re: Legal Weed Sales top $5.4 Billion in 2015

Colorado being a "swing" state makes them untouchable on this issue.

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50-4=46


Washington, Colorado and..?

I'm not counting medical.

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Oregon and Alaska

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I'm not counting medical.

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There are a lot more than 2 medical states.

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People who are opposed to weed legality can still respect states' rights.

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Ideally, yes. Sadly though I'd say most people who oppose legalized weed, while probably claiming to be supporters of states' rights, will let their desire to see weed remain illegal to override their support of states' rights.

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If a state votes to legalize something, the Feds should stay out of it.

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I could not agree with you more. something like weed should be a state issue. If the people of say, Louisiana or Alabama want to make weed legal, they should be able to do so. Likewise, if those same people vote to keep it illegal, although I personally would disagree, I'd still support their right to do so.

One would think once a few more states legalize this year (Nevada and Maine are almost guaranteed, with 3 - 5 more as strong possibilities), eventually the tax windfall that other states are missing out on will be too difficult for even the staunchest of those states to ignore.

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Also, downside is heroin flooding into the American market due to loss of cartels revenue source.

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The cartels haven't lost that much. These states that are legal smoke the good stuff that's grown locally.

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Also, downside is heroin flooding into the American market due to loss of cartels revenue source.

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Part of that is the massive increase in prescription drug abuse over the past several years. People get hooked on pills then when their script and/or money runs out, they turn to heroin.

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Colorado being a "swing" state makes them untouchable on this issue.

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The only exception being Christie and Jeb as they are War on Drugs assholes, the republican nominee will stay the frick away from this issue. If anything, he will only pander hard and harder to the people of Colorado on legal weed.

If he says anything on this issue that could be perceived negatively in Colorado, that will bounce off and reverberate to the other swing states.

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We will be the 49th or 50th state to legalize, unless it is done federally.

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It will absolutely be legalized federally before every state legalizes it. I wouldn't be suprised to see that happen before the 2020 presidential election. It only takes one state to rake in the dough, and the snowball effect is on ... exactly what is happening. Just too much money on the table

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Tax the hell out of it.

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No more than beer or cigs I hope?

We all know that it'll get taxed at least somewhat. I say the best first step is compromise. In order to facilitate federal legalization, you earmark all cannabis taxes for something like education. Eventually, you'd have a rather large coffer and the US would/could have the best schools in the world. Or maybe give it to NASA. Or, hell, have it be a direct pay down of the national debt. Or give it to the Pentagon to develop a new age of analysts.

There are a billion ways to sell it. I think most people see the writing is on the wall anyway, so they might as well get a guaranteed funding source for something that could really help the country in the long run. I couldn't imagine the massive improvement in education/schools that we could accomplish within 10 years. Hell - being a teacher would become a bad arse job (assuming that with this earmark, there would be noted increases in teaching salaries which surely plays against the war on women stigma).