SAFER Board Member Scott Durrah and his wife Wanda James were featured on "Marijuana USA," CNBC's latest program documenting the emergence of the marijuana industry in Colorado and nationwide.

Scott and Wanda discuss their business, SimplyPure, and answer several questions regarding the state of current marijuana laws and where things are heading.  Wanda raises the point that alcohol is widely availably and promoted in our society, so it makes no sense to spend so much time fighting marijuana.  In the end, she confidently states that marijuana legalization is coming soon whether opponents like it or not. 

CNBC's description of the program is below, and you can CLICK HERE to watch a preview and find out when it will air again. 

CNBC's "Marijuana USA" goes inside a flourishing medical pot industry. In Colorado, the demon weed is rebranded as a natural herbal remedy with healing powers that even respectable citizens can enjoy. We meet two restaurant owners who are about to launch a new line of cannabis-infused edibles. And, we’ll go inside a clinic where marijuana is almost always the doctor's order.

More states are permitting the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes and the Obama administration has signaled relaxed enforcement of the industry in those states. Now, a new generation of marijuana entrepreneurs has emerged across America. They come from the unlikely fields of finance, politics, medicine and law, and they want to claim a stake in this modern day gold rush

In this bold new era of greater marijuana acceptance, the business still remains in violation of federal laws. But, the entrepreneurs have asked to be regulated, licensed and taxed – just like any other trade. After more than seventy years as an illegal drug, is it possible that marijuana’s moment has arrived?

The latest issue of The Nation is dedicated entirely to issues surrounding the War on Drugs. It features articles written by activists, researchers, and journalists tackling a variety of issues surrounding the subject. 

One of the articles was contributed by SAFER board member and Students for Sensible Drug Policy Executive Director Aaron Houston, and it discusses the emergence of student activism surrounding marijuana reform.  Below is a short excerpt of the piece, and you can CLICK HERE to read the entire article.

On November 7 a group of student activists gathered in a room on the University of Colorado campus to discuss strategies for how to run a marijuana legalization campaign in the 2012 elections. Five days earlier, voters in California had defeated Proposition 19 by a margin of seven points. Although the vote represented the largest percentage a US legalization measure has ever garnered (46.5 percent), many in the drug policy reform community were discouraged. Young activists who had spent the past several months encouraging students on California campuses to register, and who worked furiously in the final days to get out the vote, were exhausted. There were a lot of sullen expressions in downtown Oakland on election night. But for the students in Boulder, and in some ways for the legalization movement more broadly, the fight is just beginning.

A great op-ed appeared this week in a local New Hampshire newspaper, The Keene Sentinel.  An excerpt is below, or you can read the entire piece by clicking HERE:

Marijuana is safer than alcohol. Let that little bit set in, and then let’s open up discussion.

Note: You may want to open a web browser to check these facts for yourself if you are reluctant to take my word.

Alcohol claims 35,000 lives a year.

Marijuana?

Mary Jane is not a killer and has never claimed a single life. Ever. In history.

If that minute tidbit isn’t enough to wrangle up some support, than how about this:

Alcohol abuse (which frequently occurs on college campuses across the nation), significantly raises the rate of assault, property damage and general disorderly conduct.

Marijuana, simply does not. Don’t believe me? Google it, or better, ask a member of NORML, SAFER, or many other marijuana associated groups.