Government’s own studies have shown that marijuana has efficacy, the only hurdle now is the political one. The movement is gaining momentum around the country. Medical marijuana sold in California is subject to sales tax. It will be a tough sell in Texas, where the idea didn’t get far in the last legislative session.
California, New Mexico and other 12 states have legalized marijuana as a medicine with a doctor’s prescription, and a Dallas group (Texas Coalition for Compassionate Care) is pushing for Texas to be the next. The DEA spend 10 billion dollars fighting marijuana use, but the prohibition is not preventing people form growing it, selling it, or using it. Twenty-five million people a year are smoking marijuana illegally; the prohibition in 1937, is a total failure its time to take a new approach. Letting the states regulate marijuana and tax its sale, like alcohol, a move that could mean billions of dollars for the cash-strapped state. Medical-Grade marijuana can sell for $3,000 per pound, and is the largest cash crop in the country. Pot is, after all, responsible for $14 billion a year in sales in California. And is a safe and effective treatment for the symptoms of cancer, AIDS, multiple sclerosis, and other conditions.
Why not? The state is in desperate need for money. It will help the Texas budget; our budget is now as bad as California’s the one state where balance budgeting goes to die.
While I am in agreement with legalizing marijuana, I believe there are a few ramifications we as a society would have to consider before just going out and legalizing it. Some things to consider would be how to prevent/test for people driving under the influence and if there would be a legal limit, like .08 alcohol, to drive under. There are plenty ways to test for marijuana, urine test, blood test, saliva test, etc., but each of these will show inaccurate readings if you are trying to decipher whether someone has just used it in the past hour or so. For example, a saliva test, which would be the quickest way to test for a police officer on the side of the road, can show if the person has smoked marijuana in the past 12-24 hours. There has to be a way that can be tested on the spot and with accuracy, similar to a breathalyzer, which would show whether the person was currently under the influence of marijuana. Another thing to consider would be the possible increased amount of traffic accidents that could be related to marijuana use. As we know not all drivers are as responsible as they should be and plenty drive while under the influence of alcohol, and ,while I know smoking pot does tend to make one a little lazier than normal, it is still obvious there will be plenty of people who will decide to drive while influenced. This would lead to a great deal of scrutiny towards the new law of legalizing marijuana. Once again, I want to confirm that I would be in 100% favor of legalizing marijuana, but I do believe the average supporter, as well as the opposer, should realize there are many hurdles we would have to face and figure out a solution to before we could legalize it.
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