It's not California that is driving the trend toward decriminalizing marijuana use; it's social mood, which has become more bearish and less tolerant of the murders and mayhem caused by the drug war.
That's how The Socionomics Institute's Euan Wilson explained this current social trend one year ago in his article, "The Coming Collapse of a Modern Prohibition," in the July 2009 issue of The Socionomist.
The latest news about the drug wars in Mexico covers the gruesome goings-on at Falcon Lake in Texas where drug dealers allegedly killed a U.S. citizen while he was vacationing on the border. More recently, the lead investigator in the already grim case was found decapitated.
Sadly, this story doesn’t surprise socionomist Wilson, who wrote last year that just as the public outcry against gang violence in Prohibition-era Chicago hastened the repeal of Prohibition, “it appears inevitable … that drug-related carnage -- and public disgust with it – will spread as well” and eventually hasten the decriminalization of marijuana.
Now take a look at more news about the activities that fuel the fire:
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger just signed a state bill that effectively decriminalizes possessing less than an ounce of marijuana. California citizens will no longer face a criminal charge or carry a record if charged with possession. That means that pot-smoking now joins jaywalking and letting your parking meter expire as mere infractions penalized by a simple fine.
This news was quickly overshadowed by the upcoming vote on Proposition 19, which aims to Regulate, Control, and Tax Cannabis. Governor Schwarzenegger may not support complete repeal of marijuana prohibition, but other celebrity types, including ubiquitous Facebook co-founder Sean Parker, have donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to support the proposition.
Moving on from Sacramento to Hollywood and beyond, you can see that drug-related content is increasing in pop culture with recent movies like Get Him to the Greek, Pineapple Express, and I’m Still Here. Over the air waves, stoner music from MGMT, Broken Bells and Kid Cudi is climbing the charts, and the popular Showtime TV sitcom "Weeds" also reflects a broad shift toward acceptance. Even in our nation’s capitol, the attitudes are changing: The District of Columbia just joined the list of 14 states that permit personal possession of marijuana for medical use.
Wilson wrote that “during times of negative mood …people have other bigger worries and begin to view recreational drugs as less dangerous, if not innocuous in offering stress relief, pain reduction and the ability to cope with the pressures of negative social mood.”
Wilson and his colleagues publish groundbreaking research in each monthly edition of The Socionomist, which catalogues the causative mood behind today's social trends and forecasts the patterned direction of those trends for the future.