MARIJUANA SHOULD BE LEGALIZED, TAXED LIKE ALCOHOL

With the growing despair of this recession, California put forth an
initiative to legalize and tax recreational marijuana in late
February. While this initiative will surely not pass, it demonstrates
that legalizing marijuana is not far-fetched and proves to be a very
lucrative move for the state's income. The national legalization of
marijuana for medical and recreational use is past due.

By Friday, the War on Drugs has cost taxpayers more than $11 billion,
according to drugsense.org. In an economy where every penny counts, I
suggest we divert the money being allocated to arresting citizens for
possession of small amounts of marijuana to increasing teachers'
salaries. Not only do we pay enormous amounts of money to support the
multi-decade War on Drugs, but we also pay to house those who are
detained because of minor marijuana-related charges.

Since the prohibition of marijuana has proven to be extremely
ineffective, the government should take the opportunity to capitalize
on America's fascination with marijuana rather than spend more
taxpayer dollars fighting the losing battle. A study called "The
Budgetary Implications of Marijuana Prohibition" was conducted by more
than 530 distinguished economists. Their results prompted them to sign
an open letter to President Bush stating they believed marijuana
should be "legal, but taxed and regulated like other goods."

A June 2005 report by Dr. Jeffrey Miron, a visiting professor of
economics at Harvard University, showed that replacing marijuana
prohibition with a system of taxation and regulation similar to that
used for alcohol would produce combined savings and tax revenues of
between $10 billion and $14 billion per year, effectively paying off
what has been spent on the War on Drugs and even producing a profit.

Prescription drug abuse has risen drastically, and ending the
prohibition of marijuana offers citizens a much safer alternative to
putting such dangerous controlled substances in their bodies. In
December 2008, UPI.com reported that more than 7 million people in the
U.S. are abusing prescription drugs. The Kansas City Star examined
Kansas-specific statistics and found that shipments of hydrocodone,
the active ingredient in Vicodin, have increased 300 percent since
2000 and Oxycodone increased 260 percent in the state.

Often the statements against the legalization of marijuana claim that
it is a dangerous gateway drug that affects short term memory,
inhibitions and the ability to operate a motor vehicle. The main
difference between alcohol and marijuana is social acceptance. Of
course, if marijuana were legalized, I believe the same rules should
apply to smokers that apply to people who drink alcohol. This
particular exception should not be confused with the necessity to keep
hard-core narcotics, opiates and other such drugs illegal.

Those with addictive personalities will find a way to use and abuse
any drug they prefer. To the responsible marijuana users of society,
there should be a legal way to smoke the plant of their choice. It is
far less toxic than tobacco and leads to far less dangerous actions
than alcohol. To top it off, this move could boost the economy with
more than $10 billion dollars a year in tax revenue. America needs to
think financially and stop being so uptight about a green plant.