Legalize Pot - Some Laws That Can Be Fixed

Marijuana is the new prohibition. Tobacco is horrible for you, yet smoking is still legal. Drinking alcohol is bad too, but it is legal as well. Why not marijuana?

If marijuana became legal, it could be mass produced and taxed. It could become a huge source of taxes and could help the government as long as some jerk congressman doesn't try to take all of the credit and vote to have their raises larger. For those that would prefer to produce it, they should require a license per bush grown to be inspected twice a year with one scheduled and the other random.

By requiring a license and inspection department, thousands of jobs will be created which is great for the economy. Licensing is preceded by new laws. One important law would be driving under the influence as marijuana is a drug as alcohol and cigarettes. To reduce accidents, smoking and driving should be illegal. Before texting and driving was such a big issue, dropping a lit cigarette has created many accidents. Smoking may not have as big of an effect on your vision, but it is used as a stimulant so it should be banned.

While we are banning certain aspects of smoking... smoking is currently banned inside commercial buildings, but it should be extended to a minimum of 20 yards away from a building. Nothing is worse than a non-smoker having to walk by a smoker when entering or exiting a building. It becomes even worse when it is rainy. Obviously these smoking rules would apply to all forms of smoking, even electronic.

As a part of the new marijuana legalization, past crimes involving a minimal amount of marijuana possession should be allowed to be expunged from ones criminal record. The process would require filing of paperwork and of course a fee to have it done. Anyone serving jail sentences for marijuana possession should be released and required to pay a fee within one year of their release. If the marijuana crime involves distribution on larger amounts, the fee should be much higher to be paid back within one year also.

Some may wonder why have such fees and the reason is due to the fact that it was illegal when they did it and they knew it when they were caught. There will be no retrials to determine what level they fall under as that is a waste of money as is paying for them to sit in a jail cell to eat, have supervision of guards and use government food and utilities. Again this will create more tax revenue and more jobs across the country.