Legalize Pot, Save America

Mark Kleinman is totally wrong.

According to the Federal Government's own figures:

7,135 metric tons of pot are imported from Mexico each year. The wholesale value of this product alone (assuming an average wholesale price of $1500/pound) is:

$23,479,230,000

Break the Mexican pot down into $300 ounces, and you have a street value of:

$75,133,536,000

I think it is safe to assume that less than half of pot consumed by Americans comes from Mexico, so the total value of American-consumed pot has to be at least twice that.

He also seems oblivious to the fact that legalized pot = heavily taxed pot.

On an industrial scale, growing pot wouldn't be any more expensive than growing lettuce which, the last time I checked, goes for about $1/pound at the grocery store. In other words, the government could tax it on the order of 1500% and it would still cost less than what is illicitly available on the street.

Even if contraband weed were still available at less than the government taxed rate (assume police stop going after grow houses), are you really going to go on waiting on your asshole weed dealer when you can just go down to 7-11 and pick up a pack of Marlboro Greens?

And every longitudinal study of decriminalization efforts has shown a marked decrease in total consumption of whatever is being decriminalized because it removes the rebel/cool factor. Alcohol consumption tripled during prohibition because drinking was suddenly edgy.

Plus he does not take into account whatsoever the billions upon billions we save by abolishing the DEA.