TAX, REGULATE MARIJUANA

Illinois should tax and regulate cannabis similar to alcohol to
generate income for the state and local governments.

Why are we arresting otherwise law-abiding citizens for their
recreational use of cannabis. Isn’t this a free country? Arresting
responsible cannabis users wastes tax dollars and the 70-year cannabis
prohibition needs to be repealed. Responsible users are not the
problem and should not be punished. There will be those who break laws
while under the influence of cannabis and they should be punished,
being high is no better an excuse than being drunk. Alcohol
prohibition did not work, it led to an increased organized crime and
did not deter its use, and similarly cannabis prohibition is not
working. Why don’t we end cannabis prohibition and allow our citizens
to use it responsibly just like they are allowed to use alcohol
responsibly. Most who want to keep cannabis illegal do so to protect
children and that is a very noble cause.

However, adults should be allowed to consume cannabis responsibly, yet
there should be age limits on its use like there are with other
substances that we try to protect children from. It is not the
government’s place to protect its citizens from willingly using a
substance that has not one documented overdose fatality and is safer
than many commonly available substances. Plus, drug dealers do not
card children when they buy cannabis, but if it were sold like alcohol
or tobacco the retailer would need age verification and face penalties
for noncompliance. End cannabis prohibition, tax and regulate
marijuana.

Dan Linn, executive director

Illinois Chapter of theNational Organization to Reform Marijuana Laws (Illinois NORML), Chicago