Take a year, say 1985. Plot the number of anti-drug war, specifically cannabis, articles in print and broacast media including such shows as 60 Munites and 20/20. On each subsequent year plot the same. You have an increasing number of them in each succeeding year. Add in the internet, where the ordinary citizen can sound off. And the government forces are all allied against it, so there is only one source of this resistance: the people.
That constitutes groundswell, pookie. Deal with it. 