Fisher: The question of legalizing marijuana

By Ed Fisher,
A front-page article in the Detroit Free Press (May 20, 2015) asked “Could pot solve our budget problems?” Bill Laitner addressed our budgetary shortfall as roads crumble, schools are underfunded and towns across Michigan need more financial aid. Add to that polls showing that Proposition 1 will fail and any plan Z will negatively affect our schools and the lowest 60 percent of Michiganians.

Laitner looks at both sides of a case for legalizing, regulating, and taxing recreational cannabis. “Let’s face it — this is one of the last places, aside from printing money” (for government spending), said Matt Marsden, spokesman for a Pontiac-based group of Republicans that hopes to circulate petitions in June to legalize marijuana. Two other groups, one Republican and one Democrat/Independent are trying to do the same. It’s all about the money, money, money not now coming to the state.

Opponents of such legalization believe the cost to society would be higher than the taxes generated. Former U.S. Secretary of Education William Bennett compares marijuana to alcohol, which he says the cost to society is billions of dollars a year in law enforcement, treatment for alcoholism, unemployment and healthcare. We need look no further than CMU to see what happens when lax oversight of young people, prone to peer-pressure, and easy access to alcohol over-indulge almost every weekend.

Another opponent has been State Attorney General William Schuette. He opposed legalizing medical marijuana in 2008, and supported efforts by Oak Park, Utica and other communities keeping such proposals off their local ballots.

Paul Welday, a former chair of the Oakland County Republican Party and associated with one of the other groups looking toward legalization said, “Let’s face it — a lot of people don’t trust their state legislators….there’s great skepticism about state government.” He would like to see the tax revenue go to towns.

According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, the annual costs to this nation for tobacco are $139 billion in healthcare and $295 billion overall; Alcohol, $25 billion in healthcare, $224 billion overall; and Illicit drugs, $11 billion in healthcare, $193 billion overall, more than $700 billion annually in costs related to crime, lost work productivity and health care. As a nation, we haven’t done well to stop the flow of narcotics that destroy so many lives here and in the countries over-run by drug lords supplying them.

Therefore, we should think carefully about legalizing any substance that can be abused. Taxes on tobacco have reduced consumption: Smoking has been reduced from 42 percent in 1965 to less than 12 percent now; however, most of that reduction is due to better information. In 2012 the percent of adults 18 years of age and over who were current regular drinkers (at least 12 drinks in the past year): 51.3 percent; the percent of adults 18 years of age and over who were current infrequent drinkers (one to 11 drinks in the past year): 12.9 percent. Taxes have had no effect in reducing the rate.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse said, “In 2012, an estimated 23.9 million Americans aged 12 or older—or 9.2 percent of the population—had used an illicit drug or abused a psychotherapeutic medication (such as a pain reliever, stimulant, or tranquilizer) in the past month. This is up from 8.3 percent in 2002. The increase mostly reflects a recent rise in the use of marijuana, the most commonly used illicit drug.” See: www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/nationwide-trends.

We live in a world of temptation. While Republicans loath increasing taxes, their cuts got us here, so we must understand the true effects of taxing recreational drugs. In the words of the Morning Sun columnist Louise Plachta: ”Starosc nie radosc; mlodosc nie wiecznosc.” Too soon old, too late smart. To which one may add “Jedzmy Polskie jabłka!” or how’s the weed?