With full legalization seeming inevitable, it's time to shift the conversation—from whether recreational cannabis should be legalized to how.
Weed Rules argues that it's time for states to abandon their "grudging tolerance" approach to legal weed and to embrace "careful exuberance." In this thorough and witty book, law professor Jay Wexler invites policy makers to responsibly embrace the enormous benefits of cannabis, including the joy and euphoria it brings to those who use it.
The "grudging tolerance" approach has led to restrictions that are too strict in some cases—limiting how and where cannabis can be used, cultivated, marketed, and sold—and far too loose in others, allowing employers and police to discriminate against users. This book shows how focusing on joy and community can lead us to an equitable marijuana policy in which minority communities, most harmed by the war on drugs, play a leading role in the industry. Centering pleasure and fun as legitimate policy goals, Weed Rules puts forth specific policies to advocate for a more just, sensible, and joyous post-legalization society.
Buy Weed Rules at University of California Press or IndieBound
"Wexler develops a framework for evaluating different economic and legal policies according to how well they serve ten different values, including public health, revenue maximization, and equity. . . . Recommended."
—Choice Magazine
"Weed Rules is a highly entertaining and user-friendly guide to the complex world of cannabis policy. Jay Wexler combines compelling stories with data and legal analysis to make a persuasive case the way only a marijuana-law professor could. This book will change the cannabis debate."
—Shaleen Title, Former Commissioner of Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission
"Weed Rules is an engaging, thoughtful, and accessible guide for anyone interested in reshaping marijuana policy."
— Robert Mikos, Vanderbilt Law School
Speaking to Kennedy (the former MTV MJ!) on her FOX News show. Click on the link to watch the segment
Weed Rules Mini-Symposium at BU Law
Interview about Weed Rules at Avantpop Bookstore in Las Vegas
Weed Rules event at Brookline Booksmith with Dr. Peter Grinspoon
Returning to Brookline Booksmith to talk with Peter Grinspoon about his new book about cannabis and aging
I talk about cannabis legalization in this Bloomberg video