Pubdate: Sat, 23 May 2009
Source: Reporter, The (Vacaville, CA)
Copyright: 2009 The Reporter
Contact:  http://www.thereporter.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/472
Author: Danette Mitchell
Note: The author is a Vacaville resident.
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Schwarzenegger
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Marijuana - California)

IDEA WORTH MORE STUDY

"So, California voted 'no' on the propositions," my relatives back 
East said after Tuesday's election. "What ya'll gonna do?" they asked 
with great concern.

California has always been on the cutting edge of technology. Now, 
we're on the cutting edge of a $21.5 billion fiscal crisis.

Some elected officials have accused California of asking for a 
bailout, which former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown corrected when 
he appeared on CNN News this week.

We should not receive any financial help, many out-of-state residents 
say, yet others believe California has been a resource for other 
states and should be considered for some assistance.

Meanwhile, we still have an out-of-control budget problem that 
requires immediate solutions.

Recently, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he's willing to study other 
nations' experiences in legalizing and taxing marijuana. I have been 
reading and hearing much about changing our policy so that marijuana 
would be treated as alcohol is. I understand the pros and the cons, 
and the pros seem to outweigh the cons. We could create jobs in 
agriculture, marketing and packaging, as well as generate additional 
revenue. Black youth, particularly black males, wouldn't be 
incarcerated unnecessarily on pot-related charges.

However, would legalizing marijuana be a strategic solution to our 
budget mess, or would it cause more problems than it would solve?

When the prohibition on alcohol was lifted, no one imagined the 
additional problems it would generate. Yes, we created more revenue 
and more jobs, and we stopped the killings that were happening as a 
result of bootlegged alcohol. But we didn't foresee the thousands of 
alcohol-related traffic accidents each year, alcohol overdoses, 
alcohol addictions, alcohol-related health issues or the destroyed lives.

I asked some friends what they thought about legalizing marijuana, 
and their answers were mixed.

Some felt that we would be condoning yet another substance that 
presents a risk of addiction and other residual effects. One person 
said she has lived with the effects of marijuana, and that it does 
affect the mind and reactions.

Other friends commented that legalizing marijuana would reduce drug 
trafficking and that it should be decriminalized and accepted across 
the country for medical purposes with a doctor's recommendation.

Legalizing marijuana would certainly generate lots of taxes, rather 
than the billions of dollars we're paying on our war on drugs, which 
isn't working.

However, we cannot look only at the economics. We must thoroughly 
study other nations' experiences.

Meanwhile, we must look at other budget solutions, including in our 
own state officials' back yards before we try to pass around a joint.
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake