Legalize It

To start this thing off with a bang I wanted to talk about the legalization and taxation of marijuana in California. In short, I am completely for it.

Speaking from a completely financial standpoint legalizing and taxing marijuana would be a great move for California. Its clear that at this point in time this wonderful state has spent itself into a obscene amount of debt and there are no clear solutions available. The marijuana industry in Medocino County alone is estimated to be a 1 billion dollar industry. With moderate taxation of the entire state's pot industry we could expect to see at least 1.4 billion dollars in additional tax revenue each year. 1.4 billion dollars could do a lot to help repair a state that ended 2009 with a budget deficit of 20.7 billion dollars. California wouldn't only make money through taxation but they would also save money by eliminating much of the money spent on fighting the drug war. The war against marijuana has cost this state an unbelievable amount of money. The federal and state government continue to put money into enforcing marijuana laws and incarcerating offenders. Yet marijuana use continues to be on the rise, its clearly a war that is being lost. Do you really want your tax dollars spent on keeping a guy in prison because he likes to get high, watch tv, and eat to many Cheetos? I sure don't. Fiscally the legalization of marijuana makes complete sense.

Now, clearly, people aren't opposed to legalizing marijuana because of financial reasons, its mainly the negative repercussions of "drug" use that have most people reeling when it comes to legalizing pot. Luckily marijuana isn't a drug, its a plant, and all of the negative things that have perpetuated through the main stream media and governmental organizations have been largely proven to be false.

Does marijuana cause lung cancer? There has never been a proven link between marijuana use and the occurrence of lung cancer.

Don't people die from marijuana use? There has never been a marijuana related death EVER. However a significant amount of people die every year from caffeine overdoses.

Doesn't marijuana kill brain cells? No, it has been proven that marijuana contrary to popular belief does not kill brain cells and in some cases has even been proven to increase brain function. Alcohol most definitely kills brain cells.

Is marijuana a gateway drug? There has never been any conclusive evidence to show that marijuana leads to the use of harder drugs. Studies have shown that for every 100 marijuana users there is only one regular user of cocaine and less than one user of heroin. In Holland where marijuana has been legal for 25 years drug use within their population is significantly less than than what we experience in the U.S. The gateway drug argument is largely hearsay and lies perpetuated by the anti drug coalitions.

Does marijuana make you lazy? In some cases, yes, but last time I checked being lazy wasn't illegal. On the other hand some of the most successful people I know are regular marijuana users. So I'd have to say it really depends on the person.

If marijuana is legalized won't all of our children become stoners? Ask any high school student and they'll tell you its easier for them to get pot than alcohol. If marijuana is legalized it will have the same restrictions as alcohol and should actually make it harder for kids to get their hands on it.

The war against marijuana is also indicative of what I believe to be a huge flaw in our modern political system and that is, that we think its the governments job to protect us from hurting ourselves. I think one of the most essential freedoms that we should enjoy in this country is the right to do what we choose to our own bodies. If you want to eat 4 double cheeseburgers from Mcdonalds every day and die of a heart attack at 45 that's your prerogative and the government isn't going to stop you. Obesity is one of the greatest causes of death in this country yet no one is trying to make deep fried Twinkies at the county fair illegal. The criminalization of marijuana is governmental hypocrisy at its finest. As long as your choices don't infringe upon other peoples essential rights you should be allowed to do what choose.

If you think about this debate logically the legalization of marijuana makes a lot of sense and I hope that sometime soon we'll see it legalized so we can focus on some of the greater problems in this country.

If you want more facts and figures do your own research or check out this site. http://norml.org/