The revolution in the legal status of marijuana has been rapid and dramatic. Four decades ago, there was a universal prohibition against buying, selling, using and possessing marijuana. Then, several local and state jurisdictions began to adopt a range of more lenient policies toward marijuana users — eventually including decriminalization and de facto legalization in some jurisdictions.

Three decades ago, large-scale production for profit was banned essentially everywhere. But that, too, began to change. In the 1990s, several states introduced “medical marijuana” programs. Though marijuana use was made legal only for medical purposes, the regulations were often so loose that essentially anyone could get a physician’s “recommendation,” authorizing that person to purchase marijuana. Suppliers were euphemistically called “caregivers” (even though some never met the “patients” they were caring for), and they sold out of brick-and-mortar retail stores known as “dispensaries.” At one point, there were thousands of dispensaries in California alone.

Read the article “The Real Dangers of Marijuana” on nationalaffairs.com.