30 support legal marijuana.

And Republican support for legalization has more than doubled in the last five years.

That’s why Republican presidential candidates are now jumping on board, including Trump, Bush, Cruz, and Walker...

In fact, Newsweek recently called 2016 "The Marijuana Election."

Like it or not, we could see "green states" from sea to shining sea by early November.

And as Forbes predicts, "[This move] will make investors extremely wealthy."

I agree.

But what’s the REAL upside potential?

Now, while legal sales of marijuana have climbed to $2.7 billion...

We’re just seeing the results of four states legalizing recreational use.

So as it spreads across the Union, it’s not hard to imagine this story will look a whole lot different.

After all, we’re looking at tens of millions of new and already existing customers.

This is a giant "mountain of money" waiting to be unlocked.

When all is said and done, estimates put the legal market at an astronomic $200 billion.

That’s an incredible sales surge of 7,300%...

The kind of astronomic growth that turns everyday folks into millionaires.

And I’m not talking about 10, five, or even three years from now... but over the next 24 months.

Phenomenal 7,300% Sales Surge...
in 24 Months

That’s why financial journalist Todd Harrison calls marijuana "the best investment idea of the next decade."

The Daily Bell takes it a bit further, calling it the "profit opportunity of the 21^st century."

And one hedge fund owner told Wall Street investors, "There is a massive potential. It is untapped. It is just sitting there below the surface and it is ready to come above ground."

Now, some may still be opposed to legalizing marijuana. They may think it’s unethical or immoral.

And I respect anyone’s views.

But when you consider the tide of public opinion...

The growing number of states lining up for legalization...

And the massive profits about to be unleashed as a result...

I think you can agree legal marijuana is inevitable, as are the profits at stake.

So the way I see it, you have two choices...

You can sit on the sidelines and miss out on the profit opportunity of the 21^st century...

Or you can ride the tidal wave of inevitable profits for retirement wealth, however you feel about marijuana.

In a moment, I’ll share with you the three best ways to cash in on this $200 billion wealth trend.

The future Anheuser-Busches, Bacardis, and Miller-Coors of marijuana.

But first, let me show you just how much money is up for grabs...

When can you expect to see it...

And why I’m so confident these profits are inevitable.

To give you an idea: First, we’ll have to go back to the end of Prohibition in the 1930s...

When alcohol stocks skyrocketed for unbelievable 10-fold gains in under a year...

Even as the rest of the stock market tanked!

This is what I consider a "crossover event" — illegal markets becoming legal.

Time and time again, these market anomalies have handed investors a fortune.

Let me explain...

The Biggest Profit Opportunity in 83 Years

It’s November 1932.

The writing is on the wall.

FDR wins the election by a landslide.

One of his central promises?

The repeal of Prohibition.

FDR’s victory was easy to anticipate at least months before.

So were the legalization bills that passed in several states.

And much like the situation we’re seeing now, alcohol’s legalization was all but inevitable.

That’s why, even though it would be another year before Prohibition was actually repealed...

It didn’t matter.

Alcohol stocks — known as "repeal stocks" — soared to the heavens.

But since selling liquor was still illegal, only three kinds of American companies were available:

• Medicinal

• Industrial (i.e. cars)

• Ancillary purposes... like antifreeze

Take the major bottle manufacturer Crown Cork & Seal.

Today a blue-chip giant, this company was relatively new at the time.

In June 1932, it traded for just $5.

But then it soared to $10... $30... and $50.

By July 1933, five months before Prohibition was even repealed, it soared to $64...

A massive gain of 1,180% in just 12 months.

Then there’s American Commercial Alcohol, a leading producer of alcohol for cars.

It soared from $8 in 1932 to $20... and then to $50.

By July, it had reached $90.

That's a 1,025% gain in just 15 months.

And there’s National Distillers, the largest provider of medicinal alcohol, which surged from $12 to $125.

Let’s not forget Canada, where alcohol was still legal...

And where major suppliers surged as the American market opened up once again.

Take Hiram-Walker, the maker of Canadian Club, which soared from $2 in 1932 to $59 just 12 months later.

A gain of 2,850%.

But the biggest "repeal stock" home run was the bottle manufacturer Libbey Owens-Ford...

In fact, the Chicago Institute of Securities would list it as one of the top stocks of the next two decades...

All told, the stock surged for incredible 11,326% gains.

Enough to turn just $10,000 into over a million-dollar nest egg.

Now, these gains are great and all...

But how did investors really do?

How Joe Kennedy REALLY Got Rich
(HINT: Not Bootlegging)

Consider the famous example of Joe Kennedy.

Now, you might have heard the legendary story of how the Kennedy patriarch accumulated his riches...

Laying the foundations of the famous family fortune.

To this day, many claim Kennedy built his empire by illegally bootlegging alcohol.

But in reality, that was only a small part of it.

Instead, Kennedy made his REAL fortune in just three simple steps...

• He anticipated Prohibition’s end early

• He bought shares of bottle manufacturers and other ancillary companies

• And then rode the tidal wave of life-changing profits as alcohol shares surged in 1933

In 1933 alone, he took home $4.27 million in inflation-adjusted profits...

All by investing in alcohol-related stocks like National Distillers and Libbey-Owens Ford.

Now you can do the same.

And while you might not make millions like Kennedy...

If you know the companies to buy and take action early, just like Kennedy did...                                 

THIS could be the biggest profit windfall of your life — hands down.

And this is just one past example.

Whenever an industry becomes legal, investors get rich.

History has proven this time and time again.

Consider the next big "crossover event" — the (partial) legalization of gambling in the 1970s...

Guess What Happened When Gambling Became (Somewhat) Legal...

It’s the mid-1970s.

Atlantic City passes a historic bill legalizing gambling.

The law leads to Native Americans winning a series of historic court battles...

