The legalization of drugs would prevent our civil liberties from being threatened any further, it would reduce crime rates, reverse the potency effect, improve the quality of life in the inner cities, prevent the spread of disease, save the taxpayer money, and generally benefit both individuals and the community as a whole. Our arguments are based on a basic appreciation of the benefits provided by voluntary exchange and the role markets play in coordinating human activities. Legalizing drugs would eliminate many inconsistencies, guarantee freedoms, and increase the effectiveness of the government's anti-drug beliefs. The present war on drugs has not and will not produce a decisive victory. We advocate a new approach to this important social problem.

Pot was legal once, then prohibition came....and when the government learned that people could do without the taxed alcohol, suddenly the weed was outlawed. My step father told me of using weed way back before it became such a big deal....Phillip Morris has recently bought 20,000 acres of swamp land and is already changed package sizes to fit joints! Do they know something the rest of us don't?? The only problem with legalization, is that it won't be pure anymore and will have additives like cigarettes do. That's what kills, the additives, not the tobacco. Legalize, but keep it in private hands to grow.....

One of the most bogus rationales for keeping pot illegal is that it is a "gateway drug". The fact is that by keeping it illegal you are forcing otherwise law abiding citizens to go to the black market. The same person who sells illegal pot will normally sell other illegal substances. If pot were legal the chances are that a pot smoker who buys from an authorized dealer would never run into coke meth heroin or any number of black market drugs. The laws of this country have made pot a gateway drug. last I checked it is a plant with no agenda.

Have chronic diverticulitis caused by extreme stress. I have been raising children since 9 (siblings, nieces, nephews and now grands) The stress of trying to make the dollars stretch in this economy makes me vomit, not to mention the fifty million other things in my life that have given me stress. 3 rapes, two robberies, two divorces from a domestic violence and child abuse all caused by alcoholic spouse and maternal parent (native American) The last straw was when my vote was purged for NO reason in 2000 and I had to watch my country go down the toilet under Bush pt 2. The pain in my intestines and lower back from being so stressed i get backed up. Marijuana helps me cope without the side effects of meds like zelnorm which btw works great to heal my GERD, but also causes heart problems. I can't drink to wind down as the emotional anger just expands to where people can't be around me at all. I have been diagnosed with a severe intolerance of the BS all day long. The doctor told me to treat them all like satelites and not invite them in my world since they are so full of it and procrastinators looking for a job in a bad economy, have taken it's toll. Legalization would end this sneak and peak around the corner for meds.

I can see the US Government is missing the boat on this one. Obama's failed drug war continues, drug cartels get bigger and stronger. The real victims of the US drug war are the American people. It's time the US government gets serious with this important issue. Prohibition has never worked and will never work. The time to legalize is now, stop the madness.

I'm very concerned with the governments continued reticence to legalize marijuana throughout the U.S.. I personally have smoked marijuana for approximately 30 yrs. until recently I haven't went more than a couple of days without it. When I started smoking ,I had no clue of the benefits or history of the drug that made me feel better about life in more ways than I can list. The reason for me recently having to quit smoking marijuana is a really messed up situation. My ex-girlfriend/babies mother and her live in partner were recently arrested for dealing marijuana, crystal meth , and prescription drugs to minors. Michigan rightfully took my daughter from them, but instead of letting me have her put her in the foster care system. They said it was because I lived in Indiana and that I was not in a stable environment. NOTE: I was in a stable relationship with the same girl for quite sometime and that we were buying a house in her name due to my credit. Since they were arrested I've moved to Michigan [where medical marijuana is legal] .I've had to leave my girlfriend, my family, my friends, my home, my life, and everything else, just to be put on random drug screens, psychological evaluations, and they want me to take prescription drugs to fight my Bi-polar disorder.

I Think Weed should be legal because it would stop all of the united states debt problems and people enjoy it to be honest. the government wants make me quit or i will be going to jail. does any one see justice? i am a good person who minds his business an they are just putting more stress on my life that i don't need when will they stop taking it so serious its not cocaine and it's not like they caught me selling it. really having weed in my system is gonna land me in jail they would have to have to put not just me but millions of others in jail they just wanna make the most money before they let my case go.

I have smoked weed for a long time and i have had 2 simple possession charges. The idea of it being illegal is stupid. It is a plant, its not even a drug. It doesn't have to be chemically altered. In the bible it even says that god give us all animals and all seed bearing plants for our use. What the gov. and cops need to do is legalize weed and focus on the other drugs the hard stuff. Weed should be the least of their worries.