Anti-legalization group Project SAM released a new video this week comparing marijuana’s recent rise to that of tobacco’s past ascents. The group released the video, above, in conjunction with the National Rx Abuse Summit and the affiliated SAM Marijuana Education Summit.
“I hope people realize that marijuana legalization is all about creating Big Tobacco 2.0: A massive industry that has to keep profits flowing by denying health harms and increasing addiction,” SAM (Smart Approaches to Marijuana) president and legalization opponent Kevin Sabet told The Cannabist.
The video starts out with the famous April 1994 congressional hearing in which America’s biggest tobacco executives, one by one, testified that nicotine isn’t addictive. The video then says, “Big Tobacco and Big Marijuana employ the same tactics. Deny health harms. Target kids. Attack public health. Form political lobbies. Obscure science.”
The video closes with: “We were once fooled by a powerful industry living off of addiction for profit. Let’s not let it happen again.”
So let’s put the question to our readers: Do you think the marijuana industry, in its quest for legalization and normalization, is utilizing the same tactics used by the tobacco industry?
Take our poll, and leave a comment below to further illustrate your position if you’re compelled to.
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