Paving the way for legalized gambling in Indian reservations everywhere.

The result?

Gaming stocks take off... even as the market is tanking.

Take Bally Manufacturing, the country’s largest casino slot-maker.

It trades at $5.

But then it shoots up to $10... $30... as high as $68 by September.

A gain of 1,260% in just nine months.

Then there’s the Las Vegas casino operator Golden Nugget.

It surges from $5 at the beginning of the year to $45 by August...

A gain of 800% in eight months.

And these are just a handful of examples. Dozens of hotel, airline, and real estate stocks soared for 1,000% gains or more in just months. Many were ancillary companies poised to profit from the legalization of gambling in Atlantic City.

But the biggest home run by far was Resorts International — the lead casino for Atlantic City.

That’s a whopping 31,432% gain... in just two short years.

Good enough to turn every...

• $100 into $31,432

• $1,000 into $313,432

• $10,000 into $3,313,432

In a matter of 24 months!

This is simply the biggest, quickest gain I’ve EVER seen in the markets. Nothing else compares... not by a long shot.

If you had seen the writing on the wall when Atlantic City first proposed legal casinos...

If you knew THIS company’s potential to hand investors earth-shattering gains...

And if you had taken quick and decisive action...

It’s no exaggeration to say you could have retired on this single play... with just a very tiny stake.

This is the historic wealth-building power of "crossover" events — when formerly banned industries become legal.

History's NEXT "Repeal Stocks" Boom

Just like the end of Prohibition and the partial legalization of gambling...

The end of marijuana prohibition will make investors very rich, very quickly.

And if you know where to look and take action while it’s early...

You could see the biggest profit windfall of your life, no matter how much you invest.

After all, the big winners won’t be the growers...

Or anyone who even touches the marijuana itself.

The winners will be the ancillary companies essential to production.

I’m talking about real estate, grow equipment, and security systems (just to name a few).

These are companies with the potential to deliver nothing less than 10-fold returns in under a year.

Once again, investors will see the writing on the wall.

They’ll see a major election in 2016 that guarantees a shift in policy...

They’ll see dozens of states pass legalization bills...

And they’ll snap up shares of marijuana companies in a frenzy... driving share prices through the roof.

But you’ll need to move right now, because these stocks will start surging long before prohibition is officially over.

Can you guess the effect of the end of Prohibition on alcohol stocks?

Nothing. Not even a tiny bump.

That’s because investors had already bought up company shares in anticipation of what they knew was inevitable.

That’s why the "smart money" is moving into this sector now.

Billionaires like Thiel, Buffett, Soros, and Musk.

And if you know where to look — and move quickly — you can get their same first-mover advantage.

And this is key...

In fact, getting in early enough could mean the difference between a few nice percentage points on your portfolio...

And a massive retirement windfall.

It’s your choice.

But if you want the second option, you’ll want to act right now.

And you’ll want to act on the three specific plays I’m sharing with you today...

The future Anheuser-Busches, Bacardis, and Miller-Coors of marijuana.

That’s why I’ve laid the groundwork for you so you can get started immediately.

You’ll get all the details on how to profit from America’s fastest-growing industry — including three red-hot plays — in my brand-new dossier, "Green Rush Profits: 3 Ways to Play the End of Marijuana Prohibition in 2016."

Inside you’ll get...

• Their names, ticker symbols, company profiles, and full analysis — everything you need to make this emerging opportunity the most lucrative of your life starting today.

• Everything I recently shared with an overcrowded room of hungry VC investors at The Money Show in San Francisco.

• All of my boots-on-the-ground analysis, including hobnobbing with elite marijuana entrepreneurs like TV show host Montel Williams.

• And much, much more.

Let me tell you a little about each of these companies right now...

Green Rush Play #1:

"Canada's $1.3 Billion Marijuana Monopoly"

Gains Potential: 2,900%

My first pick is a Vancouver-based company I call the "New King of Pot Stocks" because it’s positioned as the future monopoly of Canada’s marijuana industry.

The Canadian market for medical marijuana is growing fast.

Industry experts project the market will grow from 40,000 individuals to 1 million in just a few years.

And this firm is THE number one way to cash in on Canada’s explosive market — hands down.

First off, the company is Canada’s first licensed marijuana distributer and manufacturer, so it has considerable first-mover advantage.

That alone should grab our attention.

But when you add a recent acquisition of its biggest competitor...

A combination that analysts hail as “a cannabis superpower”...

We can now indisputably say it’s the dominant player of the country’s market — one that will lead this industry from infancy to maturity...

And deliver investors the biggest returns.

But it has just started growing its market share, and here’s why...

The company doubled its revenue each month in 2014.

In 2015, its revenues have grown six-fold.

In just two short years, its revenues are projected to explode 2,900%... even as expenses decline!

No surprise, then, that it recently booked positive profits... AND free cash flow.

I’m telling you... in an infant industry like this, where many of the companies are emerging players, it’s incredibly rare to find a company sitting on extra cash.

In fact, right now it’s the ONLY player in the Canadian market to generate free cash flow.

This all means one thing: It can snap up its much weaker competitors... expanding market share.

In other words, we’re early on the cusp of an explosive profit growth story.

Just to give you an idea of its potential, this stock has more than doubled investors’ money in just ONE month. Take a look...

That’s enough to turn a small investment of $10,000 into $25,000... in only 30 days.

And a coming catalyst could send it a whole lot higher.

Recently, the Canadian government legalized cannabis oil and edibles — a law that takes effect near the end of the year... opening up a whole new billion-dollar space for this marijuana giant.

To be sure, it has dozens of products in the pipeline that should hit the market before 2015 is over...

Not to mention it’s quickly expanding into the North American market.

And as the ONLY profitable Canadian marijuana firm — one generating free cash flow — it has the treasure chest to do so... without adding any debt.

Right now, its shares trade around $3...

