Pubdate: Thu, 26 Nov 2009 Source: Salt Lake Tribune (UT) Copyright: 2009 The Salt Lake Tribune Contact: http://www.sltrib.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/383 Author: Adrienne Murphy LEGALIZE, TAX MARIJUANA Right now, everyone is wondering how we will pay for health care reform. No one wants to be taxed more. No one wants money to be taken from other programs. No one wants to be left uninsured. I have a solution: Legalize, tax and regulate marijuana like we do alcohol. State and federal governments spend an estimated $44 billion a year on the war on drugs, and by legalizing cannabis, a significant part of that amount would be saved. Additionally, the tax revenue from legalization would net around $12 billion. This money could go toward health care reform, eliminating the need for tax increases or money being taken from our schools or other programs. Adrienne Murphy Salt Lake City - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom