There’s the tremendous amount of money and resources associated with the direct enforcement of the law, from police activity to arrest to prosecution to potential incarceration. There’s the tremendous opportunity cost that comes with those activities. There’s the higher price of marijuana associated with the black market risk premium. There’s the lack of transparency for consumers who have no idea what they’re ingesting. There’s the temptation of the black market luring young people away from more productive activities. There’s the addition costs associated with those who’s lives are disrupted by a marijuana charge, from legal fees to a loss of current/future employment to family disruptions.
The benefits to legalization are avoiding all of the above, not to mention an increase in personal freedom.
Show me where prohibition of marijuana has met any of its stated goals. How long do you keep doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result?
