A recent magazine poll in an online publication disclosed that 85% of grandparents endorsed the decriminalization of marijuana/pot.  Indeed, one segment of this population indicated a strong preference to legalize the substance.

Approximately eight or nine years ago, marijuana/pot proponents requested the government to reclassify marijuana/pot from its Schedule I status which is the same schedule where heroin is listed. Recently, the DEA rejected the proposal. The fight is not over yet. The proponents of the issue expect to take the cause to the federal courts, where they are comfortable that they will be able to show that marijuana/pot has some therapeutic and medical value, and to that extent, it is inappropriate for a Schedule I classification.

As a result of the financial crunch influencing the rest of the country, Philadelphia has decided to curtail some of the expense associated with the investigation, arrest and prosecution of marijuana/pot users. Specifically, it has been agreed that possessory offenses shall be addressed summarily and not as misdemeanors. The accused will have to participate in a three-hour class dealing with the evils of drug use and pay a two hundred dollar fine.  The record can be expunged.