But considering we’re looking at the dominant leader of a projected $1.3 billion market...

It’s unbelievable how the markets are undervaluing it.

Moving forward, 2,900% gains are not out of the question.

That brings me to my next recommendation.

It's a Denver-based social media platform that some now dub...

Green Rush Play #2:

"The Facebook of Marijuana"

Gains Potential: 1,500 percent

It’s connecting thousands of legal weed users around America.
The company’s subscriber base has soared from 25,000 last year to 500,000 now.
That’s an astronomic surge of 2,000%... 

And as marijuana prohibition ends, this number will only grow.

So will the number of companies paying for advertising.

Right now, 1,000 marijuana companies are hosted on the social platform.

Locked out by Google, Facebook, and Twitter, these business owners are just happy to have a space for Internet marketing.

And with competition heating up in the market, they’ll pay whatever it takes to reach customers.

Let me be clear: Online marketing for cannabis is a HUGE untapped space. And when prohibition ends, this company is lined up to be the leader — not other social media firms that snubbed the industry.

The astronomical growth in subscribers has hedge funds taking notice.

So far, it’s attracted $25 million in venture capital this year.

The markets are starting to see its potential, too...

Between August and September, the stock surged 129%.

Not bad for one month.

But wait until you hear what’s coming next...

If everything goes right (and there’s no reason it shouldn’t), this will be the first cannabis tech company to be listed on a major exchange...

A significant milestone event that could attract dozens of big-name institutions and send investors piling into the stock.

This is just weeks away, so I urge you to move quickly.  

While it only trades at $2...

It has all the potential of Facebook or Twitter, if you had invested pre-IPO.

Now, here are the details of my last play...

Green Rush Play #3:

The Company Banking on Marijuana’s $3.6 Billion Energy Shift

Gains Potential: 1,000%

It's a Swedish-based LED light technology firm.

The energy costs for marijuana growers are astronomical, to say the least.

One study estimates that weed growers consume 1% of total U.S. energy output.

• That’s the equivalent of 2 million American homes...

• The entire country of Israel...

• And as many as 150 countries!

The total tab has been estimated at $5 billion a year.

Industrial growers, like Denver-based Medicine Men, pay as much as $40,000 per month for electricity.

So LED lights are a no-brainer.

They can cut energy costs by as much as 66% in some cases.

They’re also eco-friendly and produce more diverse, potent, and higher yields of cannabis.

And this Swedish firm is on the cutting edge of new LED technology customized for the marijuana industry.

Over the last year, in fact, sales of its patented LED technology have doubled.

And that’s just for starters...

The overall LED grow-light module market is expected to move from $395 million in 2013 to $3.6 billion by 2020, according to Wintergreen Research.

These estimates will certainly move higher after the 2016 election, when dozens of new states pass bills of their own.

And considering its disruptive technology... growing client base... and surging sales growth...

This company is shaping up to be a major player in this emerging billion-dollar space.

Right now it trades around $1.30, but $10 is not out of the question moving forward.

So you’ve seen all the profits up for grabs...

The upcoming catalysts that can put this money in your pocket soon...

And similar circumstances where investors got rich.

So that you, too, can turn this into the profit opportunity of a lifetime, I’ve assembled the full details on this pick — and the two other red-hot plays — in my brand-new dossier:

"Green Rush Profits: 3 Ways to Play the End of Marijuana Prohibition in 2016."

Inside, you’ll find a profile on each of these companies and their ticker symbols.

That way, you can buy into them right now, before they start returning HUGE gains.

With your permission, I’d like to send you my research on this new breakthrough absolutely FREE.

All I ask is that you take a quick test-drive of my research advisory service, The Crow’s Nest.

Welcome to the The Crow's Nest

As I mentioned before, my name is Jimmy Mengel.

You may have seen me hobnobbing with the financial elite on CNBC's Closing Bell...

Or you may have heard of me as the architect behind the wildly popular finance and investing website Wealth Wire, where I brought readers the story behind the mainstream financial news every single day.

I've spent my entire professional career researching and writing about little-known opportunities in the financial arena.

I head the Outsider Club and our financial planning advisory, The Crow's Nest.

As a trained journalist, I've gained a reputation among my peers for digging like a sleuth to uncover under-the-radar moneymaking loopholes in financial back doors that most people never hear of...

In other words, I don't follow the crowd. The real money is always in the investments you've never heard of. That's how the rich play the game.

Whether it’s the $200 billion untapped potential of the marijuana market...

The emergence of cutting-edge medical developments that could change our lives and mint new fortunes...

Or retirement loopholes that can turn these profit windfalls into substantial "work-free" salaries...

I take pride in not just spotting life-changing trends long before the media catches wind...

But also helping everyday investors maximize their profits from these explosive opportunities.

That’s what The Crow’s Nest is all about.

All the research, the meetings with executives, the boots-on-the-ground investigation...

Touring the shops... factories... and fields...

It’s all a lot of work that keeps me going nonstop.

But it’s all worth it, knowing that you — the everyday investor — can see the money you need to fund your retirement.

And nothing — I repeat, NOTHING — compares to the once-in-lifetime opportunity the marijuana market now presents us.

All-new millionaires are being minted every day... with many more to come.

Not just entrepreneurs, either...

But everyday Americans who buy the right companies at the right time.

Whether it’s the end of Prohibition or legalized gambling...

Again and again, major legal changes like this drive stocks up for 10-, 20-, and 100-fold gains... in a matter of months.

And investors get rich.

As soon as you start your FREE trial subscription to The Crow’s Nest, you’ll get access to my new dossier...

"Green Rush Profits: 3 Ways to Play the End of Marijuana Prohibition in 2016."

So you’ll get a shot to join them as history repeats itself.

To sweeten the deal, I’ll also send you a brand-new research report on a very unique company I call the "Gold Barons."

