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Jesse "The Body" Ventura has always been a little off kilter, but his libertarian opinion are pretty spot on. Here is a recent article he wrote about marijuana legalization. Hard to argue with this logic. snip ... I'd like to know what lawmakers are so afraid of when it comes to actually legalizing marijuana. What are the side effects of this medication? Patients feel better. It helps people manage chronic pain without addiction or death. We just lost Prince, one of the greatest musical icons of my home state of Minnesota, due to prescription pill overdose. If his doctor prescribed him marijuana, I believe he would still be with us today. And as a "recreational" substance, name me one person who smokes weed and then wakes up the next day not remembering committing violent or aggressive acts, which is so typically associated with alcohol use. ,,, snip If pot is legal, we don’t need these absurd restrictions: Jesse Ventura

Did anybody NOT think this would happen? Competition and de-regulation can lower the cost of a product? So, something interesting happens to weed after it’s legal Two years ago, the Washington state began an unprecedented policy experiment by allowing large-scale production and sale of recreational marijuana to the public. The effects on public health and safety and on the relationship of law enforcement to minority communities will take years to manifest fully, but one impact has become abundantly clear: Legalized marijuana is getting very cheap very quickly. Marijuana price data from Washington’s Liquor and Cannabis Board was aggregated by Steve Davenport of the Pardee RAND Graduate School and Jonathan Caulkins, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University. After a transitory rise in the first few months, which Davenport attributes to supply shortages as the system came on line, both retail prices and wholesale prices have plummeted. Davenport said that prices “are now steadily falling at about 2 percent per month. If that trend holds, prices may fall 25 percent each year going forward.” more... So, something interesting happens to weed after it’s legal

While some states in the US are legalizing marijuana, while there are other groups pushing laws to raise the minimum smoking age to 21. Is there a message conflict here? I don't think so. America's becoming a little more progressive in what it wants labeled "illegal", but, in my opinion, it is just leveling the playing field by restricting the evil sins of injestable drugs (marijuana, alcohol, nicotine) to the age of 21 and above. I don't know what age limits are in effect for vaping and weed, I assume those are limited to adults 21 years and older? Is raising the smoking age the right thing to do? For as long as most people can remember, the legal age to buy and possess tobacco products has been 18 throughout the country. This year, however, that all began to change. Hawaii became the first state in the country to raise the minimum age to purchase tobacco products to 21 from 18, and California recently passed a bill to do the same. State legislators voted to pass a bill that would raise California’s smoking age from 18 to 21. It was signed by CA governor Jerry Brown and is slated to take effect on January 1, 2017. Research suggests that people between the ages of 18 and 21 are much more susceptible to developing a smoking habit than those who pick up a cigarette or e-cig later on in life. Many believe this is due to the fact that underage smokers likely have friends or classmates who have surpassed the 18-year-old limit, granting them easy access to the plethora of tobacco products sitting behind most convenience stores’ shelves. more... Is raising the smoking age the right thing to do? --------------------------------------------------------- From Tobacco Free Kids Increasing the Sale Age for Tobacco Products to 21 Raising the minimum legal sale age for tobacco products to 21 is a promising strategy to reduce smoking and other tobacco use among youth and save lives. A 21 sale age complements other strategies to reduce tobacco use, including higher tobacco taxes, strong smoke-free laws that include all workplaces and public places, and well-funded, sustained tobacco prevention and cessation programs. Nearly all smokers start as kids or young adults, and these age groups are heavily targeted by the tobacco industry. Increasing the sale age to 21 will help to prevent young people from ever starting to smoke and to reduce the deaths, disease and health care costs caused by tobacco use. more... Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids