Most Influential Pot Smokers

I have posted on this blog many times that I think marijuana use by adults should be legalized (both for medical and recreational use), regulated, and taxed. It is not only the least harmful of any drug (including the many legal drugs), but its legalization would produce many new jobs and billions in new tax revenue (both of which are badly needed in this poor economy). I am not alone in this belief. There are millions of Americans who agree, and there are several organizations dedicated to marijuana legalization -- including Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), and the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP).

In an effort to show how harmless and mainstream marijuana use really is, the MPP has issued it's 2012 list of the most influential marijuana users. Not all of these people are current marijuana users (though some probably are), but all of them have used the gentle herb at some point in their lives -- and still became very successful people. I'll only list the top twenty here, but if you'd like to know who the other thirty are, you can go to this website.

1. Barack Obama (President)
2. Clarence Thomas (Supreme Court Justice)
3. Bill Clinton (former President)
4. George W. Bush (former President)
5. Michael Phelps (Olympic athlete)
6. Newt Gingrich (former Speaker of the House)
7. Jon Stewart (host of The Daily Show)
8. George Soros (billionaire investor)
9. Bill Gates (founder of Microsoft)
10. George Clooney (actor and director)
11. Gary Johnson (former governor & current presidential candidate)
12. Lebron James (NBA player and Olympian)
13. Michael Bloomberg (Mayor of New York City)
14. Sarah Palin (former governor and vice-presidential candidate)
15. Woody Harrelson (actor)
16. Al Gore (former senator and presidential candidate)
17. Bill Maher (comedian and TV show host)
18. Willie Nelson (country music superstar)
19. Snoop Dogg (rap music superstar)
20. Arnold Schwarzenegger (actor and former governor)