POT POSSESSION SHOULD BE LEGAL

On Wednesday, a local man was arrested, police said, with 11 pounds of
marijuana and $17,000 in cash in his possession. The amount of pot and
money does suggest an intent to distribute, but a distinction should
be made between those who sell weed, and those who use it for medical,
or even personal use.

Possessing small amounts of marijuana should not be a crime in and of
itself. More and more states are decriminalizing marijuana for medical
and personal use and Connecticut should do the same.

A further distinction should be made - there is a difference between
the personal use of marijuana and the personal use of hard,
opium-based drugs like heroin, or of pharmaceuticals, such as ketamine.

Marijuana is not physically addictive and has been used for centuries
without any serious deleterious effect. Overuse can cause problems,
like anything else, but, used responsibly, marijuana is benign, even
more so than alcohol.

What you get is casual pot smokers, prosecuted under antiquated and
shortsighted laws, in the same jail cell as murderers, rapists, crack
addicts and child abusers.

Selling weed for profit should be treated as a criminal act - indeed,
many times pot sellers are prosecuted under interstate commerce
regulations as well as anti-drug laws. But, should it be legalized,
marijuana could be monitored, regulated and taxed as a further form of
income for the state.

What does keeping marijuana illegal get? Prisons crowded with
non-violent stoners, room and board paid for by taxpayers.

Decriminalization would be a cost-savings as well as a revenue
generator.