Four states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana for recreational use, at the hands of the people. The benefits of marijuana have been widely evident in Colorado, in particular. Since the first store opened on January 1, 2014, crime has gone down, along with possession arrests. According to the Drug Policy Alliance, millions of dollars have been saved from the drop in possession arrests. “Arrests for cultivating and distributing marijuana have dropped by 90%” said the DPA on their website.

But what about the children?

Children are less likely to obtain marijuana because it is regulated. You must be 21 and have an ID to purchase it...just like alcohol. Parents who use aren’t likely to leave their marijuana around, making it less likely that children will obtain the drug.

One may say that our children deserve better education. Marijuana is a way to do that--if what Colorado did is replicated on a national scale by dumping that money into education.

The marijuana industry creates jobs.

According to the Department of Revenue, 16,000 people were licensed in the marijuana industry in 2014. An economist at the University of Denver named Jack Strauss looked at the economics between two dispensaries in Colorado. He saw that at a wage of $17 dollars an hour, between the two dispensaries they amounted to 280 jobs and $30 million in economic output.

According to the Tax Foundation, the marijuana industry, once matured, could generate $28 billion in tax revenues for all three branches of government: federal, state, and local.

Imagine what could be done with that money. It could be invested in education and social welfare. That is exactly what Colorado did, dumping $35 million into the education system. They built new schools and watched crime fall, with excess money to spare.

There is a reason marijuana is also used as a medicine. It has numerous health benefits, both mentally and physically.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the THC in marijuana increases appetite and helps with nausea. It is used a lot of times to help counter-act the side effects of chemotherapy. It also helps decrease inflammation and ease pain, for those suffering from diseases such as arthritis.

It is even shown in animal trials to reduce the size of cancer cells, and kill others. It also helps potentiate the cancer killing side effects of radiation.

All around from the medical benefits, to the economic growth seen in Colorado, marijuana prohibition should be over. It’s time for us to grow as a nation and move toward a more progressive solution. People’s lives are being ruined over arrests for something that’s legal in four other states and the District of Columbia. It’s just not fair.