Rip A Bong Load of Truth

It's being reported that California has looked into legalizing pot in an effort to level their budget. The tax revenue from said pot sales would be expected to exceed a billion dollars annually.

While this is no doubt true given California's long history of high taxes and willing pot heads, the whole discussion is illustrative of other things.

For the time being, we'll ignore the war on drugs. anti-pot arguments and focus on how legalization is being addressed from both ends of the spectrum. This may be more liberal versus libertarian but given that libertarianism and conservatism are different roots of the same philosophical tree, we can proceed without constraint.

The entire liberal argument lately has been that legalization is necessary to help empty prisons and provide tax revenue for their ill managed state.

The libertarian/conservative argument is that it never should have been illegal and decriminalization is simply restoring an original right.

This shows the difference between the two philosophies. Liberals would attempt to give you a right you have already by birthright for the sole purpose of exploiting it and controlling it though legislation and taxation. By controlling it they can, by extension, control you too.

For libertarians and conservatives, it is simply restoring natural rights and individual liberties. No real right winger would ever dream of legalizing something just for the sake of taxing it.

Let this example simmer in your mind until the next time some politician promises you something that's already yours. Think of what your goals of freedom are and see if they jive with what said politician is selling. If the two don't square, send him packing.