Is Big Marijuana about to become the next Big Tobacco?

LOS ANGELES, CA - Republican representative Andy Harris is Congress's most vocal opponent to legalized marijuana. On the other hand, Democratic representative Earl Blumenauer from Oregon was just named Congress's "Top Legal Pot Advocate" by Rolling Stone Magazine. Despite their differences the two are teaming up to introduce a significant overhaul of federal marijuana policy. It would "cut through the red tape" to make it much easier for scientists to conduct research into the medical uses of marijuana.

Brookings Institution researchers wrote last year, "As federal law currently stands, only one facility in Mississippi is allowed to produce marijuana used for research. Because of this monopoly, research-grade drugs that meet researchers' specifications often take years to acquire, if they are produced at all."

So should marijuana lovers rejoice? Or are we just one step closer to the creation of Big Tobacco's cousin: Big Marijuana?

The anti-marijuana group Smart Approaches to Marijuana says that Big Marijuana is already here. They say, 'Like Big Tobacco of yesteryear, Big Marijuana knows that it needs lifelong addicted customers to prosper."

So should marijuana be legalized? Or is the fear of Big Marijuana enough that we should "puff puff pass" on it all together?