Marijuana Legalization

On Thursday July 24th, Ivy Nwogu posted an article on her Who Runs Texas blog entitled Legalize Marijuana Already. In her article Ms. Nwogu argues that the State of Texas should legalize marijuana or at least decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana for adults 21 and older. To defend her position, Ms. Nwogu cites a statistic stating that a majority of Texas voters support the decriminalization of small amounts of marijuana. She also points out the fact that cigarettes are legal yet they have very negative health consequences when compared to marijuana. Furthermore, Ms. Nwogu argues that the State of Texas could save money by not sending people to jail for the possession of small amounts of marijuana, and, if marijuana were to become legal, the state could create a new source of revenue by taxing marijuana. Finally, she states that Texas could begin by legalizing medical marijuana for the terminally ill.

Ms. Nwogu makes a very good case for legalizing marijuana, and I could not agree with her more. The hypocrisy of marijuana being illegal while alcohol and cigarettes remain legal should be recognized and addressed. Much of Ms. Nwogu’s arguments for marijuana legalization are taken from a medical perspective which is understandable considering her public health occupation. However, in addition to all of Ms. Nwogu’s arguments, another compelling reason exists for marijuana legalization. If marijuana were to become legal in all 50 states, the illegal smuggling and sale of marijuana which is controlled in no small part by the violent Mexican drug cartels would disappear. Anything that can be done to reduce the power of the cartels should be done.