Exercise for you:

I have collected tons of material, and can write a thorough piece on this topic, but I would like to see interesting articles from students and experts alike capturing various perspectives, and combining it together -

What do I mean by the above statement?

For example, as per certain economists, prohibitionist theories has not done wonders in this space. As per the medical field, marijuana's impact on human body is distinctly different than alcohol, and should not be treated in the same way. Law enforcement, Public health officials have their own concerns, and so on. What would be the optimal solution for USA at this point in time?

Clue: One concern about the argument that legalization should not change price structure or participatory rate should be questioned. The other argument that similar such drugs have been in use for a long time should take into account the location, event, and nature of use. The reason being that the prominence of stigma in certain societies, though in general is not good, can be advantageous at times in limiting the spread of use. Can we connect our analysis with some other research findings? Can we bring in findings from other parts of the world?

After writing the above section, I came across these articles - (11/3/15)

1. http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/small-towns-face-rising-suicide-rates/ar-BBmMHWC?li=AAa0dzB

2. https://news.yahoo.com/victims-mourned-gunmans-rampage-colorado-springs-080625337.html

3. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/white-middle-aged-americans-are-dying_5637fdb6e4b079a43c046244

Addiction was also an issue, and appears to be one of the primary reasons with another fatal incident in Connecticut.

Decision-makers, though adding jobs globally is essential, and is a top priority right now, please perform a thorough cost/benefit analyses prior to deciding on legalization of marijuana. As per one estimate, taking this decision is supposed to result in ~$88B (please remember that it is an estimate) in savings in US, but in the grand scheme of things, $88B (if the estimate is right) equates to not even 0.5% of the country's GDP, and most of the savings might not mix with mainstream economy. For that matter, $88B is $32B lesser than what the banks are expected to raise in the near future. Another concern is that once the word, "marijuana-drug", gets accepted in the marketplace, it will set a precedence for other similar drugs in the future, and could also increase expenses from expanding health issues starting with illnesses coming out of lack of cleanliness/poor hygienic condition to other health epidemics for various reasons including global climactic conditions.

Instead, increasing savings from optimizing prescription drug expenses, and healthcare expenses could bring in more to the economy, which can be invested in other areas especially, education, research, infrastructure to name a few. At the same time, there could be other missing variables that could influence the team involved in the decision-making process, and hence, it is up to the decision-makers to make the final call.

By the way, there is a saying, "An idle mind is a dangerous thing/devil's workshop". For that matter, not only idle minds, but also confused minds at times. It makes me wonder whether the above articles are examples of this proverb. For those who might be reading this article, one way to keep our minds active is through learning new things such as, music, cooking, computers etc depending on an individual's taste. Also, surround yourself with right friends, and supporting family members when times are tough. Remember, times will change, and you will have better days in the future.