Another Reason to Vote in Favor of Prop 19

In anticipation of the legalization of marijuana, which will be made possible by the passage of Prop 19, some are beginning to purchase internet domain names in case marijuana goes web. In her New York Times Article titled "Marijuana Web Names Snapped Up, in Case of Legalization," Malia Wollan describes that: 

Mr. Faler, a former police officer who once worked the narcotics beat, has registered more than 1,000 marijuana-related Internet domain names, including oddities like icecreammarijuana.com and marijuanapastry.com. And he is not the only one banking on the drug’s online future. He is part of an Internet land grab for marijuana domains by so-called domainers who hope to sell their holdings at a profit, betting that more lenient marijuana laws will eventually drive more people to the Web for their supplies, whether they are seeking seeds, bongs, recipes or drug-laced dog treats.

Among the benefits that can come with the passing of Prop 19, which include diluting the influence of drug cartels and creating an economic boost for the state of California through taxes on marijuana, another benefit is providing a select few the opportunity get rich quick by purchasing internet domain names that marijuana product vendors might buy in the future, if Prop 19 passes. While this does not provide a significant economic boost, it gives some smart Californians the opportunity to get rich quick if Prop 19 and similar laws go into effect. These domain names are cheap now because they are useless due to the fact that Prop 19 still might not pass, but when marijuana laws become much more lenient, these domain names will be very desirable to online vendors, and the people who purchased the domain names will make a fortune.

Californians and Their Pot

Prop 19 on the California ballot is a controversial proposition. Prop 19, if passed, will legalize private marijuana growth (in an area of no more than 25 square feet) and use for those 21 years of age and older. There are many expected downfalls to Prop 19, yet there are just as many expected benefits, one of the most significant of which being a decrease in the influence of the Mexican drug traffickers and a shrinking of the size of the Mexican drug cartels. This expected benefit apparently does not hold according the the San Francisco Chronicle article of October 12, 2010, entitled "Study: Legalizing pot won't hinder Mexican cartels" by Martha Mendoza.

Californians, who make up one-seventh of the U.S. marijuana market, already are farming marijuana at a much higher rate than in neighboring states and tend to buy domestic rather than smuggled marijuana, the study found.

The study found that the majority of Californians either farm their own marijuana or prefer to buy domestic marijuana, which supposedly shows that Mexican drug cartels have little influence in California. I found this study to be questionable because if, as the study says, most Californians don't buy the products of Mexican drug cartels, then it doesn't make sense why people so strongly believe that these cartels have power and are making such a hullabaloo regarding the influence of Mexican drug cartels. I believe that despite the results of this study, the Mexican drug cartels do have some noticeable power as a result of California operations and passing Prop 19 will make it difficult for drug cartels to remain as influential as they were and are now and I agree with Stephen Downing, former Los Angeles chief of police, who says:

It's ridiculous to claim that ending prohibition won't have a big financial impact on these violent criminals' bottom lines

Drugs and Crime in the Recession

In the September 23, 2010 issue of the New York Times, columnist Abby Goodnough explains the increase in specific illegal activities. Goodnough's article, "A Wave of Addiction and Crime, with the Medicine Cabinet to Blame," describes the new crime wave as a result of increased drug consumption, and explains the proposed buy-back day for prescription and over the counter drugs.

In 17 states, deaths from drugs — both prescription and illegal — now exceed those from motor vehicle accidents, with opiate painkillers playing a leading role. The number of people seeking treatment for painkiller addiction jumped 400 percent from 1998 to 2008, according to the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. And from rural New England to the densely populated South, law enforcement officials are combating a sharp rise in crime tied to prescription drugs.

Both of these rises in illegal activity, crime and drug consumption, can be partially traced back to the feeling of cornering and hopelessness that the recession brings to many people of the lower classes. There is a direct correlation between the bad economy and the increase in people looking to use drugs because, for the most part, drugs are and have been a means for people to escape the world, forget about their problems, and feel better. I find it quite surprising that deaths from drugs is quickly approaching deaths from motor vehicle accidents because motor vehicles are abundant and are used by the majority of adults, which means that the use of drugs may also be used by a large majority of the entire population of the United States. While the buy-back day for handguns may have been successful, I have a feeling that the buy-back day for drugs will not be as successful because drugs allow people to fully escape many of their problems during their "high," whereas handguns improve security, or sense of sense of security, just one of the many problems that people are dealing with.