Even as gold has plummeted in recent years...

And even as some miners have plunged by 80%, slaughtering investors...

This gold company has not batted an eye. In fact, it could have doubled your money during the same time.

Bonus Report #1:

"The Gold Barons: Make Money in ANY Gold Market"

Here’s the kicker...

Whenever gold soars, sending miner shares through the roof...

This company has historically surged three times higher!

That’s incredible.

It has all the upside of gold, with none of the downside. And it continues doubling investors’ money no matter what happens to the price of gold.

It’s the perfect company to own whether you’ll bullish or bearish on gold.

You’ll get the name, ticker symbol, and company profile — all the details on what makes this company so different and why it could double your money moving forward, no matter what the gold market is doing...

All inside my dossier: "The Gold Barons: Make Money In ANY Gold Market."

Like I said, I will send you all of this research free of charge when you start a subscription to The Crow’s Nest, which is delivered to your email inbox every month.

I realize you might have subscribed to a financial or investment newsletter before, but I guarantee you’ve never read anything like The Crow’s Nest.

Introducing you to the best investment ideas in the stock market is just a small part of what I do.

In my years running Wealth Wire, I’ve seen it all... and now I’ve boiled all of that knowledge down to an easy-to-follow program that will help you secure your finances, grow what you have, and allow you to retire comfortably instead of working until you drop — even if you've never bought a stock in your life.

The Crow's Nest will teach you how to completely take control of your finances — from buying stocks and plotting your retirement to taking advantage of tax breaks and simply plugging the money leaks that threaten to sink your savings.

Here are a few things you will discover when you read The Crow’s Nest:

• How you can save up to $277,969 by avoiding certain kinds of investments.
• How to open a savings account that actually beats inflation.
• A secret that will help you save hundreds of dollars on car insurance.
• A sneaky fee that could be draining thousands of dollars out of your retirement account.
• Why your credit card could be costing you hundreds of dollars, even if you don’t use it.
• The best way to protect your portfolio during volatile times... and much more

So how much does The Crow’s Nest cost, and how can you get started?

Well, before I tell you how to start a subscription, there’s something else I want you to know.

There’s another research report I want to make sure you have in your hands immediately.

Bonus Report #2:

"The Forbidden Secret To Retire a Millionaire"

Did you know there’s a secret retirement account that lets you pocket, on average, an extra 4% gain every single year?

I know an extra 4% gain may not sound like much... but all these gains add up to a fortune over time. Take a look at this chart:

It shows the growth of $1,000 invested in both the S&P 500 index and this secret retirement account going all the way back to 1929.

While a $1,000 investment would have turned into $80,760 with the S&P 500 index, the same $1,000 investment would have turned into $2,297,085 with this retirement plan. That’s more than 28 times higher.

This account had an average annual return of 9.8%, while the S&P 500 had an average annual return of 5.4%... a difference of 4.4% every single year...

All thanks to what I call $50 Retirement Plans.

This is a very unique way to retire rich... a rarely advertised investment opportunity so good that it puts 401(k)s and IRAs to shame.

Most people don’t know this retirement program exists.

But a few regular folks, like Bernard Schlossman, a 73-year-old retiree from Northridge, have already started to take advantage of this secret. As he says, this is something "you cannot not do."

That's because this little-known program can mean a lifetime of safe, effortless wealth generation for ordinary Americans... beginning with as little as a few hundred dollars.

And this is the perfect program for investors who are looking for income because it allows you to collect five to 10 TIMES bigger dividends than holding a stock the normal way...

With this kind of income, you could amass an unbelievable stake in just years starting with very little money.

I’m sure by now you’re asking yourself, "If this secret plan is so good, then how come I haven't heard about it before?"

The short answer is that the government has placed restrictions on advertising this program to the general public.

When this plan was created, it completely bypassed traditional brokers and money managers. So Wall Street lobbied Congress to forbid it from ever being advertised to the public...

As The Wall Street Journal wrote:

"It’s the best-kept secret on Wall Street. Securities and Exchange Commission rules won't let them say much about this fabulous way of saving and building wealth..."

Or as MarketWatch put it:

"Brokers and fund managers can't sock you with big fees and commissions if you [use this program]. So they won't tell you the 'best-kept secret' and they've made sure Congress and the SEC keep it a secret too."

Do you see now why few people know this program even exists?
The good news is that today, many online brokers will gladly help you get started. Your current broker may even offer this program, even though he probably doesn't advertise it.

You just have to know what to say.

I’ve created a special report to tell you everything you need to know about this rarely advertised retirement program. In the report, I'll show you how to get started... why this plan is so much better than regular retirement plans... how much you can collect... and three companies that are perfect for setting up $50 Retirement Plans.

As soon as you become a subscriber of The Crow’s Nest, you will get access to this report that shows you exactly how this secret plan works. You can get started with it in a matter of minutes.

A subscription to my letter, by the way, costs $99 a year.

Remember, elite investors charge their clients thousands of dollars for their advice. With The Crow’s Nest, you will get access to their best picks without having to pay the hefty fees they charge.

That’s why many folks believe The Crow’s Nest offers the best deal you’re ever likely to come across for this kind of research.
But here’s the thing...

You can actually get started with a full-year subscription today for much less than our normal rate. Today, you can receive a full year of The Crow’s Nest, plus everything else I mentioned here, for only $69.

Why so cheap?

Well, I know that most of my readers, like me, are extremely skeptical. Lots of people can make big promises and talk a good game, but in my experience, very few can actually deliver on what they promise.

And I know that if you’re like me, I need to earn your trust and your business. That’s why I want to make it as easy, cheap, and hassle-free as possible for you to try my work today.

That’s why, instead of paying our regular rate of $99 per year, today you can pay just $69. That’s $0.19 a day to receive EVERYTHING I mentioned here.

