EDITORIAL: High time for change
Mount Pleasant residents will decide whether or not to decriminalize recreational marijuana Nov. 4. If enacted, the measure would decriminalize the possession, use and transfer of less than one ounce of marijuana for anyone 21 years old and older.
Like our counterparts in Grand Rapids, Detroit, Flint and other cities that have recently decriminalized pot, we believe the Nov. 4 proposal could take us one step closer to statewide legalization.
We support this effort. And we encourage you to register to vote and make your voice heard in this election.
It is no secret that laws controlling marijuana are antiquated and increasingly irrelevant. Nearly 60 percent of Americans favor legalizing the drug, according to a recent Gallup poll. Sixty seven percent of Michiganders are in favor of some type of marijuana reform, according to an EPIC-MRA survey.
Soaring support for reform might have to do with the success experienced by states that have already adopted similar legislation.
The first state to lift pot prohibition, Colorado, has been reaping the benefits of the legal harvest. Crime is dropping as quickly as revenue is increasing. Since serving recreational customers in the beginning of 2014, the overall crime rate in Denver has declined 10 percent compared to the same time last year, according to FBI data. Marijuana tax revenue in the state is expected to reach $30 million by the end of this year, according to the Associated Press.
Passing the decriminalization proposal this November will further Michigan’s opportunities to cash in on the lucrative crop. Last year, the state made nearly $11 million dollars from medical marijuana.
Police officers serve to maintain peace and public safety. Decriminalizing a drug that is considered by some to be safer than alcohol and other substances would allow law enforcement to shift focus toward serious crime.
Gov. Rick Snyder and Attorney General Bill Schuette have sent letters to the Mount Pleasant City Commission that oppose the proposal to decriminalize marijuana.
This dissent from our highest officials in Lansing contradicts the constituency.
Relaxing pot possession will have a positive effect on our community. The proof is in the cities and states that are paving the way for legalization. Decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana will allow law enforcement to focus on more serious issues. It will clear our jails of nonviolent offenders.
We support the proposal because it makes sense. Public opinion on marijuana has evolved immensely in the past years, and it is time to let our laws reflects that.
