WEED REFORM WOULD BENEFIT ALL

Weed reform would benefit all Nearly all of us have done it, everyone
from Lil Wayne to President Barack Obama.

Yes, we're talking about marijuana, pot, reefer, Mary Jane, whatever
you want to call it.

Next month, California will vote on Proposition 19 - the Regulate
Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010 - and if it passes, it would not
decriminalize marijuana, it would instead entirely legalize marijuana
in the state of California.

If the proposition passes, only a federal agency - such as the Drug
Enforcement Administration - would be able to arrest pot smokers, but
the odds of that happening are highly unlikely. California has been a
forerunner in marijuana reform laws.

In 1996, it was the first state to legalize medical marijuana, and
since then, 13 other states and the District of Columbia have done the
same.

Last week, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger made a major stride
by reducing the penalty for an ounce or less - about 30 joints - to an
infraction, resulting in a small fine and no criminal record.

In Florida, if you are found with 20 grams or less - about 25 joints,
or slightly less than an ounce - you may be forced to pay a $1,000
fine or spend a year in prison, along with a misdemeanor being added
to your criminal record.

We think California should pass its marijuana mentality this
way.

In the past, many have regarded marijuana as a gateway drug and have
cautioned against its adverse health effects, but recent studies show
that mind set is starting to burn out.

The Journal of Health and Social Behavior published a study last month
which found that marijuana had very little to do with whether an
individual eventually moved on to harder drugs.

Instead, the study contributed hard drug use to life factors such as
employment status and stress.

According to the American Council for Drug Education, when smoking
marijuana, one may experience dry mouth, impaired coordination, lack
of balance, delayed reaction time and other mild symptoms associated
with the high, many of which are similar to the effects caused by
alcohol consumption.

As for long-term medical side effects, frequent marijuana users can
experience chest colds, bronchitis, emphysema, bronchial asthma and,
at worst, lung cancer.

These side effects are nearly identical to those caused by cigarette
smoking, which is legal in the U.S.

A recent poll conducted by the Public Policy Institute of California
found that 52 percent of likely voters favor Prop. 19, and only 41
percent oppose it.

Really, this means the vote next month could go either way, but we're
hoping to see the proposition pass.

We think that if passed, the proposition could generate much needed
revenue through taxation and it would allow law enforcement officers
to concentrate on more serious offenders.

A study by the Cato Institute found that if marijuana were legalized,
regulated and taxed, it could potentially save $8.7 billion in law
enforcement costs and generate $8.7 billion in revenue nationwide.

This sounds like a good idea to us.

We say that if people want to unwind and indulge in a little herbal
therapy, they should be allowed to; we see no societal harm in people
getting stoned and eating Twinkies.

We'll be keeping our fingers crossed and hoping that California voters
decide to embrace their inner-hippy and vote to pass Proposition 19 in
the upcoming election.

If history repeats itself, this proposition may pave the way for other
states to adopt similar laws.

We can only hope that Florida will eventually jump on the bandwagon
and decide to spark up.