This includes:

• 12 Issues of The Crow's Nest: Delivered every month, each research letter I send you will be packed with the best elite investor ideas I uncover. I’ll also show you how to boost your income, incredible ways to dramatically cut your cost of living, the safest way to grow your retirement account, and much more.
• Special Report: "Green Rush Profits: 3 Ways To Play the End of Marijuana Prohibition in 2016"
• Bonus Report #1: "The Gold Barons: Make Money In ANY Gold Market"
• Bonus Report #2: "The Forbidden Secret To Retire a Millionaire"

Oh, and one more thing...                         

When you try my research, I’m not asking you to commit to anything whatsoever.

All I expect when you sign up is that you’ll give my work a try. Here’s the deal I’d like to propose: Sign up today to start receiving my research, and take the next 90 days to make up your mind.

If for any reason my work does not seem right for you, simply let me know within the next 90 days, and I’ll make sure you get a FULL REFUND for your entire $69 payment.

No restocking fee. Nothing to send back. Even if you cancel your subscription and receive a full refund, I’d like you to keep all the research you’ve received, my compliments.

Remember, even if you’ve subscribed to a financial letter before, I guarantee you’ve never seen anything like The Crow’s Nest.

I will introduce you to the best investment ideas from the most powerful investors on Wall Street and help you achieve financial freedom by taking complete control of your finances.

If this sounds like a fair deal to you, simply click on the "Subscribe Now" button below, which will take you to a secure order form, where you can review everything you’ll receive before placing your order.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Jimmy Mengel
Investment Director, The Crow's Nest

Shocking Tales of the Drug War

Legal Marijuana Could Save Lives

http://www.outsiderclub.com/shocking-tales-of-the-drug-war/1862

Written by Jimmy Mengel

Posted March 8, 2016 at 9:26PM

---

The Sinaloa Cartel is perhaps the most brutal drug trafficking group in history. The Mexican criminal enterprise has been running marijuana, heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamines into the United States since the 1960s.

It has been the major player in the Mexican Drug War, which has been officially responsible for over 60,000 deaths and 12,000 kidnappings. The unofficial numbers, however, are even more harrowing. Between 2007 and 2014, there were more murders in Mexico — 164,000 — than there were in the war zones of Iraq and Afghanistan combined.

To say that these guys rule with an iron fist is an understatement...

In one shocking “message”, the cartel skinned a rival's face and stitched it into a soccer ball.

The head was wrapped in a plastic bag and dumped next to City Hall, with a chilling note attached that read: "Happy New Year, because this will be your last."

That head belonged to Hugo Hernandez, who was kidnapped in Sonora, an area well known for its massive marijuana growing operations.

Now, I'm not telling you these things to terrify or shock you. I'm writing about them because these grisly acts may be less and less common now that marijuana has started to be legalized in the United States.

And as an investor (and a human being that would like to see fewer heads getting chopped off) I couldn't be happier about where things are headed...

Of all of the businesses in the world, the drug trade certainly takes the cake for being the most ruthless. These criminals murder, torture, and strong-arm their way into billions and billions of dollars. The leader of the Sinaloa cartel, Joaquin Guzmán — or "El Chapo" — is estimated to be worth north of $1.4 billion!

It is so huge and powerful that it was laundering hundreds of millions of dollars of its ill-gotten gains through the British Bank HSBC (fittingly, as banks are perhaps the second most ruthless business out there).

The U.S. Justice Department noted that cartel members would show up at a bank branch and “deposit hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, in a single day, into a single account, using boxes designed to fit the precise dimensions of the teller windows.”

This is a well-organized, well-funded operation that is seriously concerned about the effect that widespread legalization will have on its bottom line. And it should be...

U.S. legalization has driven the price of marijuana down by an astounding rate.

"Two or three years ago, a kilogram [2.2 pounds] of marijuana was worth $60 to $90," a Mexican marijuana grower told NPR. "But now they're paying us $30 to $40 a kilo. It's a big difference. If the U.S. continues to legalize pot, they'll run us into the ground."

It's already happening...

The U.S. Border Patrol has shown that marijuana seizures in the past year have fallen to their lowest levels in a decade. While federal agents were seizing 4 million pounds of marijuana in 2009, last year they seized “only” 1.5 million pounds.

While that still sounds like a ton of contraband, a drop like that seriously cuts into the easy profits that bloodthirsty cartels have been raking in for years.

And it isn't just the border towns that are seeing a drastic decline in arrests and seizures...

In Washington D.C., which decriminalized marijuana possession last year, possession arrests have decreased an incredible 98% and total marijuana-related arrests are down 85%.

Washington State, which opened its first legal pot shops in 2014, has seen a tremendous drop in violent crime and arrests. From the Drug Policy Alliance:

• Filings for low-level marijuana offenses are down 98% for adults 21 and older. All categories of marijuana law violations are down 63% and marijuana-related convictions are down 81%.
  
• Violent crime has decreased in Washington and other crime rates have remained stable since the passage of I-502.
  
• The state is now saving millions of dollars in law enforcement resources that were previously used to enforce marijuana laws.
  
• Washington has collected nearly $83 million in marijuana tax revenues. These revenues are funding substance abuse prevention and treatment programs, youth and adult drug education, community health care services, and academic research and evaluation on the effects of marijuana legalization in the state.

What's more, Washington has seen no uptick in youth marijuana use or traffic accidents, which are two of the bogeymen that anti-marijuana advocates cite as a reason to keep the plant illegal.

"Marijuana prohibition has been a costly failure — to individuals, communities, and the entire country,” according to Tamar Todd, the Drug Policy Alliance director of marijuana law and policy.

“Washington should be praised for developing a smarter, more responsible approach to marijuana. By shifting away from unnecessary marijuana arrests and focusing instead on public health, Washington is better positioned to address the potential harms of marijuana use, while also diminishing many of the worst harms of the war on drugs."

Perhaps most impressively, since Colorado has "legalized it", its marijuana shops have sold $996,184,788 worth of recreational and medical marijuana. Of that money, Colorado collected $135 million in marijuana taxes and fees last year, of which $35 million will be pumped into school construction projects. 

That's right, a billion dollars that would have otherwise gone tax-free into the hands of cutthroat drug lords is now flooding into state funds. That means that instead of spending countless millions of dollars to lock people up for petty drug crimes, states are now raking in cash to spend on schools and health care.

Which would you rather have? More money for schools or money flowing into cartel coffers which they'll use to bribe, intimidate, and chop peoples' heads off?

I think it's a pretty easy decision...

Obviously, we'd all like to see less violence and bloodshed from criminal gangs. We'd also like to see more tax money flowing into states that desperately need it. And as investors, I think we'd all like a front row seat to a massive new industry.

Right now, the legal marijuana industry in the U.S. pulled in $5.4 billion last year. That's billion with a 'B'. Just think about that...

Of the 50 states, only four currently have legalized marijuana for recreational purposes and 23 have legalized it for medicinal purposes.

Once the others fall into place, we could be looking at a $200 billion industry.

Godspeed,

Jimmy Mengel

 @mengeled on Twitter

Jimmy is a managing editor for Outsider Club and the Investment Director of the personal finance advisory The Crow's Nest. You may also know him as the architect behind the wildly popular finance and investing website Wealth Wire, where he's brought readers the stories behind the mainstream financial news each and every day. For more on Jimmy, check out his editor's page.

*Follow Outsider Club on Facebook and Twitter.

---

Related Articles

Marijuana Stocks Get Billionaire Backing

Here's why the stars are aligning for marijuana right now... and why you should get on board before the next billionaire dumps a ton of money into the sector.

The New King of Pot Stocks

A huge merger will be a total game changer for the entire marijuana investing industry...

The Dominoes Are Falling...

The dominoes are continuing to fall in the battle to fully legalize marijuana for medical treatments...

The positives and negatives: How marijuana affects your brain and body

http://www.thejournal.ie/marijauan-health-effects-legalised-medical-negative-positve-1256236-Jan2014/

While there are recreational uses and recognised medical applications of the drug, it can also be damaging to our bodies and minds.

Jan 11th 2014, 5:00 PM 169,623 Views 163 Comments

Share63 Tweet34 Email174

 

• 5 deputies punished for failing to act after a protester was allegedly assaulted at a Trump rally
• A new jewelry tax in India poses a major threat to gold
• All over the world, people are overcoming huge challenges to make a career in video games
• Why you shouldn't check your smartphone before you go to bed

RECENTLY LEGALISED IN the Washington and Colorado, marijuana has medical and recreational uses but can also be damaging to our bodies and minds.
The high you get from marijuana comes from a chemical called Tetrahydrocannabinol, also known as THC, which is found in varying potency.
Most of THC’s effects happen in the brain, where the chemical interacts with receptors on brain cells called cannibinoid receptors. Our bodies actually make chemicals very similar to THC, which are used in normal brain function and development. THC co-opts these natural pathways to produce most of its effects.

General manager David Martinez labels containers of retail marijuana, behind a sales bar fitted with a brochure available to customers, at 3D Cannabis Center in Denver. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)

It blocks memory formation.

The active ingredient in marijuana acts in the part of the brain called the hippocampus to alter the way information is processed and how memories are formed. Animal studies have shown that this is particularly true while the brain is still developing — specifically why the legal smoking age is 21 in the states that have legalised it.
This blockage of memory formation can cause cognitive impairment in adulthood if use happens during adolescence, at least in rats. It can also quicken age-related brain cell loss, though marijuana has been shown to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

THC messes with your balance.

THC messes with brain areas called the cerebellum and basal ganglia, which regulate balance, posture, coordination, and reaction time. When these brain areas are disturbed, the user has a harder time walking and talking correctly, becoming quite clumsy. It also impacts their ability to drive.

Cannabis use may increase the risk of depression.

Although there is no conclusive evidence that marijuana makes users depressed (it’s just as likely that people who are depressed use pot), one recent study from the Netherlands found that smoking cannabis increases the risk of depression for young people who have a genetic vulnerability to the mental illness.
In the long-term, smoking marijuana increased depressive symptoms in subjects with a special serotonin gene responsible for increased risk of depression.

An employee weighs portions of retail marijuana to be packaged and sold at 3D Cannabis Center in Denver. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)

Intense anxiety, fear, distrust, or panic are common side effects.

Somewhere between 20 and 30 percent of recreational marijuana users react with intense anxiety after taking the drug, making it one of the most commonly reported side effects.

Marijuana users may experience psychosis.

Marijuana users who have taken large doses of the drug may experience acute psychosis, which includes hallucinations, delusions, and a loss of the sense of personal identity. These episodes may be related to the link between marijuana use and psychosis, but are distinct.

Marijuana being smoked during a Prohibition-era themed New Year’s Eve party celebrating the start of retail pot sales, at a bar in Denver. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)

But it’s not all bad — Marijuana also makes us feel good.

When THC hits brain cells, it causes them to release dopamine, a feel-good brain chemical. This is a part of the brain’s reward system, which makes you feel good when you do things that ensure the survival of yourself and your offspring. These things include eating and having sex.
When over-excited by drugs, the reward system creates feelings of euphoria.

It controls epileptic seizures.

Marijuana use can prevent epileptic seizures, a 2003 study showed.
Robert J. DeLorenzo of Virginia Commonwealth University, gave marijuana extract and synthetic marijuana to epileptic rats. The drugs rid the rats of the seizures for about 10 hours. Cannabinoids like the active ingredient in marijuana, tetrahydrocannabinol (also known as THC), control seizures by binding to the brain cells responsible for controlling excitability and regulating relaxation.
The findings were published in the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics.

