As President-elect Barack Obama prepares to take office, he has opened a section of his transition website, change.gov, to questions from the public. And after more than 10,000 issues have been posted and 100,000 votes on these issues cast, the “Open for Questions” section has been closed. The top question? Iraq withdrawal plan? Economy turnaround plan? Education reform? Healthcare?
Nope.
The highest voted question is: "Will you consider legalizing marijuana so that the government can regulate it, tax it, put age limits on it, and create millions of new jobs and create a billion-dollar industry right here in the U.S.?"
After a strong effort from websites like Digg (my favorite source for news, including where I found this article), questions about weed legalization and drug reform reached the top, with 16 of the top 50 questions about this issue.
While such an issue seems rather minor, despite these votes, in comparison to some of the other issues addressed, the issue of weed legalization is certainly not a tiny issue. Severally states, most notably California, have argued back and forth on the issue. I will sum up the argument from both sides for you.
Against Marijuana Legalization:
>Many argue Marijuana is a stepping stone drug that leads to the use of heavier drugs like cocaine or heroin
>Legalization would make it easier for kids to obtain the drug
>Increase in dangers such as stoned-driving, second-hand smoke, and the physical effects of drug abuse
For Marijuana Legalization:
>Not as harmful as alcohol or tobacco if used in moderation
>Reduced drug-related crime (Including theft to pay for high cost of illegal Marijuana)
>Would be taxed, money would go to the government instead of drug dealers
>Medical benefits
Regardless of which side you support, (I’m curious to hear your views) it will be interesting to see if our next president will address this issue or not. According to the Change.gov site, "Over the next few days, some of the most popular questions selected by the Change.gov community will be answered by the Transition team, and their responses will be posted here on the site." Seeing as this issue is so heavily presented, it is possible that we may hear something from Obama and his administration soon.
With thousands of people crowding jails for Marijuana related crime, and scientific studies showing that Marijuana is safer than both tobacco and alcohol, could the legalization of Marijuana, if it happens, be considered progress?
1 comment:
I had a similar blog entry a few weeks ago titled, "Say Yes to Drugs?" about Mexico possibly legalizing marijuana. Other examples of countries or places that do it are Amsterdam (as I'm sure you know) and I think that in parts of Colorado it's okay to have a certain amount. I think (and actually my parents agree) that legalizing it is the better choice. We have alcohol and cigarettes at easy disposal, and having pot really isn't much different. It has medical values (though legalizing it would not just go to that) and if there are age limits it still won't be so easy to get your hands on, and I think it would help calm drug related crimes. Although it would be surreal and quite comical to walk into a 7-11 and ask for a joint instead of a pack of cigerettes like on the cover of the article you posted.
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