A middle-American Republican is trying to push legalization of psychedelics further than any coastal Democrat has even tried.
In Iowa, a freshman GOP lawmaker introduced a bill that would legalize MDMA and ibogaine for medical use. The legislator, Jeff Shipley, 30, also put forth a bill that would decriminalize psilocybin, one of the magic ingredients in mushrooms, Marijuana Moment reported.
Not only are these bold steps for a Republican — the party most responsible for the Drug War — and not only is this a big leap for Iowa — which doesn't even have medical marijuana (at least not the kind with THC) — but no legislator in any state of any party has filed bills to legalize a psychedelic — not even hippie places like Vermont or California or Oregon, a spokesperson for the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies told Marijuana Moment.
Someone should, of course. MDMA — the pure form of ecstasy or molly — Ibogaine and mushrooms each show promise as treatments for PTSD, addiction and depression. Both MDMA and psilocybin have been declared "breakthrough" treatments by the FDA.
Some Coloradans and Oregonians are working to decriminalize or legalize mushrooms. Shrooms are often seen as the safest, most natural drug currently banned. But those freedom trippers are regular folks, not legislators.
The fact remains that shrooms, Ibogaine and MDMA are very strange drugs; they may have a huge upside, but they can also make you question your current understanding of reality, and spin you like a top. So politicians usually keep their distance.
Shipley's bills in Iowa are probably longshots to pass: many Iowa Republicans are fighting against a bill to legalize rec weed, when much of the country has pot shops on every corner.
Still: the world is changing fast. Iowa Republican Drug War opponents are just one sign.
Leave a Reply