It's not that simple, though I wish it were.

Not pictured: the fat spliff under the cops hat

In response to Mr. Eddie Valle's "Marijuana and Alcohol", while I agree wholeheartedly that the legalization of a certain green, leafy substance, especially when compared to other currently legal recreational intoxicants, should be a no-brain-er. Unfortunately, the issue is much, much more complicated than simply legalization and taxation of said substance. We have no way of testing for marijuana "intoxication" levels (example: You cannot be over X% high and be behind the wheel). Basically, reform in the area of recreational drug use would have to be accompanied by reform in other numerous institutions. Hiring companies across the U.S. would have to adopt a more lenient approach to the hiring process, as they certainly could not be expected to discriminate against marijuana users. Can you imagine answering yes or no to "Do you imbibe in any way, shape, or form Marijuana or any of its derivatives?" on a job application? I certainly could not. Answering a questions like that geared towards alcohol is illegal. Provided you do nothing to introduce alcohol into your own work environment, your work/management has no right to know what you do on your own time. While the disparity between damage done through Alcohol vs. Marijuana is without question, the age-old arguments for marijuana legalization have not worked historically because they do little to answer the more important issues of implementation. I have no doubt that the U.S. will get there, in time. Hell, when it does happen, it may just be the political re-alignment everyone's been waiting for.