Why We SHOULDN'T Remove Cannabis from the Controlled Substance Act

Why We SHOULDN’T Remove Cannabis from the Controlled Substance Act

do not remove cannabis from the csa

Politicians and Activists alike are arguing for cannabis to be completely removed from the Controlled Substance Act or at the very least, give it a lower scheduling. While this sounds like a reasonable request, I disagree with that notion entirely.

Now, before you get all wound up and ready to express your digital rage, allow me to explain myself. I don’t think that we should remove cannabis from the Controlled Substance Act at all, I believe we should get rid of the Controlled Substance Act altogether.

Throughout this article my hopes is to at least get you thinking about the idea. Of course, in all likeliness this won’t happen anytime soon (if ever), however, when enough people realize that they are getting scammed, there might be a day in the future that we abolish this oppressive policy.

The following sections will outline all of the arguments I have in favor of demolishing this tyrannical wet dream known as the Controlled Substance Act.

A Criminal Made It Law

The first reason why this law needs to be abolished is because it was made into law by America’s most famous criminal. Richard Nixon, who signed the CSA into law in 1970, was shortly afterwards impeached for the Watergate scandal, where he was implicated in a bunch of shady dealings. I’m not going to go into all of the reasons, however the mere fact that he was convicted and impeached means that this document should not be law.

If we allow criminals to dictate the law, then the integrity of the law is diminished. Yet, for some reason people have simply come to accept that we are living under a law that was essentially created and enacted by a criminal.

The System is Rigged

The way the CSA is set up is meant to keep the average American out of the game. Essentially the document states that the Pharmaceutical Industry is responsible for all of the drugs in America. Anything outside of their reach is deemed “illegal”.

On paper, it aims to make drugs safe for all by going through rigorous medical testing and so forth. While the idea was noble, the fact of the matter is that the track record of the pharmaceutical industry on “keeping drugs safe” and “affordable” does not reflect the nobility of the original idea.

The pharmaceutical industry is directly responsible for the opioid epidemic in the United States and considering that they are “for profit” industries, they utilize the Medicaid programs in the United States to increase the cost of medication at the expense of the people.

Secondly, the people in charge of deciding what needs to be on the CSA is the DEA. They are the “overseers” of the document. If someone, even an individual like yourself, requests that a substance is removed, the DEA will commence an “investigation”.

They would first reach out to DHH (department of health and human services), who would then “conduct some research”. This research is then relayed to the head of the FDA who would continue to do some more “research”. Once all of this internal “research” has been conducted, they will send it back to the DEA, where the head honcho would decide on whether to add or remove a substance.

Considering that the DEA literally depends on the existence of the Controlled Substance Act to…well exist, it is never in their interest to remove a substance from the CSA.

Thus, irrespective of what the global scientific community has to say about a particular substance, the DEA is in charge of de-scheduling it. Which never happens. In fact, historically, the DEA has stonewalled any attempt to decriminalize or DE schedule cannabis over the decades.

With a rigged system like this in place, the health of the individual is in jeopardy. The only real solution would be to have the global scientific and medical community chime in and decide what should be considered “dangerous” and what shouldn’t. The DEA is ideologically incentivized to maintain the framework, meaning that since its inception, it has been working against the individual and catering to federalist powers.

But Don’t We Need the CSA to Protect Us from Drugs?

Of course not. The truth of the matter is that you can go out today and literally buy anything on that list from the black market. The CSA or the idea of the CSA does not stop illegal drug consumption, distribution or manufacturing.

Instead, the illegality of these markets incentivizes criminals to do just that. The more intense the prohibition of a substance, the more valuable it becomes in the black market.

Thus, the mere existence of the CSA makes illegal drugs more available due to the increased value within the black market.

But wouldn’t abolishing the CSA altogether make drugs more available?

I’m not saying we shouldn’t regulate drugs. We need to have quality control when it comes to drugs. However, “illegal drugs” should not exist. Within a well-regulated market, we are able to address all of the problems the CSA is trying to address, except, we’ll also be reducing the prevalence of the black market. You’ll never completely remove the black market, however, if you make affordable legal alternatives, people will always choose the legal route.

Cannabis, should not be removed from the CSA…the CSA should be removed from the United States.