Marijuana treats inflammatory bowel diseases.

Patients with inflammatory bowel diseases like Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis could benefit from marijuana use, studies suggest.
University of Nottingham researchers found in 2010 that chemicals in marijuana, including THC and cannabidiol, interact with cells in the body that play an important role in gut function and immune responses. The study was published in the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics.
THC-like compounds made by the body increase the permeability of the intestines, allowing bacteria in. The plant-derived cannabinoids in marijuana block these body-cannabinoids, preventing this permeability and making the intestinal cells bond together tighter.

An employee of a marijuana store, attaches radio frequency tracking tags, required by law, to pot plants maturing inside a grow house. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)

THC slows the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

Marijuana may be able to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, a study led by Kim Janda of the Scripps Research Institute suggests.
The 2006 study, published in the journal Molecular Pharmaceutics, found that THC, the active chemical in marijuana, slows the formation of amyloid plaques by blocking the enzyme in the brain that makes them. These plaques are what kill brain cells and cause Alzheimers.

A chemical found in marijuana stops cancer from spreading.

One chemical found in marijuana, called cannabidiol, prevents cancer from spreading, researchers at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco reported in 2007.
Cannabidiol stops cancer by turning off a gene called Id-1, the study, published in the journal Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, found. Cancer cells make more copies of this gene than non-cancerous cells, and it helps them spread through the body.
The researchers studied breast cancer cells in the lab that had high expression levels of Id-1 and treated them with cannabidiol. After treatment the cells had decreased Id-1 expression and were less aggressive spreaders.
- Jennifer Welsh, Dina Spector, and Randy Astaiza

Ireland’s stance: Dáil rejects cannabis regulation motion >

Read: Uruguay world’s first country to legalise marijuana trade >

More: Man arrested over cannabis seizure in Gorey worth €80,000 earlier this week >

