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| Politicians Protecting Big Alcohol While Stepping on Medical Cannabis |
Alcohol Monster: Why Tennessee Protects Booze but Bans Bud
The Double Standard in Plain Sight
Step into any Tennessee gas station, grocery, or roadside market and the shelves shine with six-packs, vodka handles, and pre-mixed shooters. Alcohol is everywhere — it’s treated like soda with a warning label. Meanwhile, cannabis and even THCA — a legal hemp compound — get crushed under the boot of state law.
The contradiction couldn’t be sharper: alcohol, a proven killer, is protected. Cannabis, a safer alternative, is demonized.
Politicians’ Favorite Cash Cow
Let’s be blunt. Tennessee politicians don’t keep alcohol legal because it’s good for us. They keep it legal because it’s profitable.
- Liquor-by-the-drink tax: 15% on every cocktail served in a bar or restaurant. That’s money flowing into city and state budgets.
- Tourism: Distillery tours pump billions into Tennessee’s economy every year. Jack Daniel’s is more than a brand; it’s a state mascot.
- Campaign coffers: Alcohol interests bankroll the same politicians who turn around and slam cannabis reform.
When dollars and donors call the shots, health and fairness don’t stand a chance.
The Harm They Hide
Here’s what “protected” looks like:
- Alcohol contributes to thousands of deaths in Tennessee every year — from drunk driving, liver disease, and alcohol-fueled violence.
- 7,500+ impaired-driving crashes in 2023 alone, far more deadly than sober wrecks.
- Alcohol-related ER visits number in the tens of thousands annually.
- Incarceration costs spike because of substance-related offenses — many tied to alcohol.
Politicians aren’t blind to these numbers. They just don’t care, because the monster they’ve chosen to feed also feeds them.
Cannabis: The Safer Alternative
Study after study shows cannabis carries far fewer risks than alcohol.
- No link to fatal overdose.
- Lower association with violent crime.
- Medical benefits: pain relief, anti-seizure, anxiety treatment, PTSD support, and more.
Yet Tennessee criminalizes it, forcing people into the shadows for a plant that heals — while glorifying a substance that kills.
The Truth They Don’t Want to Face
The alcohol lobby whispers “jobs” and “tourism” in lawmakers’ ears. The cannabis industry offers the same — jobs, tax revenue, and safer consumer choice. The difference? Cannabis doesn’t have a century-old brand and a billion-dollar grip on the Capitol.
So Tennessee politicians protect booze but ban bud. Not because of health. Not because of safety. But because one monster is already feeding the machine, and the other would free too many people from its grip.
Final Hit
The Alcohol Monster is real, and it’s protected by law. Cannabis is safer, but it’s criminalized. If Tennessee leaders really cared about families, freedom, and public health, they’d flip the script. Until then, we’ll keep speaking the truth: Bud heals. Booze kills.
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