American politicians find themselves constantly embroiled in a heated debate over the legalization of marijuana. At the moment the no's have it, but the real question is how long they can keep it that way. Because: "For the farmer, cannabis is a fiber crop; for the doctor, it is an enigma; for the consumer, a euphoric; for the police, a threat; for the trafficker, a source of profitable danger; for the convict or prisoner on probation and his family, a source of pain" (Mikuriya, 1969). Introduction The future of marijuana in the United States is uncertain. No one knows if it is truly on the path to legalization on a national scale. But one thing is certain: marijuana is the most widely used illicit drug in the United States. Currently it is; the move toward small-scale legalization took further steps forward with Proposition 19 winning about 44% of California's vote. One of the main causes of the gradual tolerance to marijuana consumption has been the change in the perception of the substance among the older groups of our society. Since 2000, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of regular marijuana users aged 55 and older. This article will attempt to examine some of the major factors that have contributed to the significant increase in the prevalence of marijuana use among baby boomers, the short-term effects of marijuana with an emphasis on how such effects would impact older individuals, the long-term long-term effects of heavy marijuana use and potential political and social implications of extensive marijuana use among older individuals in the United States. The first decade of the 21st century was a particularly eventful historical period. Recent studies have shown that... half of the article...... Psycho Geriatrics 20, 1081-1089.Hendrix, S. (2009). Boomers see relaxing views with marijuana. From http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/15/AR2009111503007.html.Mikuriya, Tod H. (1969). Marijuana in medicine: past, present and future. California Medicine 110(1), 34–40.Stack, P, Suddath, C. (2009). A Brief History of Medical Marijuana. Retrieved November 4, 2010, from http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1931247,00.html.Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Office of Applied Studies. (December 29, 2009). The NSDUH report: Illicit drug use among older adults. Rockville, MD. (Suggested citation) Tashkin, D. P. (1999). Effects of marijuana on the lungs and its defenses against infections and cancer. International school psychology. Special issue: Preventing marijuana use among youth 20 (1), 23-37..