Why We Should Not Legalize Marijuana

Tuesday, 20 Apr 2010 | 12:02 AM ET

1.2K

SHARES

http://www.cnbc.com/id/36267223

126

COMMENTSJoin the Discussion

Contrary to the beliefs of those who advocate the legalization of marijuana, the current balanced, restrictive, and bipartisan drug policies of the United States are working reasonably well and they have contributed to reductions in the rate of marijuana use in our nation.
The rate of current, past 30-day use of marijuana by Americans aged 12 and older in 1979 was 13.2 percent. In 2008 that figure stood at 6.1 percent. This 54-percent reduction in marijuana use over that 29-year period is a major public health triumph, not a failure.
Marijuana is the most commonly abused illegal drug in the U.S. and around the world. Those who support its legalization, for medical or for general use, fail to recognize that the greatest costs of marijuana are not related to its prohibition; they are the costs resulting from marijuana use itself.
There is a common misconception that the principle costs of marijuana use are those related to the criminal justice system. This is a false premise. Caulkins & Sevigny (2005) found that the percentage of people in prison for marijuana use is less than one half of one percent (0.1-0.2 percent).
An encounter with the criminal justice system through apprehension for a drug-related crime frequently can benefit the offender because the criminal justice system is often a path to treatment.
More than a third, 37 percent, of treatment admissions reported in the Treatment Episode Data Set, TEDS, collected from state-funded programs were referred through the criminal justice system. Marijuana was an identified drug of abuse for 57 percent of the individuals referred to treatment from the criminal justice system. The future of drug policy is not a choice between using the criminal justice system or treatment. The more appropriate goal is to get these two systems to work together more effectively to improve both public safety and public health.
In the discussion of legalizing marijuana, a useful analogy can be made to gambling. MacCoun & Reuter (2001) conclude that making the government a beneficiary of legal gambling has encouraged the government to promote gambling, overlooking it as a problem behavior. They point out that “the moral debasement of state government is a phenomenon that only a few academics and preachers bemoan.”
Legalized gambling has not reduced illegal gambling in the United States; rather, it has increased it. This is particularly evident in sports gambling, most of which is illegal. Legal gambling is taxed and regulated and illegal gambling is not. Legal gambling sets the stage for illegal gambling just the way legal marijuana would set the stage for illegal marijuana trafficking.
The gambling precedent suggests strongly that illegal drug suppliers would thrive by selling more potent marijuana products outside of the legal channels that would be taxed and otherwise restricted. If marijuana were legalized, the only way to eliminate its illegal trade, which is modest in comparison to that of cocaine, would be to sell marijuana untaxed and unregulated to any willing buyer.
Marijuana is currently the leading cause of substance dependence other than alcohol in the U.S. In 2008, marijuana use accounted for 4.2 million of the 7 million people aged 12 or older classified with dependence on or abuse of an illicit drug. This means that about two thirds of Americans suffering from any substance use disorder are suffering from marijuana abuse or marijuana dependence.
If the U.S. were to legalize marijuana, the number of marijuana users would increase. Today there are 15.2 million current marijuana users in comparison to 129 million alcohol users and 70.9 million tobacco users. Though the number of marijuana users might not quickly climb to the current numbers for alcohol and tobacco, if marijuana was legalized, the increase in users would be both large and rapid with subsequent increases in addiction.
Important lessons can be learned from those two widely-used legal drugs. While both alcohol and tobacco are taxed and regulated, the tax benefits to the public are vastly overshadowed by the adverse consequences of their use.
Alcohol-related costs total over $185 billion while federal and states collected an estimated $14.5 billion in tax revenue; similarly, tobacco use costs over $200 billion but only $25 billion is collected in taxes. These figures show that the costs of legal alcohol are more than 12 times the total tax revenue collected, and that the costs of legal tobacco are about 8 times the tax revenue collected. This is an economically disastrous tradeoff.
The costs of legalizing marijuana would not only be financial. New marijuana users would not be limited to adults if marijuana were legalized, just as regulations on alcohol and tobacco do not prevent use by youth. Rapidly accumulating new research shows that marijuana use is associated with increases in a range of serious mental and physical problems. Lack of public understanding on this relationship is undermining prevention efforts and adversely affecting the nation’s youth and their families.
Drug-impaired driving will also increase if marijuana is legalized. Marijuana is already a significant causal factor in highway crashes, injuries and deaths. In a recent national roadside survey of weekend nighttime drivers, 8.6 percent tested positive for marijuana or its metabolites, nearly four times the percentage of drivers with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 g/dL (2.2 percent).
In another study of seriously injured drivers admitted to a Level-1 shock trauma center, more than a quarter of all drivers (26.9 percent) tested positive for marijuana. In a study of fatally injured drivers in Washington State, 12.7 percent tested positive for marijuana. These studies demonstrate the high prevalence of drugged driving as a result of marijuana use.
Many people who want to legalize marijuana are passionate about their perception of the alleged failures of policies aimed at reducing marijuana use but those legalization proponents seldom—if ever—describe their own plan for taxing and regulating marijuana as a legal drug. There is a reason for this imbalance; they cannot come up with a credible plan for legalization that could deliver on their exaggerated claims for this new policy.
Future drug policies must be smarter and more effective in curbing the demand for illegal drugs including marijuana. Smarter-drug prevention policies should start by reducing illegal drug use among the 5 million criminal offenders who are on parole and probation in the U.S. They are among the nation’s heaviest and most problem-generating illegal drug users.
Monitoring programs that are linked to swift and certain, but not severe, consequences for any drug use have demonstrated outstanding results including lower recidivism and lower rates of incarceration. New policies to curb drugged driving will not only make our roads and highways safer and provide an important new path to treatment, but they will also reduce illegal drug use.
Reducing marijuana use is essential to improving the nation’s health, education, and productivity. New policies can greatly improve current performance of prevention strategies which, far from failing, has protected millions of people from the many adverse effects of marijuana use.
Since legalization of marijuana for medical or general use would increase marijuana use rather than reduce it and would lead to increased rates of addiction to marijuana among youth and adults, legalizing marijuana is not a smart public health or public safety strategy for any state or for our nation.
Citations:
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (1999). 1997 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse. (Office of Applied Studies). Rockville, MD. Retrieved March 31, 2010
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2009). Results from the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings. Office of Applied Studies, NSDUH Series H-36, HHS Publication No. SMA 09-4434. Rockville, MD.
Caulkins, J.P., & Sevigny, E.L. (2009). How many people does the U.S. imprison for drug use, and who are they? Contemporary Drug Problems, 32(3): 405-428.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2009). Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS). Highlights - 2007. National Admissions to Substance Abuse Treatment Services, Office of Applied Studies, DASIS Series: S-45, DHHS Publication No. (SMA) 09-4360. Rockville, MD.
MacCoun, R.J., & Reuter, P. (2001). Drug war heresies: Learning from other vices, times, and places. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.
Abt, V. cited in Casinos in Florida: An analysis of the economic and social impacts. (n.d.). Tallahassee, FL: Executive Office of the Governor Office of Planning and Budgeting. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
Dunstan, R. (1997). Gambling in California. California Research Bureau. Retrieved April 1, 2010.
Frey, J.H. Gambling on sports: Policy issues. Journal of Gambling Studies, 8(4), 351-360.
Sabet, K.A. (2009, June 7). The price of legalizing pot is too high. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 9, 2010.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2009). Results from the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings. Office of Applied Studies, NSDUH Series H-36, HHS Publication No. SMA 09-4434. Rockville, MD.
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2009). Results from the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National Findings. Office of Applied Studies, NSDUH Series H-36, HHS Publication No. SMA 09-4434. Rockville, MD.
Kerlikowske, R.G. (2010, March 4). Why marijuana legalization would compromise public health and public safety, annotated remarks. California Police Chiefs Association Conference. San Jose, CA.
D'Souza, D.C., Sewell, R.A., & Ranganathan, M. (2009). Cannabis and psychosis/schizophrenia: Human studies. European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, 259(7), 413-331.
Bates, B. (2010, Feb). Teen cannabis use predicts depression. Clinical Psychiatry News, 38(2).
Boschert, S. (2010, Feb). Marijuana self-medication might prompt mood disorders, stress. Clinical Psychiatry News, 38(2).
Compton, R., & Berning, A. (2009). Results of the 2007 National Roadside Survey of Alcohol and Drug Use by Drivers. Traffic Safety Facts Research Note. (DOT HS 811 175) Washington, DC: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Retrieved March 31, 2010 from http://www.nhtsa.gov/staticfiles/DOT/NHTSA/Traffic%20Injury%20Control/Articles/Associated%20Files/811175.pdf
Walsh, J.M., Flegel, R., Cangianelli, L.A., Atkins, R., Soderstrom, C.A., & Kerns, T.J. (2004). Epidemiology of alcohol and other drug use among motor vehicle crash victims admitted to a Level-1 trauma center. Traffic Injury Prevention, 5, 254-260.
Schwilke, E.W., dos Santos, M.I.S., & Logan, B.K. (2006). Changing patterns of drug and alcohol use in fatally injured drivers in Washington State. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 51(5), 1191-1198.
Institute for Behavior and Health. (n.d.). Institute for Behavior and Health, Inc. Rockville, MD. Retrieved April 9, 2010 from http://www.ibhinc.org
Hawken, A., & Kleiman, M. (2009). Managing drug involved probationers with swift and certain sanctions: Evaluating Hawaii’s HOPE. National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. Award No. 2007-IJ-CX-0033.
Stop Drugged Driving. (n.d.). Institute for Behavior and Health, Inc. Rockville, MD. Retrieved April 9, 2010 from http://www.stopdruggeddriving.org