Legalizing marijuana is a strong financial move

The Green Party gubernatorial candidate Rich Whitney unveiled an economic plan for Illinois on March 12, which includes the legalization of marijuana. This is an economically and socially strategic movement, which follows the lead of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Although Whitney’s plan is not wholly an original idea, his advocacy of marijuana legalization surpasses Schwarzenegger’s efforts to “raise the debate” on the topic.

The time to raise a debate is over, the time to take action is now! In a recent survey of state prison inmates, over half were convicted of minor crimes, which includes the possession of small amounts of marijuana. In the 2011 budget, Illinois has allocated $420 million for the Department of Corrections to house these inmates. This doesn’t include the state and district attorneys’ offices that will also require tax revenue to process convictions. The state has allocated nearly $100 million LESS for Higher Education — that directly effect you and me! We need to treat marijuana like alcohol and tobacco and leverage its popularity to raise tax revenue.

The “war on drugs” should focus on dangerous drugs such as heroine and methamphetamines. Rich Whitney will be there in person (April 1 at 7 p.m. in the Allen Hall main lounge) to discuss the state’s budget crisis. Participants will have an opportunity to inquire about or debate on the topic of marijuana legalization.

Inquisitive readers may go to Whitney’s homepage and read the entire economic plan at http://www.whitneyforgov.org/issues/economy, or come to the Green Party Rally.

Paca Nguyen,

graduate student